Category Archives: Technology

Essex Homes Announces In2itive

In2itive TechnologyWe live in a world with so many technological advancements that it’s often hard to keep up with the ever-changing times. Complete home automation may sound too technical, complex and expensive to some homeowners because it’s been uncommon for so many years. But take a moment to visualize what it would be like to have comprehensive control of multiple rooms in your home with just your cell phone. Consider having the ability and capability to properly manage energy to help lower your utilities. Imagine no longer – what was once a fantasy is now a reality with Essex Home’s new eBuilt In2itive Technology!

Essex Homes is always finding new ways to make their Columbia-area buyers’ lives easier, healthier and more economical. They have advanced their already incredible eBuilt Technology program by announcing the release of eBuilt In2itive Technology. Buyers will still get the same great building technology that has been saving them hundreds every year, except now they can control their home with their smart phone.

The In2itive smart home automation system allows buyers to control various aspects of their home with the touch of a button with no monthly fee.  The eBuilt In2itive Technology program offers whole-house automation with options for multi-room audio, lighting and outlet controls; camera monitoring and video door entry; whole-house intercom; home security system integration; and a surface-mounted command center controller. Essex Homes provides buyers with an integrated system that syncs with numerous components such as the Schlage key-less door lock and the Honeywell smart thermostat.

Life makes it difficult for you to be where you need to be on time and it’s certainly impossible to be two places at once. Having the convenience of accessing your home systems remotely can be a time and life saver. With savings in mind, Essex Homes has provided the In2itive system to help buyers manage their home’s energy consumption. With your smart phone, you can automate your thermostat to adjust the settings throughout the day. Wireless home security is also a feature that can’t be ignored. With camera monitoring and video door entry, buyers can rest assured that their home is safe at all hours of the day.

Essex Homes builds homes so you can live better and smarter. For more information on this new technology or any of our Columbia-area communities, prospective buyers can call 844-456-2020 or visit www.EssexHomes.net.

Essex Homes Announces New eBuilt In2itive Technology

In2itive TechnologyEssex Homes is proud to announce the release of eBuilt In2itive Technology. The Carolina home builder is working smarter to make its buyers’ lives easier, healthier and more economical.  Essex Homes’ eBuilt Technology has always been at the top of its class, and now it’s even more advanced with the release of In2itive. In addition, Columbia area buyers can now enjoy enhanced technological features at a lower cost.

The Essex Homes eBuilt program hones into three specific components: energy savings, environmental savings and economical savings. These components paved the way to better building standards and improved the experience of the homebuilding industry as whole. Buyers will still get the same great building technology that has been saving them hundreds every year through the eBuilt program. But now, buyers will also enjoy the ease and convenience of home automation with the new eBuilt In2itive Technology program.

The In2itive smart home automation system allows buyers to control various aspects of their home with the touch of a button and at a fraction of the cost, as there are no monthly fees included with the system. The eBuilt In2uitive Technology program offers whole-house automation with options for multi-room audio, lighting and outlet controls, camera monitoring and video door entry, whole-house intercom, home security system integration, and a surface-mounted command center controller. This integrated system syncs with these various components of the home, and homeowners will have comprehensive control of their entire home using the app interface that can be downloaded on Android or Apple devices.

Step into a new era with eBuilt In2itive technology. Essex Homes has been building homes so its buyers can live better. Now, Essex is building homes so those buyers can live smarter. For more information on the new technology or any of Essex Homes’ Columbia-area new home communities, call 844-456-2020 or visit www.EssexHomes.net.

Essex Homes Announces New User-Friendly Website

EH Home pageNew home builder Essex Homes recently launched its new website, www.EssexHomes.net. This re-vamped and re-designed website provides the ultimate user-friendly experience with improved functionality.

Designed by marketing, communications and interactive agency Marketing RELEVANCE, LLC to be fully responsive and easy to use, this new site will help buyers find a new home in Charlotte or Columbia quickly and easily for all mobile, tablet or desktop users. The improved navigation throughout the site helps homeowners find that perfect home they’ve always dreamed about.

The new EssexHomes.net has already proven effective with an increase in leads over the first two weeks. Incoming leads increased by 86 percent.

Additional features on the new site include:

  • A desktop, tablet and mobile user-friendly experience thanks to its responsive design. The site is easy to navigate and search from any type of device, making it easy to find information from home or on-the-go.
  • Improved Google Map functionality means that browsers can get detailed information on the community location and amenities in the surrounding area, including schools, recreation opportunities, grocery stores, restaurants, shopping centers, medical centers and more.
  • An industry-specific backend that makes it easy for the Essex Homes team to manage data on the website. This means that buyers will have up-to-date information about available homes, open communities and more.

To view the new Essex Homes website or learn more about the Carolina home builder, visit www.EssexHomes.net.

Five Steps to Check Your Credit Situation Mid-Year

Three generations of a family on  holiday walking along the dock of a luxury marina.It can be easy to lose sight of your New Years financial resolutions by mid–year. When summer comes and all you want to do is relax, many people relax with their finances as well. If you’ve gotten off track or are not even sure where you stand, the finance experts at Equifax recommend that you do a mid-year evaluation of your credit situation.

To get back on track with your financial goals and eliminate wasteful spending, consider taking the following steps recommended in the recent Equifax blog, “Five Mid-year Credit Moves to Make Right Now.”

  • Step One: Check your credit report.

o   When you evaluate your credit report, check how much debt you have outstanding on your credit cards versus the total of your credit limits. This is what finance experts refer to as the credit utilization rate, or credit utilization ratio. It’s ideal that your credit utilization rate be between 30 and 35 percent or less, as this indicates you have not over-borrowed on your credit cards.

  • Step Two: Look for errors and address any issues with your report.

o   Once you get your credit reports, look over them carefully to make sure there is no inaccurate information or that you are not the victim of identity fraud. If you discover any errors, you can dispute them for free. If you need assistance to discover any errors, a credit monitoring service can help.

  • Step Three: Set up reminders to pay bills on time.

o   Once you evaluate your credit report, you can now focus on your credit score. Your payment history is the most heavily weighted factor in determining your credit score (typically about 35 percent), so paying all of your bills on time is crucial.  For some bills, you may be able to set up automatic payments. If you don’t like the idea of that, you can set up a reminder on your phone or computer calendar to remind you to pay your bills.

  • Step Four: Pay down debt.

o   Most debt can impact your credit score, both from a credit utilization and a credit utilization ratio perspective. And of course, debt typically costs money—you pay interest as long as the debt isn’t paid off at the end of the billing cycle. Many experts advise paying down debt with the highest interest rate first, as this typically saves the most money in the long run.

  • Step Five: Assess your accounts.

o   Lenders can positively impact your credit score, and having several active and current credit accounts shows them that you’re a responsible borrower. And if you’ve had a long-standing account, it can help demonstrate a longer credit history, which is why it is not a good idea to close every account once you have paid off your credit card balance.

Taking a break from the financial stress of everyday life can help you unwind, but don’t relax your vigilance regarding your credit. Making these five moves will help you stay on top of your credit situation.

Learn to Dispute Charges on Your Credit Report for After Shopping Season

Check credit after holiday shoppingAfter all is said and done with holiday shopping, even if you were very careful with credit card usage, staying close to budget and being a responsible borrower, there is still a chance for errors to end up on your credit report. Some of this may be errors, or it could be fraud, and it is important to know how to report and resolve the issue. The credit and finance experts at Equifax share information about what to do when you find errors on your credit report, after the holidays or otherwise, in the new article, “

How Do I Dispute Information on My Credit Report?”

First, you want to carefully look over your credit report for all activity. If you spot something off, you need to dispute it with the credit reporting agency right away. The dispute is free of charge, and depending on the agency, you may have to call or send in the dispute by mail. Equifax offers free and easy online disputes. If you send in a dispute and it is resolved, the one credit reporting agency will notify the other two agencies of the corrected information. If you want to have the most up to date information though, in the case of needing to have a spotless report for an application for a mortgage in Atlanta or the like, you should contact each agency independently and immediately.

After you report your dispute, the credit agencies are legally required to investigate within 30 to 45 days, and before the time has elapsed, the credit agency will inform you of their findings. From there, the disputed item will either be removed or the reporting agency will explain that the findings of their investigation lead them to keep it on.

Even if the disputed item wasn’t removed, you should keep a close eye on your credit report going forward and dispute as necessary. If you are concerned about activity on your credit file (due to identity theft or potential identity theft), you may want to sign up for a credit monitoring service like the Equifax Complete plan.

For more information about protecting your credit score and more

personal finance advice, check the Equifax Finance Blog.