Overview of Essential Inheritance Laws in Colorado

If you live in the state of Colorado, or if a family member or loved one has diedin the Mile High State, you may need information about the basic laws governing inheritance, probate, and an estate. The Colorado Probate Code establishes the essential elements of law that govern the manner in which a deceased person’s estate is dealt with in Colorado. There are a number of key features of the law that need to be understood.

Defining Probate Assets or Probate Property

In defining what constitutes probate property, an initial step is defining what are the assets of a person’s estate, according to the inheritance laws in Colorado. Determining what property is part of an estate and subject to probate as defined by the inheritance law is really an exercise in determining what property is not included. Property that will not be included in an estate and subject to the probate process includes:

• Assets held in a trust
• Property jointly owned with someone else that has a right of survivorship
• Life insurance with a designated beneficiary that is not the estate

Estates with a Will

The inheritance laws of Colorado distinguish between a person who has died with a last will and testament and one who has not. Simply, when a person dies with a will, the manner in which property is inherited is generally set forth within the confines of that legal instrument. In other words, the last wishes of a person who has died are honored to the extent permitted by law.

When a person passes on with a will, that instrument designates what is known as an executor. An executor is a person designated to oversee the affairs of the estate, including ensuring the distribution of assets or property to the heirs as set forth in the will.

Estates without a Will

In a fair amount of cases in Colorado, a person dies without having written a will or established a trust. Thus, the assets of such an estate are distributed to people as prescribed by Colorado law. The Colorado Probate Code specifically delineates who and how property is to be distributed to family members when an individual dies without a will. This legally is called intestate succession.

In this type of situation, the probate court appoints a personal representative to oversee the affairs of the estate when no will was prepared. An administrator undertakes the same types of tasks as does an executor.

Types of Probate Processes

Colorado has essentially adopted the Uniform Probate Code. This is a legal code that is in use in many states across the country. Pursuant to the Uniform Probate Code, there are three different types of probate processes that are utilized in the event of a person’s death. These are:

• Affidavit
• Informal
• Formal

The affidavit process is utilized when a person passes away, with or without a will, and has left assets behind with a value of $50,000 or less. There must also be no real estate.

Through the affidavit process, the property is identified, collected, and distributed to individuals designated in a will or pursuant to the Colorado intestate succession laws. When this is accomplished, an affidavit is filed with the probate court.

If an estate is valued at more than $50,000 or is less than that amount but involves real estate, either an informal or formal probate process must be pursued in court. A petition for probate is filed with the court. The presiding judge will undertake an initial review of the estate and make a determination as to whether or not it qualifies for the informal probate process.

If an estate qualifies for informal probate, the executor or personal representative is able to address the affairs of the estate with little involvement from the probate court. In many cases, the executor or personal representative will only need to file a document with the court when the affairs of the estate have been addressed advising the court of the conclusion.

On the other hand, if a judge determines a formal probate process must be utilized, the court will be more involved in the process of addressing the affairs of the estate. For example, the court will approve the sale of real estate before such a transaction can be undertaken.

In the aftermath of the death of a family member, consulting with a qualified attorney is advisable when it comes to ascertaining what will and will not be necessary in regard to Colorado probate, estate, and inheritance laws. The first step is seeking an initial consultation with a Colorado probate and estate lawyer, for which there typically is no cost.

5 Common Mistakes Made by Freelancer Newbies

An ever increasing number of people are turning to freelancing with each passing year. If you are embarking on professional life as a freelancer, you likely have established some solid objectives. What you may not have closely focused on are mistakes that are made by new freelancers with some regularity. Indeed, there are five common mistakes routinely made by freelancer newbies.

Treat Income Like Profit

One of the most common mistakes by new freelancers is treating income like profit. A new freelancer likely had a job before embarking on freelancing. That may be your situation as well. As a result, you are used to receiving a regular paycheck at specific times.

As a freelancer, you are responsible for taxes and a myriad over overhead or operation expenses. You must make sure that you set aside money each month to cover these expenses in advance of allocating money to yourself as your "pay." If you don't engage in this practice, you can end up with a freelancing business in debt, and ultimately financially dysfunctional.

Although the amount of money set aside for expenses depends on the type of freelancing business you launch. With that said, a good estimate is to put aside about 30 percent of your income each month for taxes and other expenses.

If you utilize a payment service like PayPal to receive payments from your clients, you might want to consider using it to coordinate your own "pay." For example, you might want to consider paying yourself a salary or wage twice a month via your payment service account. In other words, you can pay yourself twice a month via PayPal or a similar service.

Let Clients Set Price

Another major mistake that a new freelancer oftentimes is make is letting clients set the prices or fees for services. Although it is true that deciding what to charge in the way of fees can be challenging at the outset, you cannot let your clients take advantage of your status as a new freelancer.

In your own like, you do not go to service providers and name the price for their professional services. In the same way, your own clients should not be in the position to set your fees. You are a professional service provider and need to be treated as such.

As part your efforts in advance of launching your freelance business, establish a fee schedule. Over time, you will be able to determine how and when your initial fees need to be adjusted, one way or another. In addition, you can reach out to other freelancers who provide services in your area. They likely will be willing to assist you in determining your fees for services.

Delegate Routine Tasks

Many new freelancers fail to delegate routine tasks that do not require their professional expertise. For example, tasks like bookkeeping and accounting can be delegated to a professional. You do not need to waste your valuable time engaged in tasks that can be undertaken by someone else.

Other types of tasks that can be delegated in many cases include invoicing, taxes, and managing social media. (Social media can be vital to a freelancer. However, you run the risk of squandering an unnecessary amount of time on social media.)

Spread Yourself Too Thin

Yet another common mistake associated with a new freelancer is becoming spread too thin. By this it is meant that you offer too broad an array of services. Your initial inclination in starting a freelance endeavor is that you will be better served by offering your clients a wide spectrum of services.

You enhance your prospects for freelancing success by focusing your services. Develop a specific niche of a particular service, or a few services, through which you ultimately can be recognized as an expert.

Say Yes to Everything

On a related note, another mistake a new freelancer makes is to accept every offer or request for assistance received. Not all proposed jobs, gigs, or projects are the same. You must be selective about the projects you select. You must learn to say "no." Saying no and setting boundaries are vital to freelancing success in the short and long term.

Make sure that projects you select from prospective clients are a good fit as far as your interests and abilities are concerned. You will also want to select projects that you will have a better chance of enjoying. Nothing is worse than being a new freelancer faced with projects you do not like to undertake.

Enhance Your Home's Value with Solar Panels

There are a variety of benefits to be derived from installing solar panels at your residence. These include lowering energy costs and lessening the environmental impact your residence has on the surrounding world.

If you elect to install solar panels at your home, you are likely to enjoy another significant benefit. Solar panels will nearly always increase the market value of your residence.

Research by United States Department of Energy

The United States Department of Energy has overseen a recent research study that examines how sustainable features increase the value of a home. These sustainable features include rooftop solar panels. The end result of this study is that appraisers need to include solar panels into an overall calculation of home value.

The research study was conducted by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California. The study examined sales data from approximately 23,000 homes in eight states. The study covered a time period from 2002 to 2013. Of the residences included in the study, about 4,000 of the homes had solar photovoltaic systems. Of these systems, all of them owned as opposed to being leased through some sort of solar energy enterprise.

Specific Research Study Findings

The researchers learned that home buyers were willing to pay a premium for a residence that came complete with a solar energy system. The average premium as about $15,000 for a residence that has an average-size solar photovoltaic system. An average system is defined as 3.6 kilowatts, or 3,600 watts. This breaks down to a price increase on the value of a home of about $4 for every watt of energy generated through a solar system.

This particular study involved more sales of homes with solar systems than did previous research. This study is considered to be particularly "robust" in regard to the number of homes involved in it.

Increase in the Number of Home Solar Systems

Over the course of the past 10 years, the number of residences in which solar panels have been installed has been on the increase. This is significantly a result of the fact that the costs associated with residential solar systems has been dropping. Currently, over 500,000 U.S. residences have solar systems in place.

Real Estate Professionals and Home Solar Systems

Despite the results of this research study, and related data, real estate professionals have been somewhat behind the curb in appreciating how solar systems increase the inherent value of a residence. This includes agents, brokers, appraisers, and lenders.

Fannie Mae and Residential Solar Energy Systems

Fannie Mae, a major player in the home mortgage market, has been relatively proactive when it comes to the impact solar energy systems have on residential property. Fannie Mae issued guidelines specifying how an appraiser needs to analyze a solar system in light of the prevailing real estate market.

The Fannie Mae guidelines are described as having "critical verbiage: designed to provide specific guidance regarding addressing the impact solar panels have on the overall value of residential real estate.

Leased Residential Solar Energy Systems

As referenced previously, this particular study addressed only residential solar energy systems that are owned by the homeowner. The study excluded leased systems from the mix.

The recommendation from this initial research is that further research on the impact of leased systems needs to be conducted. The thought is that even a leased system that is not owned outright by a homeowner does contribute in some manner to the market value of a home.

There are a number of factors to bear in mind when it comes to a leased system. First, some of these systems are designed with the ultimate objective of transferring ownership to the homeowner at the end of a specific lease term. Second, in other scenarios, the lease continues indefinitely with the exiting homeowner. The issue in both situations (when the lease is active) is does the property interest transfer to a new homeowner. There are differences in this regard among different agreements.

Residential Solar System Trends

Most industry analysts predict that an ever increasing number of residences in the United States will feature rooftop solar panels and associated solar energy systems. One of the primary reasons this trend is expected to continue into the future is because the coasts associated with these systems is expected to continue to drop.

A second reason why these systems are expected to become even more prevalent arises from the fact that more and more homeowners are becoming interested in "green homes." Installing a solar energy system represents one of the surest ways that a homeowner can have a more positive impact on the environment.

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Jessica Kane is a professional blogger who writes for Federal Steel Supply, Inc., a leading steel tubing suppliers of carbon, alloy and stainless steel pipe, tubes, fittings and flanges

5 Common Mistakes Made by Freelancer Newbies

An ever increasing number of people are turning to freelancing with each passing year. If you are embarking on professional life as a freelancer, you likely have established some solid objectives. What you may not have closely focused on are mistakes that are made by new freelancers with some regularity. Indeed, there are five common mistakes routinely made by freelancer newbies.

Treat Income Like Profit

One of the most common mistakes by new freelancers is treating income like profit. A new freelancer likely had a job before embarking on freelancing. That may be your situation as well. As a result, you are used to receiving a regular paycheck at specific times.

As a freelancer, you are responsible for taxes and a myriad over overhead or operation expenses. You must make sure that you set aside money each month to cover these expenses in advance of allocating money to yourself as your “pay.” If you don’t engage in this practice, you can end up with a freelancing business in debt, and ultimately financially dysfunctional.

Although the amount of money set aside for expenses depends on the type of freelancing business you launch. With that said, a good estimate is to put aside about 30 percent of your income each month for taxes and other expenses.

If you utilize a payment service like PayPal to receive payments from your clients, you might want to consider using it to coordinate your own “pay.” For example, you might want to consider paying yourself a salary or wage twice a month via your payment service account. In other words, you can pay yourself twice a month via PayPal or a similar service.

Let Clients Set Price

Another major mistake that a new freelancer oftentimes is make is letting clients set the prices or fees for services. Although it is true that deciding what to charge in the way of fees can be challenging at the outset, you cannot let your clients take advantage of your status as a new freelancer.

In your own like, you do not go to service providers and name the price for their professional services. In the same way, your own clients should not be in the position to set your fees. You are a professional service provider and need to be treated as such.

As part your efforts in advance of launching your freelance business, establish a fee schedule. Over time, you will be able to determine how and when your initial fees need to be adjusted, one way or another. In addition, you can reach out to other freelancers who provide services in your area. They likely will be willing to assist you in determining your fees for services.

Delegate Routine Tasks

Many new freelancers fail to delegate routine tasks that do not require their professional expertise. For example, tasks like bookkeeping and accounting can be delegated to a professional. You do not need to waste your valuable time engaged in tasks that can be undertaken by someone else.

Other types of tasks that can be delegated in many cases include invoicing, taxes, and managing social media. (Social media can be vital to a freelancer. However, you run the risk of squandering an unnecessary amount of time on social media.)

Spread Yourself Too Thin

Yet another common mistake associated with a new freelancer is becoming spread too thin. By this it is meant that you offer too broad an array of services. Your initial inclination in starting a freelance endeavor is that you will be better served by offering your clients a wide spectrum of services.

You enhance your prospects for freelancing success by focusing your services. Develop a specific niche of a particular service, or a few services, through which you ultimately can be recognized as an expert.

Say Yes to Everything

On a related note, another mistake a new freelancer makes is to accept every offer or request for assistance received. Not all proposed jobs, gigs, or projects are the same. You must be selective about the projects you select. You must learn to say “no.” Saying no and setting boundaries are vital to freelancing success in the short and long term.

Make sure that projects you select from prospective clients are a good fit as far as your interests and abilities are concerned. You will also want to select projects that you will have a better chance of enjoying. Nothing is worse than being a new freelancer faced with projects you do not like to undertake.

Jessica Kane is a professional blogger who writes for Faxage a leading company that provides Internet fax service for individuals and businesses.

7 Part Time Business Ideas You Can Start in Your Spare Time

If you are like many people, you may have an interest in earning more money. As a result, you may be pondering what you might be able to do in the way of a part time business you can start in your spare time.

As an aside, you may also have an interest in starting a part time business in your spare time that is capable of growing into something larger. Noting these possible objectives, there are seven part time business ideas you can start in your spare time.

Social Media Posts for Businesses

Businesses of all types have come to understand the important of developing a social media presence. The reality is that many businesses don't have the time or an understanding of what to do to launch and maintain an effective social media endeavor.

One business you can launch and run on a part time basis in your spare time is creating social media posts for businesses. You may find that there is a decent number of businesses that are interested in your services. Over time, you may end up with more clients that desire this type of assistance than you ever imagined.

Personal Assistant

A second part time business idea that you can launch in your spare time is that of a personal assistant. A growing number of entrepreneurs are turning to virtual personal assistants as a means of getting help and support for at least some of the tasks they need to undertake as part of running their enterprises.

You certainly can be a real world personal assistant on a part time basis. However, you might also want to take the virtual approach. This makes working as a personal assistant a more convenient proposition. This particularly is helpful when you want to undertake this on a part time basis, in your spare time.

Pet Services

A majority of people have pets. A majority of people work. The combination of these two realities renders it challenging for a pet owner to tend to everything that must be done for their companion animals.

One part time business idea that you can launch in your spare time is providing some type of pet services. There is a myriad of different types of pet services that you can consider. They range from everything from dog walking to pet sitting to "poop" removal.

Baking or Cooking

If you have a flare for baking or cooking, this is a skillset that you can turn into a part time business you can start and then run in your spare time. As is the case with pet services, there are a variety of different options to you when it comes to baking or cooking.

Returning to the reality that many people have hectic lives, and little time to tend to the affairs of the home, hiring someone to prepare meals on a regular basis can prove to be a godsend. This is one area in which you can find a nice in this particular area of the marketplace. Other baking and cooking possibilities include baked goods, health food items, and similar products.

You might also consider catering in a small scale, part time basis. A smaller catering operation allows you to get your foot in the door should you elect to do something more substantial in the future.

Freelance Writing

Thousands of people across the United States engage in freelance writing on a part time basis and in their spare time. If you have solid writing skills, this is another avenue you might want to pursue when you are interesting in starting a part time business venture in your spare time.

Tutor

Many people, in all levels of school, require additional assistance when it comes to getting a handle on their coursework. A part time business that you can start in your free time is tutoring. Odds are that there is a particular subject matter that you have an aptitude. In addition, there is also likely an educational level that you have a stronger desire to tutor. By focusing on these considerations, you can develop a select tutoring niche and being working with students, even online.

Personal Trainer

A final idea that you might want to consider as a part time business you can start in your spare time is becoming a personal trainer. You must have the proper skillset for this type of business, of course. If that exists, you actually have a considerable amount of flexibility in working as a personal trainer.

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Jessica Kane is a professional blogger who focuses on personal finance and other money matters. She currently writes for Checkworks.com, where you can get personal checks and business checks.

Improve Your Life By Using Your Money

There’s a movement toward redefining money: instead of accumulating money for what it can buy, more of us want to use money to live the best life possible with what we have––a concept known as Return on Life™ (ROL).

With ROL, money becomes a tool to help you live the life you want. Accumulating as much wealth as possible is no longer the primary objective of your financial plan.

The traditional path to saving and investing has been to focus on the future (retirement) and rely solely on numbers and return on investment (ROI). However, this approach often can be misleading because it doesn’t consider your individual circumstances. “Beating the market” is often an artificial objective because it is not likely to have a substantive impact on your unique situation. Consider this: what does beating the market by one percent less (or more) mean to how you live your life? Do market returns have an impact on how you live your life?

What is relevant is developing a financial plan that considers the following:

• How much do you currently have invested?
• What is your current cash flow?
• What transitions are you currently experiencing, or expect to experience (examples include paying down debt, divorce, concern about illness, job loss, retirement, purchasing a home, providing financial assistance to a family member)?
• Do I feel comfortable with my level of financial obligations (examples include housing expenses, leisure activities, and healthcare expenses)?

By incorporating these factors into your planning, we can begin to understand what needs to change (or not change) in order to live the best life possible without overextending yourself. You may even be pleasantly surprised to learn you can enjoy the fruits of your labors sooner than expected!

Money does not exist for its own sake. Money exists as a utility that we use to improve our lives.  How your returns compare to any index, fund, investment category, or another person are less consequential than whether you are meeting your own ROL goals. Measure your success against your objectives, not someone else’s. You don’t need to keep up with the Jones’—or anyone else.

In order to enjoy ROL, you need to understand where all your money is coming from and where all your money is going––and why.

Understanding the “why” enables us to create a plan that works for you and your individual circumstances. You may be living above your means and need to make changes to your lifestyle. Or you may already have enough and be able to take a trip or enjoy another experience you have been putting off.

Together we can address the following questions:

• What challenges and opportunities are you currently facing?
• What key transitions are looming on the horizon?

Your answers to these questions will determine the inflow and outflow of money, as well as your financial progress or decline. Knowing your age, and how long you expect to live isn’t enough to develop a financial plan that works.

With ROL, you don’t give up the best of life or the best parts of yourself just to get money. The money is there to serve you, not vice versa. Instead of focusing on someone else’s definition of success, write our own. ROL puts quality before quantity by managing your assets in a way that improves your life and provides peace of mind.

In traditional financial planning, the primary components include asset, risk, and debt management, as well as tax, estate, and income planning. All of these areas are essential and necessary for a strong financial plan, but there is more to developing a strong financial plan than numbers.

We all have different values and principles regarding money. Each of us has a history, present circumstances, and future hopes that are unique. By focusing only on numbers, we miss enjoying life now and in the future because we only concentrate on accumulating wealth. A financial plan designed with ROL as its foundation is designed to build freedom, relieve the pressure of ROI-focused planning, and ensure your plan meets your goals.

There is no greater freedom, and no greater wealth, than living the best life you can with the money you have.

Savings: Does Your Desire to Save Match Your Reality?

That piggy bank we remember from childhood wasn’t just a place to store our birthday money and spare change: it was a lesson, a way our parents encouraged us to get into the habit of saving. Many parents even go so far as to deposit half of any monetary gifts their children receive directly into a savings account, just to drive the point home. Adults who took that lesson to heart might set up automatic deposits into long-term savings or retirement accounts from their paychecks every month – a modern mechanism for implementing this age-old lesson. It’s important to have financial goals and committing to a regular savings plan is good first step towards achieving them. But if you treat your long-term financial planning as just a series of targets to hit, or numbers you have to drive up as much as possible, your return on investment is going to be a lot higher than your Return on Life – the feelings of happiness and fulfillment that your financial planning should provide you.  Visit us at www.kjhfinancialservices.com to learn more. 

How to Master the “ART” of Retirement

Retirement is not an end. It’s an experiment in Activity, Relationships, and Time (ART). And like all experiments, the ART of retirement involves some trial and error. It’s not easy leaving behind the routine, the people, and the places that were such a big part of your life while you were working.

But a successful retirement is “work” too, especially at the beginning. Trying to settle on a new routine that will keep you happy and connected isn’t as easy as it sounds. You will make mistakes. You will feel frustrated. You might even feel a little bit lost.

One easy way to smooth this challenging transition is to plan ahead. If your retirement is just around the corner, start thinking about what your retirement ART is going to look like, and how you plan on practicing it.

Activity

Jack just retired. He has no idea how to spend his time anymore. So, he putters around the house, fixing stuff that isn’t broken, rearranging things that don’t need to be rearranged, watching a lot of TV … and driving his wife, Jill, crazy.

We chuckle when we see a scenario like this play out in a movie or TV show. But Retired Hubby or Wifey Syndrome is a very real problem. Many senior couples have spent eight hours or more apart from each other every single day for decades. Then, suddenly, they’re together all the time.

Often, this is the moment when spouses realize they each have very different ideas about what retirement is going to be like. One spouse might have visions of a hammock in the backyard. The other might have plans to see the world. Somewhere in between those expectations are the activities that are going to make retirement worthwhile for both people.

The things you do in retirement should be meaningful, stimulating, and energizing. Your passions should be your guide to a new routine – both with your spouse, and apart from him or her. Take professional lessons to turn a hobby like golf or painting into a real skill. Volunteer at a charity or nonprofit that’s close to your heart. You and your spouse can indulge your inner foodies with weekly date nights to try out all the new hot spots in town.

Relationships

Your spouse isn’t the only person you’ll be seeing more often in retirement. Your relationships with the rest of your friends and family are also going to change now that you’re no longer working. This too can be difficult, as many of the people you spent 40 hours every week with at your job recede from your day-to-day routine.

But this can also be a wonderful opportunity to connect with the people who matter the most to you. Once you and your spouse make it through the initial adjustment period, you’ll be able to spend time doing the things that brought you together in the first place. Planning trips and extended vacations around your children and grandchildren will create meaningful experiences that you’ll carry with you for the rest of your life.

Your social calendar also gets a whole lot bigger. Fill it up! Organize your friends for a weekly round of golf. Plan date nights with other retired couples. If there are people you lost touch with due to the grind of working and raising a family, reconnect.

Time

Time without the structure that work provides can be challenging for retirees. On the one hand, without meetings and project deadlines to worry about, time can seem so limitless that it’s overwhelming. On the other hand, many seniors still react to retirement like it’s an end to dread. They feel like their time is slipping away.

But these outdated notions just don’t suit today’s retirement or today’s retirees. Retirees are more active, more connected to their communities, more adventurous, more ALIVE than they’ve ever been! And they organize their time in retirement around the activities and relationships that make them feel happy and fulfilled.

Like we said at the top, retirement is an ART you have to work to perfect. You’ll make mistakes, and you’ll learn from them and adjust. You might load up your schedule with activities, only to find that having less structure allows you to explore your options a bit more. You might find the initial lack of structure maddening, and work on a new routine. You might try a part time job. You might like it. You might not.

There’s no one way to have a successful retirement. But the sooner you start working with us to refine your ART, the more beautiful your retirement picture will be.

Saving for a Vacation Home: Plan for the Financial End of Things

Saving money for a vacation home can be difficult, and when you’re a senior on a fixed income, it can take some creative thinking to make sure you have the funds you need for the perfect getaway. Not only will you need to think about saving for a second mortgage, you’ll also need to consider the extra costs that you’ll incur from taxes and furnishing your new home. Then you’ll need to think about whether you want to turn your vacation home into a rental property when you’re not using it in order to recoup some of your investment.

A good financial plan begins with educating yourself about the real cost of a vacation home. Think about what it will take to make your dream a reality. Of course you’ll need money for the down payment, but you’ll also need funds to cover all the extra costs that come with a home, such as property taxes, utilities, HOA fees, and insurance, just to name a few. The location is a huge factor not only in cost, but in convenience, as the ideal vacation home is far enough away to be a “getaway” but close enough to your home that you can manage the upkeep.

Read on for some tips on how to plan for your vacation home and get everything you want out of it.

Location is key

The perfect vacation home means different things to different people. You may want something near the beach, near a ski resort, or in an area that has lots of restaurants nearby. You might want a home that fulfills needs for your health and well-being, such as a floor plan that works well for individuals with limited mobility. Take into consideration your lifestyle, your budget, and how often you’ll be using the home when you start your search, and gather some info on what the neighborhood is like as well.

Calculate well

Budgeting for something as big as a vacation home means doing some heavy planning. You need to make sure you’re familiar with all the rules of the areafirst, as some cities, homeowner associations, and resorts make their own set of laws when it comes to properties and amenities. Talk to a real estate agent and an accountant to get a good idea of what you’ll need to set aside.

Don’t forget the upkeep

Vacation homes often need updates when it comes to the kitchen and bathrooms, and these improvements can be pricey if you’re not careful with your budget and planning. One of the best ways to keep your home in good shape is to keep up with repairs and small changes rather than waiting to do them all at the same time. If you’re fairly close to your vacation home and can make a few trips a year for maintenance and upkeep, it will likely save you quite a bit of money in the long run. HomeAdvisor states that the average cost to remodel a kitchen is between $16,348 and $38,800, which is a big chunk of change. However, making green improvements, such as installing energy-efficient appliances or solar panels to the roof, can help you with tax credits as well as save you money on utilities every month, and that’s a great place to start with your budget.

Consider renting it out

While there are certainly downsides to renting out your vacation home, there are many upsides, too, including the fact that you’ll be getting extra income to help pay the mortgage. You’ll need to check and make sure this is an option before buying your home, as well as think about whether you’ll be available for emergencies should something go awry when the renters are in the home, but many vacation homeowners find this to be a great way to balance out the cost of the house.

Saving money for a vacation home starts with a solid plan, so make an effort to consider all your needs before you begin the process. Talk to your family about your plans and garner support and help from your loved ones to help make everything go smoothly.