When my husband and I had children in the last half of the 20th century, baby-proofing our home consisted of getting a gate to block the stairway, covering all the electrical outlets, and adding safety clips to kitchen and bathroom cupboards so curious toddlers couldn’t open them. Now that our son and daughter-in-law have an almost one-year-old, I’m learning about how much more can be done to prevent accidents and make a home safer. What once took an hour or two is now a major project for young couples. Read more

Do you make avocado toast in Tiburon? Do you cook mac-and-kale in Cupertino? Maybe you read nutrition panels in Pinole, prepare recipes from Pinterest in Palo Alto or pickle in Petaluma. Whatever you cook and wherever you do it, if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, you probably use your kitchen a lot. So, this year, it’s time to make that kitchen work for you and your family. Whether you’re ready for an entire kitchen remodel or just need some helpful hacks, we have some suggestions about how to organize a kitchen. Read on!

Kitchen Work Zones

Start by understanding your kitchen work zones. Most kitchens have three core zones:

• Cooking
• Food preparation
• Cleaning

In addition, Read more

The recent wildfires destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in Northern California and left others in need of urgent repairs. With their lives upended, many residents are looking to start over and return to their former routines as quickly as possible. But those rebuilding after the wildfires need to move cautiously, as conditions are ripe for contractor scams. Unfortunately, history has shown that after a catastrophe, there are many bad actors ready and willing to take advantage of the vulnerable.

Contractors (especially good ones) are in high demand following a disaster. At the same time, there’s a lot of money available to the construction industry due to payouts from insurance policies and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Read more

It’s a dark night.

You’re in your living room, binge-watching the new season of “Stranger Things,” when you notice a shrill whistling sound coming from somewhere inside the house. You pause the show and get up to investigate.

Walking into the hall, you’re struck by a sudden chill in the air, which causes you to emit an involuntary shiver. You draw your arms inward and follow the whistling sound to your bedroom, but just as you open the door, it stops. You enter the still room and scan for any unusual signs. Read more

One of the most common complaints we hear from consumers who are starting remodeling projects is that contractors don’t submit estimates in a timely fashion. To address this, we’re republishing one of our most popular posts, which features advice from Joy Lanzaro, Director of Mediation and Compliance, on what to do when a contractor’s bid hasn’t arrived. Hope you find it helpful!

The complaint often looks like this:

“How long should I wait for my contractor to provide an estimate? The estimator seemed really nice and keeps promising a bid, but it’s been weeks! I try to only hire locally but I’m tired of waiting and wasting my time. If they didn’t want my business, Read more

One of the most critical aspects of fire safety is creating a “defensible space” around your home: a 100-foot radius of property that’s specifically maintained to minimize fire risks. However, defensible space is often misunderstood—a lot of people think it merely consists of clearcutting all trees, shrubs and bushes within 100 feet of their homes, but this oversimplifies the matter. In reality, creating a defensible space involves a specific strategy. Read more

Those of us who live in the Bay Area understand that a major earthquake could happen at any time. If we want to live here—with the mountains, beaches and great weather—we have to make an uneasy truce with the massive fault lines running beneath our homes. Luckily, while we don’t have to like our rowdy underground neighbors, we can preemptively call the cops on the party. Do these 14 things now and be prepared for a major quake.

1. Anchor tall bookshelves and other heavy or high furniture to the walls. Be sure to attach the items to the wall studs rather then the drywall.
2. Do not hang pictures or mirrors over beds or the couch.

Read more