Improvements. Which ones pay off at resale? I get asked that all the time. Once our clients become homeowners, they start thinking like sellers. Some improvements pay back at a high rate at resale. Some only pay back in your enjoyment of the place (and may help you sell faster.) Here's a list from Groom
Looking to borrow more than the Fannie Mae limit, but not to pay a higher rate for a jumbo mortgage? Looking to borrow with less than 20 percent down? Looking to buy a condo and your lender says the condo is "unwarrantable"? Today, I share some different lending ideas for you from Paul Sammons from
About five years after I moved into my house, I was working from home. I spent the morning writing and had a lunch date with a former client. At about 11:30, I heard water running in my basement. Home inspectors will warn you. New home owners don’t listen, including me. I went down to investigate
Junk data hurts buyers by creating distraction from understanding market value. Buyers need to know market value in order to negotiate for the fair price. Assessed value has no relationship to market price. But, but, but…how can a property be worth more than what the town or city assesses it for? Don’t the town or city
Households with no cars were rare in 1996. Even among people who commuted to work solely by mass transit or bicycle, there was a car. When the house next door to me went up for sale in 1996, my new neighbor was a man in his 30s who did not have a driver’s license. He
When you look at a roof, can you see the difference between an old one and a new one? We can! Let us give you a couple of tips. Asphalt and fiberglass-asphalt shingle are the most common roofing materials you will see in this area. They are built with a dark underside covered with granules
If you see powdery mortar, don’t panic. We see brick or stone that needs pointing on almost any house hunting trip. Repointing is normal maintenance for stone or brick foundations and chimneys. Over time, mortar deteriorates and becomes a powder. The powder falls out. It looks scary when you touch a foundation and see the
Is it time to go outside to enjoy the flowers and the trees and the birds and the bees? Did you enjoy fresh fruit, berries or nuts? If you do, thank a honey bee. Before you buy new plants and put them in the ground, there are things you can do to help the bees.
In The Two Income Trap, Ms Warren and Ms Warren Tyagi wisely advise families to prepare for emergencies ahead of time. I am thinking of copying the chapter “The Financial Fire Drill” and giving it to my clients before they start house hunting. They pose three questions: Can your family survive for six months without one
My office keeps a list of lenders that are tried and true. We add lenders once we see that they have done a good job for one of our clients. When one of our clients comes in with their own lender — recommended by a friend, coworker or family member — we do not interfere