Lisa Nave and twelve other formerly homeless veterans walked into a completed Capital Studios last month for the first time. It was a momentous occasion. They took a tour of their new community together and signed their leases. For Lisa, that day meant finally putting all of her belongings in one place and moving into a stable, safe home of her very own.

“I feel rested, and I am relaxed,” Lisa said. “I haven’t felt this way ever.”

There were times in Lisa’s life when she would barricade her doors and windows because she didn’t feel safe. She spent sleepless nights in the bed of her truck, on friends’ couches and, most recently, in a homeless shelter.

Lisa left the U.S. Army Reserve reluctantly after 19 years of service. She was 35 at the time and struggling with the repercussions of the abuse, neglect and harassment she faced both as a child and as an adult.

Lisa had enlisted in the Army to escape her dysfunctional childhood home and the military became her way of life. When mental health issues worsened in her early 30s, she lost the only career she had ever known.

Five months after leaving the military, Lisa had depleted her savings. Her past haunted her and her future seemed bleak.

Lisa and her teenage daughter moved from place to place, trying to find a home where they belonged.

“I didn’t have a place where I felt welcome, even with my own family,” Lisa said.

Ultimately, Lisa was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and her doctor urged her to get counseling. Lisa made the decision to move to Austin to get the treatment she needed and to be close to her daughter, who now lives in San Antonio. She found Austin Clubhouse, a Foundation Communities partner, as a critical source of support.

At Capital Studios, Lisa said she is enjoying the simple pleasures that are often taken for granted: a warm shower, a satisfying meal, a bed to rest her head. She is also looking to her future, which she said is filled with healing and opportunities.

“I’ve always lived in haunted houses,” Lisa said. “Now I can have a home sweet home.”

When Joyce Guagliardo first visited our Community Tax Centers a few years ago, she lived in less than ideal circumstances.

Joyce was in and out of the hospital and for a while she was homeless, sleeping on other people’s couches or living in her car. Years of serious physical and mental health issues made it impossible for her to maintain a full-time job.

Joyce’s family had always prided themselves on their work ethic.

“I had never relied on anyone for anything,” she said.

It was hard for her to give up work and remain optimistic about the future given her health challenges.

Since being introduced to Foundation Communities, Joyce said that she finally feels like she’s moving forward again.

Most significantly, Joyce and her husband Lawrence moved into Buckingham Place Duplexes, one of our family communities in south Austin. As residents, the Guagliardos have participated in many of our financial stability programs, learning how to cut their utility bills in half and taking our money management classes.

Earlier this year, Joyce returned to our Community Tax Centers and met with long-time volunteer Sid Stuewe. She cried when she found out she was going to meet with Sid because she felt relieved to be in such capable hands.

Every time she visits the Community Tax Centers, Joyce said our volunteers are friendly and knowledgeable. “I’m not in the dark about anything,” she said. Joyce said she is incredibly grateful to Foundation Communities and to all of the dedicated volunteers she has met over the years.

We rely on over 2,000 volunteers annually to carry out the programs that serve our residents and neighbors. In 2014, volunteers at our Community Tax Centers prepared more than 20,000 tax returns, resulting in over $36 million in refunds for hard-working, local families. We hope to assist even more families during the 2015 tax season and we need you! As a Community Tax Centers volunteer, you’ll truly make a difference for folks like Joyce.

Whether you are interested in our Buckingham Palace, Sierra Ridge, Vintage Creek or Crossroads Austin family apartments or studios for single adults or you are more eager to move to our North Texas community, we invite you to get in touch with us and let us handle everything for you. We can recommend the best locations for you and our family while emphasizing the importance of sustainability. Get ready for a gorgeous smoke free, healthy environment in the close proximity of public transportation and other important amenities in the city. And if you are all packed and on the verge of moving, here are a few helpful thing to keep in mind when reaching your new home.

Pest-proof Your Home

This will save you from a lot of trouble later on; even if the place looks spotless and you see no reason why you should do this, it’s better to be safe than sorry. You should think about setting off a bug bomb calling an exterminator who can come and spray the apartment so you can stay on the safe side. You will be bringing in food and flavors that tend to attract various bugs and ants, so it’s best to be proactive and avoid actually having to deal with a pest invasion later on. This is especially advised if you have small children who will crawl on the floors a lot – you don’t want them exposed to harsh chemicals after you move in. So take advantage of the few hours you have at hand before the moving truck unloads and call a specialist.

Start Fresh – Change Locks, Install Windows Treatments

It is a good idea to give your place a thorough clean and insist on the floors, windows, and baseboards. It is a good idea to have windows treatments installed so you can enjoy a tranquil night protected against curious eyes lurking out the window and checking your belongings out.

Have a locksmith come over and evaluate the state of the locks around the house and rekey them or install fresh ones you can never know who else still has a duplicate key for your how place, so this step is mandatory. For those of you who are about to move to the Greater Chicago area, a fast Chicago locksmith in the area that handles lock rekey and lock installation for homes is the best solution. You can try to uninstall the old locks and install new ones by yourself but it will most likely be a challenge task and the last thing you need before you move is handle yet another stressful event. The peace of mind you will gain from hiring the service of authorized locksmiths are easy to grasp; find a licensed company that offers mobile services on a 24/7 basis so they can handle your lockouts or fast key duplicate needs as soon as possible. Pick a crew with small flat rates and always inquire about any additional fees they might add to the final costs you originally agreed upon. Unexpected work and tools might be needed or complex locks, but make sure you do not get ripped off by scammers who are not few in this industry.

One of our main points of focus refers to making important investments in green building initiatives. Why?  To cut operating costs as well as our carbon footprint in the environment, while bringing positive changes on our residents’ monthly utility bills. How? By using construction materials and resources more efficiently throughout the entire life cycle of a building. Also, though a more efficient use of energy, water, protecting occupant health and enhancing the productivity of employees, while reducing waste and pollution.

Every Small Detail Matters

If you are interested in becoming one of our residents or donating money r materials for cause, know our main concern will be to lower the harmful effects of building a new construction from scratch through every mean possible. This includes everything from recycling materials to contracting green locksmiths to install the locks on all the doors inside our buildings. The green handyman movement is a relatively new one, stimulated by the necessity of better protecting the environment against artificial pollutants. Since lockout services imply the use of heavy metal tools and disposable parts that can pollute the nature, working together with technicians genuinely concerned about these apparently insignificant matters is a great idea.  

How Can Eco-friendly Locksmiths Be Found? 

Not that easy at the moment, since there are not as many of them to begin with. Hopefully, in time, more companies and independent handymen will decide to join the green movement and use recycling and responsible disposal of broken parts more often than not. while you can easily get in touch with a Locksmith in Los Angeles whenever you need to rekey a broken lock, install a new security system around the house, or unlock an accidentally blocked door, it’ less likely to discover an expert who will drive an electric car to your location, or recycle the metallic deadbolts and screws or handles you will no longer need. The majority of locksmiths are used to either leaving these items behind into the hand of customers who are forced to get rid of them usually the wrong way- throwing them right to the trash– but a handful of green locksmiths will make sure to pick them up and take them to specialized metal disposal containers.

Organic lubricants are also used as a trademark of eco-friendly locksmiths when they need to fix door broken locks or unlock hammed doors. If you alike in the L.A. area and you are currently in need of a locksmith for a residential service, you can call the 24/7 Los Angeles Locksmiths and fellows and ask the customer support operator if they can use organic product – in case you’re your kids or pets need extra protection against harmful substances – or you are an eco-friendly kind of person! Their rates are some of the lowest there and they also offer nonstop emergency lockout help for home, car, and office within 20 minutes of placing a call. As the resident of one of our apartments, you can bookmark an emergency locksmith number you can use whenever in lockout distress that requires immediate attention.

We are currently catering to the needs of over 2,800 families and the numbers also include 228 children who were formerly homeless. We offer single adults 600 efficiency apartments to choose from and our work does not stop here. We also provide our households’ residents with a wide array of educational, financial, and health-related opportunities so they can make a better life for themselves. You can find us in Austin and North Texas if you are interested in one of our rentals – or if you wish to volunteer for us in any way. And because we like to throw all the focus on our residents, here are some quick repair tips for fixing things around the house when you are on a budget.

How To Rapidly Fix Annoying Home Ailments – By Yourself

Kitchen sink is so clogged you feel only a plumber can save you out of this one? try a solution made from half a cup vinegar and half a cup baking soda and pour hot, boiled water in and let it sit over the night. If this doesn’t do it, use a solution made of half a cup of salt and half a cup of baking soda and hot water. If this doesn’t work either, you might need to call a plumber to have the pipes detached from the sink and get the dirt clogging them out.  

If your locks are a little loose or you notice the door knob not working properly, before you perform a quick online emergency locksmith near me search on your laptop using the locksmiths-search database with 10,000 technicians in it, use some lubricant or a simple screwdriver and try to put the knob back in place. If this is not a matter of a loose screw, and your lock might need rekeying or some more advanced repair, it is best to contact a professional locksmith to avoid any unfortunate occurrences such as having to spend the night in an unlocked apartment. You are talking about your safety here, so you may want to pick the best solution possible, even if it means having to spend some money in the process.    

If you are confronting with the problem of annoying chairs ruining your beautiful flooring, use hammer in tacks you can attach felt pads to for your dining chairs and use rubber pads for your sofa and beds that usually stay in just one place around the house.

The unemployment rates in America may have dropped in the last few months, but there are still those who are struggling to manage to make it from day to day.

Not many of these people keep themselves to a spending plan for their monthly expenditures and we’re here to let you know why you should be keeping yourself and your family to a tight budget plan.

There are a number of different benefits to keeping yourself on a financial budget plan and the most important of which is that it lets you keep on top of all the cash going in and out of your account.

There’s an old saying that goes ‘Control your money, don’t let your money control you’ and having complete control over your finances can make your life considerably easier as it reduces stress and lets you figure out a monthly spending plan.

Having a budget plan also lets you get your monthly costs in perspective. So rather than feeling like you’re constantly paying bills, you will be able to figure out how much has to be set aside each month and if you have any sources of expendable income to use.

Budget planning will also let you come up with financial goals for yourself. For example, if you were aiming to buy a new car, planning out your costs would let you figure out how much you would have to set aside each month.

But it’s not just financial goals you can set up because you will also be able to create a nest egg for a rainy day or to cover any unforeseen costs. After all, we know how expensive medical bills can become, especially if you can’t afford the insurance to cover your costs.

By creating a planned budget, you can also figure out if there are other ways to get more from your money through savings accounts, bonds or investments in the financial market. Although you may want to extensively research this to make sure you’re making the right decision and getting the most from your money.

It’s like how you would spend some time researching a casino or bingo sites bingo bonuses to make sure they were giving you the best offer on your investments before you put any of your money in.

An interesting thing about creating a budget plan is that it also lets you look at potential debt loads. Of course, debt is always seen as a bad thing by many as it can often cause more harm than good, but there are times when it can realistically be covered and work to your benefit.  Although, this only happens if you have a good enough plan you could easily pay back any loans you take out, but it is possible.

There are numerous financial problems that can be solved by creating a budget plan. So if you ever find yourself struggling to cope with your monthly costs, try building up a plan because it will help out a lot!