KnowYard Community

"Competitive benefits" with no specifics = bad benefits. Real companies list their benefits because they're proud of them. Vague ones are hiding something.

Reolink cameras (no subscription, local storage) paired with SimpliSafe sensors for monitoring. Best of both worlds. Camera footage stays on YOUR hard drive, not someone else's cloud.

The caveat is that trades destroy your body. I'm 38 and my knees and back are shot. The money is real but so is the physical toll. Have a plan for what you do at 50.

Facebook marketplace for house rentals. A lot of smaller landlords don't list on Zillow or Apartments.com. Some of the best deals are private listings from owners.

Read your CC&Rs cover to cover. Half the violations HOAs send out are either not actually in the rules or they're enforcing selectively. If your neighbor's trash can is visible too, document it and bring it up.

Electrician for 12 years. Made $95K last year. Zero student debt. Bought a house at 24. I work hard but I'm not broke. Most of my college friends can't say both of those things.

Same thing happened to us last month. We added window sensors and a door bar on the sliding glass door. Total cost: $80. Sleep much better now.

Skip ADT. The equipment is overpriced, the contracts are 3 years, and the cancellation process is a nightmare. There's a reason they need door-to-door salespeople.

Ship to a UPS Store access point or FedEx hold location. Both are free. Less convenient but zero theft risk.

The fact that he tried the handle and moved on when it was locked tells you everything. Most of these people are looking for easy targets. Make your house not the easy one.

The $300/month savings is real. My coworker and I compared over 6 months. Her EV costs about $60/month in electricity vs my $340 in gas for similar driving.

Still waiting for prices to come down. Used EVs are getting more affordable though. Seen used Tesla Model 3s under $25K. Might be the move.

SimpliSafe. No contract, $17/month monitoring, easy DIY install. Had it 3 years and it's triggered twice from actual incidents — both times the monitoring center called within 30 seconds. Would buy again.

Ring Alarm Pro with the cameras. If you're already in the Ring ecosystem it just works. $20/month for monitoring and cloud storage for all cameras. The integration is the selling point.

The best part is when they finish one section and it's beautiful for about 6 months before the potholes come back because they used the cheapest materials possible.

Apartment dwellers are still screwed though. No home charging means relying on public chargers which are slower, more expensive, and sometimes broken. Until apartments have chargers, EVs are a homeowner thing.

Our neighborhood started a group chat where people post when they're expecting deliveries and others keep an eye out. Old school community policing. Actually works.

Ring footage and police reports don't accomplish anything in my experience. The camera is for insurance claims, not actual justice. Sad but true.

Look for areas near good school districts. Even if you don't have kids, school district quality correlates with neighborhood safety and maintenance. It's a useful proxy.

I have everything delivered to my office now. Annoying to carry it all home but at least it's secure.

Check the TxDOT project tracker website. You can see the actual contract, budget, and timeline. It won't make you feel better but at least you'll know when to expect relief.

Package lockbox on the porch. $80 on Amazon. You put a sign on it that says "delivery drivers: please place packages inside." Works 95% of the time. Haven't had a theft since.

I found a garage apartment behind someone's house for $950/month. Private entrance, quiet street, great neighborhood. Wouldn't have found it on any apartment website.

I watched someone walk out of a store with a full cart last week. Employees didn't even react. They're told not to intervene. I don't blame them — not worth getting hurt over merchandise.

Older suburbs that haven't been "discovered" yet by flippers. The apartment complexes built in the 90s-2000s that are well-maintained but not trendy. Those are the sweet spot.