​What are some of your favorite memories of celebrating July 4th while growing up?  Most likely, they include family, friends fireworks, fun, festivals and food!  You still have time to plan the perfect patriotic way to celebrate Independence Day.  In the spirit of celebrating our great nation’s birthday, here is your Southeast Michigan Independence Day Celebration calendar.

June 29   Start the celebration early by heading to the annual Hudson Mills Metropark Fireworks from 7 until 11 pm on Weds., June 29th.  The entire family will enjoy beats and eats as a DJ will be spinning tunes before and after the pyrotechnic display.  The cost is only $10 per vehicle before 5 pm and $15 after 5 pm.  The park is located at 8801 N. Territorial Road in Dexter.

Today’s official arrival of summer brings a new list of tasks required to keep your newly built construction home in top shape.  Here are four simple chores to make your home safe and comfortable all summer long.

1. Keep it cool.  If you haven’t already dusted your ceiling fans as we recommended in the spring, now is the time.  Most newly constructed homes have ceiling fans with a switch that allows you to reverse the rotational direction of the fan blades.  During warm Michigan summers, blowing the air up into your home’s rooms will help you save a little on cooling costs since you will be using the air conditioning a little less. It’s also a good time to replace your HVAC filter, especially if you have pets due to dander and dust.  Most manufacturers recommend changing the filters after two or three hundred hours of use which basically averages out to once a month, so it’s important to change them once per season at a minimum.  Refer to your HVAC system’s instruction manual in case your filters can be replaced less frequently.

On May 17th, the U.S. Commerce Department announced that housing starts climbed 6.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.17 million units.  Since there are fewer existing homes currently listed for sale compared to the last few years, and given that the economy continues to improve, demand for new construction homes continues to grow.  In fact, ground breakings for single-family houses are running ahead of last year’s pace.

Despite the recent rebound, the U.S. residential market still hasn’t fully recovered from the crash caused by the subprime mortgage flood that occurred almost a decade ago.  New home construction remains below its annual pace of approx. 1.5 million during the 1990s which is due in part to higher housing costs and the aftermath of the recession.