When you’re looking for buyers or tenants for your property, you’ll have a hard time finding anyone who wants to sign on the dotted line if unpleasant odors are the first thing to hit people when they walk through the front door. Here are some tips to get rid of...
Many homebuyers want the most favorable home loan terms they can get—the lowest interest rate and fewest points without the need for private mortgage insurance. One way to do this is to save your pennies until you can come up with a down payment that’s 20 percent of the sale...
Recently, a local woman who’s lost her extended family to moves out of state asked me for advice. She’s concerned that her remaining grandchild will move away, too. She said, “Our last grandchild (a young adult) and her boyfriend would love to buy a house here and we are thrilled....
Water heaters are one of those appliances most of us don’t think much about until a cold shower reminds us that it is, in fact, our favorite appliance. When your water heater goes out, or when its warranty is coming to its end (guaranteeing it will soon go out), it...
When selling residential real estate, there’s no escaping all sorts of inspections—home inspections, pest and fungus, septic, well, soil, roof, and more. Streamlining this process not only speeds up the sale, it can be the difference between a sale that closes and one the falls apart. When you get inspections up...
The two biggest buyers of home loans just increased their fee on refinanced loans by a half of a percentage point, thereby reducing the price they’ll pay lenders for those loans. This will make home loans a bit more expensive for borrowers as lenders pass on that fee. This got...
Spring is a wonderful time to sell your house. The sun is out. Flowers are blooming. And especially this spring, people are ready to do something other than stay at home. Smart sellers are preparing to put their houses on the market. If you want your house to stand out...
Owning a home can be costly in the best of times, so there’s no reason to waste money on expensive mistakes. Here are a few to avoid. No Building Permit If you plan to undertake major repairs or structural improvements to your home, you will undoubtedly need a permit to do so...
Right now, people who want to sell their current home and buy a different one find themselves in a bit of a quandary. The market is hot and residential properties are selling like hot cakes, so sellers are understandably eager to get their property on the market. However, what do...
I recently received an email from a reader asking about how to deal with a big, corporate landlord in another state giving smaller, more responsive landlords a bad name. Unfortunately, there are bad apples in every profession, be they police officers, teachers, lawyers, politicians, and even real estate agents. Having...
