Coffee Break: Mineral Face Creme

48 Comments

1. I want to buy a house for the first time. In my county, real estate ownership records are publicly searchable (free, takes seconds). I work in public health and my workplace regularly receives threats with my name on them, but nothing the police can/will take action on. I would like to have some kind of entity name or trust or something instead of my name on the real estate records. I’m not rich – I expect to need a mortgage, although I’m working to save up a 30% down payment. I asked my realtor if it’s possible and the realtor told me it’s up to the bank. I talked briefly with the bank who said they would never do that because then I’d be ineligible for federal first-time homebuyer programs. The realtor said she didn’t know, ask a lawyer. My sister is a lawyer but not a real estate lawyer, she told me there’s a law to cloak addresses for law enforcement and for people who are found to be victims of crime (like by a judge). She asked her prior closing company and they said ask a bank. Is there any way for me to figure this out on my own? is this just not possible if I’ll have a mortgage?

   1. In this day and age, would obscuring your identity on the property records actually help keep your address private?

   2. IANAL, but I’d suggest you talk to an estate lawyer. Rich families set up trusts/LLCs all the time and the the trust buys the home and I believe the documents are all filed with the name of the trust.

      1. This. It can be slightly more complicated with a mortgage though, but worth talking to a local T&E lawyer. Lots of people use privacy trusts and sometimes LLCs for this purpose. You would have your lawyer (or someone else) serve as the initial trustee of the trust to sign the transfer docs. Then once the sale closes, the initial trustee can resign, and you could become the trustee.

   3. This is entirely country dependent.

   4. I’m making a guess at the source of the confusion here. Normally when you use an entity or trust, the entity or trust is the one purchasing the home (not just shielding the name of the purchaser). This means that legal ownership of the home will rest in the LLC or trust you created. What you want to do (I suspect) is remove your name from the county appraisal records so the owner is only listed as “Current Owner,” and but the deed of your house will still have you name. Where I live, this is a simple form that you fill out. You might want to check some local DV websites in your area that will have directions on how to do it. Or, post your location, and people can tell you if they know what to do.

   5. IANAL

      In my US-based county, you can buy a house with a mortgage in the name of a trust, LLC, or other entity. That entity is what shows up as the owner when you search property records, and the owner of the entity could potentially be traced through public corporate records (having a registered agent helps obfuscate this). I don’t know how that interacts with first time home-buyer programs, although you could look at the terms of those programs. Not sure a bank would be the right place to start for that information.

   6. My county (in GA) has a form right on the property tax research page that you can complete to have ownewship information not posted. It would still be in their official records, but it would not be posted online. If that is enough, your property tax office can probably tell you.

   7. The easier solution is to use a different public facing name at work.

2. Best clear plastic storage tote? Need weatherproof, pest-proof, stackable; preferably hardy; items will be stored in a shed on a farm while my parents renovate their house for medical/aging access. Very important they are clear although solid colored lid is fine. Wirecutter reviews are not as glowing as I expected so wondering if there’s another brand some of the hive has tried!

   1. honestly, how long are we talking, here, and how sensitive are the contents? If it’s like 6 months to a year of unsentimental household items… would regular old Steril-te with some duct tape around the seam do the trick?

   2. I’ve had pretty good luck with the clear weathertight totes from The Container Store. Mine were kept in a storage room in the basement of an NYC apartment that had all manner of dust and dirt flying around and everything was pristine when I took it out. The only issue we didn’t have was water, so I can’t speak to that!

      1. Word of warning that these smell very plasticky and chemical-y.

   3. I’ve used Iris Weathertight totes for moth-related purposes (with some silica gel packets inside). They haven’t gotten wet but they seem fine.

   4. Do you anticipate needing to access the contents? If so, are you okay with a little work to get there? I would go for Sterilite bins and then make generous use of a roll of moving company plastic wrap to seal around the lids.

   5. How critical?
      I got a 3 pack recently of big clear ones at Costco (business center; not regular Costco) that seem plenty solid – not “store only copy of your mortgage outside” solid; or “bear proof pest proof” but would definitely be ok with eg loading them up with winter clothes and sticking them in the shed.

   6. Can you get a storage unit that picks up and delivers? Seems safer if items are irreplaceable.

   7. These are what we use with those requirements: https://www.homedepot.com/pep/Ezy-Storage-75L-79-3Qt-Waterproof-Clear-Latch-Tote-IP-67-FBA34064/314733555?cm_mmc=ecc-_-THD_ORDER_CONFIRMATION_BODFS-_-V1_M1_CA-_-Product_URL&ecc_ord=WJ94213794&em_id=86611319e7c66dc1caa67c7367c74f3d54ac18da66e7df8cc382632b4bb2391b

      (If the link doesn’t work, they are Ezy brand 75L/79.3Qt Waterproof Clear Latch Tote IP-67 from Home Depot.)

3. Recs for b–b support for a backless dress? I’m a C cup, girls are fairly perky… such that I could alllllllmost get away without one, but would be more comfortable with some sort of tape or adhesive situation for light support. All advice welcome!

   1. I have one of those silicon chicken cutlet things and it works well for the once a year situation that I wear a backless dress. I did wear it around the house under normal clothes first to make sure I was comfortable that it would behave itself.

   2. I have the lightest coverage boomba’s and really like them. I’m also a mostly perky c cup and I like that they give just a little more shape and lift and nipple coverage. I’m considering buying a pair that also provide a little more volume, but right now I’m happy with these for all my backless dresses. They are quite sticky!

      1. op here- that sounds perfect. Did you get the thin S or thin M?

         1. I checked at home! I have the 4 inch “magic nipple covers”. I have worn them about 10 times and washed with mild soap and water a couple times and they are still very sticky and going strong.

4. Talk to me about replacement windows. We have about 20 double-hung wooden windows that we’d like to have replaced with inserts so we can keep the wood trim. The searches I’ve done seem to indicate that composite or fiberglass is the best for durability and aesthetics, but it also seems that Pella and Marvin overcharge through their branded distributors and that there may also be a huge markup on installation through the home improvement stores. The local contractors all seem to use vinyl windows with cheap-looking glass and put vinyl covers over the existing wood trim, which looks terrible and seems bound to cause moisture problems. How can I get a decent price and good service on something that doesn’t look awful?

   1. Check out your local Window World franchise. They have really upped their game where looks are concerned, and were great to deal with. It was a really transparent process from quote (even things like “remove/reinstall blinds” were broken out). Maybe vinyl just won’t work for your situation, but I was really happy with the windows, price and the installers through them.

      Other quotes from independent contractors who handled Andersen, Pella etc. were over twice as much and no insight into how they arrived at the quote.

   2. You can go to a building supply company to browse options and select what you want to buy. These supply companies can typically recommend contractors for installation, although local contractors you’ve talked to should also be able to install unless it’s something weird.

      1. +1 go to a window and door showroom and figure out what you like and whether its in your budget.

         We’re honestly pretty happy with the look of our Andersen vinyl windows. If you really hate the look of the replacement windows, you can get a contractor to use ‘new construction’ windows though it requires moving siding and probably costs 3x what replacement does. We ripped out the old aluminum frames and redid everything this way since the flashing around the old windows wasn’t done correctly.

         And FYI almost all window manufacturers these days use a vinyl core with wood trim vs. solid wood- dimensional stability is better.

   3. Your budget likely needs to double to get out of the vinyl market. When we replaced our windows (went with aluminum), I cold-emailed high end builders who were putting in nice windows in our area to ask them for their contractor. Doesn’t always work , but it did get us to a window contractor who was great and had a lot of options from different brands. Other friends have had a general contractor manage a window project as part of a bigger renovation.

   4. Wood windows are infinitely repairable – why do you want to get rid of yours? Vinyl have to replaced every 20 years or so, better to go with something that can be repaired (wood) than something that goes to the landfill (vinyl).

      1. These 30-year-old builder-grade wood windows are garbage that is not worth repairing. If they can even be repaired, which seems dubious since so many of the sashes are warped, it would be far more expensive than replacement.

   5. Don’t replace!!!! Get a window restoration expert to fix your current windows. They will last forever and when properly maintened are no less efficient than the plastic monstrosities

      1. These windows are in such bad shape that they cannot be repaired short of replacing them with inserts. The sashes, glazing, and tracks with hardware that make them move up and down (whatever those are called) are all beyond saving.

   6. My condo property did a window replacement project five years ago and after reviewing bids and window sources, we chose Sierra Pacific windows. Great quality without Pella pricing. Five years down the road they are doing very well, with no issues out of hundreds and hundreds of windows (a little over 500 windows I think). We used wood due to the historic nature of the property.

5. Do people really use oil to make eggs? This is hurting my brain—I thought you only used butter for eggs. Doesn’t oil taste too strongly or otherwise its a seed oil?

   1. If I’m using a tiny amount of a relatively more refined oil, it doesn’t really taste like much to me. My doctor advised using 50% butter and 50% oil if I wanted the taste of butter.

      If you think there’s something wrong with seed oils that aren’t rancid or full of additives, you may need to examine your social media algorithms.

      1. Yeah, I prefer butter for the flavor, but any oil will do. Seed oils are not bad for you, barring allergies or something that is diagnosable.

   2. Yes. I use vegetable oil when I fry eggs. I find butter has too low a smoke point. I like my oil to be very hot when I fry my eggs so that the white edges get crispy while the yolk stays runny.
      If I am scrambling eggs I might use butter, but it’s not a must. I find that oil is a more neutral flavor than butter.

   3. I use butter for eggs, but “light” olive oil has very little olive taste. I use it for all kinds of baking where you wouldn’t want to taste olives. Extra virgin is the kind with the strong olive flavor.

   4. I cook eggs in butter or ghee.

      1. Same—I don’t like the idea or the reality of eggs or omelets fried in oil.

         1. To me it’s about the quantity. If it’s truly just the minimal fine mist that makes a stainless pain not stick, I barely notice it. I definitely don’t like oil if it’s poured into the pan.

            Ghee is convenient for when butter would brown!

   5. Butter for scramble, on low heat.
      Oil for higher heat for frying.

      Olive or avocado oils primarily for me, but I use other oils occasionally for asian cooking (sesame, peanut).

      Ask your doctor if you are concerned about seed oils. You may be reassured.

   6. Yes, I love them in olive oil.

   7. I use avocado oil in one of those little sprayer things for eggs. I don’t like how olive oil tastes/smells when I use it for cooking.

   8. I think it’s possible to get used to it, especially if you go easy on the oil. I cooked them in olive or canola oil when I was 6-12 weeks pregnant and butter didn’t always sit so well. I think seed oils are fine? Omelettes with something that you would otherwise cook in the same oil can be a good way to go. Maybe a scallion omelette in sesame oil or a mushroom garlic omelette in olive oil?

   9. Yes, I almost always use olive oil. It requires maybe 1 or 2 tsp to coat the pan, and not much comes out on the eggs themselves.

      Butter tastes better but burns more easily and is less healthy so I save that for other uses.

   10. I use olive oil if I want to make a Mediterranean-style scramble. Olive oil, sauteed garlic, minced olive, parsley. Then the eggs. Then scatter some feta or other goat cheese. Serve.

       1. This is my husband’s go to. Our biggest marital fight is the smell of onions in the morning. But he’s half Italian-American and looks amazing so should let it slide.

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