Monthly Archives: February 2009

Dropbox and Filecenter

Technology

Dropbox and Filecenter work beautifully together.

Filecenter is file-organizing software that frees you from the tyranny of the typical windows file tree. It opens automatically whenever you save a file, has an intuitive look and makes it snap to add folders and files to the right places without sifting and clicking through 10 different folders and subfolders. It costs $79. I’ve used it for years without any problems. I don’t use it for scanning, although you could. I scan documents directly into Adobe Acrobat and then save them using Filecenter to the location that I want. The only problem is that the files are sitting on my work computer and can’t be accessed without using Gotomypc or something.

Enter Dropbox. It’s an online backup and file syncing software. Any files that you add to the “MyDropbox” folder in “My Document” are automatically backed up to Amazon web services and are synched with any other computers that are running Dropbox. So, you are able to access your files from any of your computers running Dropbox or from any computer connected to the internet because you can log onto the Dropbox website and see all of your files. (Bonus sidecar: Dropbox is free for the first 2 GB of storage and charges are reasonable thereafter.) I use Dropbox for my active work files (thus staying in the free category), but I use Jungledisk to back up the whole mess, including all archived files. Finally, Dropbox can be accessed easily from an I-Phone, so you can get your files no matter where you travel.

Once Dropbox is installed, you simply set up Filecenter to access the Folders that you create in Dropbox. Under the “My Dropbox” folder, you can create as many sub-folders as you want like “Wills Forms,” Trust Forms” or “My Recent Arrests.” Filecenter simply streamlines the process of saving the many files we open and close and move each day. And Dropbox gives you a complete copy of all files on your computers, backs up those files instantly to Amazon “in the cloud” and lets you access them from any internet connection. Good combination.

Bensenville pre-closing village inspection

Real Estate-Sales

Bensenville is one of the few towns that requires a certificate of occupancy for closing. The village inspects the property and a creates a long list of code enforcement items that need repair. In the closing I am handling now, the village asked for 38 repair items. Either the seller has to repair the items or the buyer must agree to do the repairs after closing. This is kind of tough, especially since many buyers and sellers don’t know about the certificate of occupancy. If you don’t get the certificate, the buyer could get dragged to housing court after closing.

On a positive note, they have a grant program in which they give $5,000 to homeowners to repair these items.  The buyer does not have to pay back the grant, but must submit to annual property inspections.