Over the course of the last thirty years, a shift has happened. An entire generation has been raised to believe that a college education is their key to unlocking opportunities that were not available to their parent’s or grandparent’s generations.
New Year, New Goals? Buying Is Now 26.3% Cheaper Than Renting In The US
Thursday, December 27th, 2018
Denise Rivers
The results of the latest Rent vs. Buy Report from Trulia show that homeownership remains cheaper than renting, with a traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage, in 98 of the 100 largest metro areas in the United States.
In the six years that Trulia has conducted this study, this is the first time that it was cheaper to rent than buy in any of the metropolitan areas.
Paying Off Mortgage Quickly Is Not Always the Optimal Retirement Strategy
Thursday, December 13th, 2018
Denise Rivers
Q: I will soon make our final mortgage payment. My wife will retire in two years and I will work to age 67. We are both 60 today. Because I don’t get a pension I really have been looking forward to this final payment. We bought the house 25 years ago, but I shortened the term of the loan by refinancing to a 15-year loan in 2003. Are we doing well to have the mortgage paid off by age 60?
Millennials Are Skipping Starter Homes For Their Dream Homes
Thursday, December 6th, 2018
Denise Rivers
A new trend has begun to emerge. With home prices skyrocketing in the starter home category, many first-time homebuyers are skipping the traditional starter homes and moving right into their dream homes.
Since the creation of the Veterans Affairs (VA) Home Loans Program, over 22 million veterans have achieved the American Dream of homeownership. Many veterans do not know the details of the program and therefore do not take advantage of the benefits available to them.
If you are a veteran or you know someone who is, here is a breakdown of the VA Home Loan benefits that can be used to achieve the American Dream!
There are many people sitting on the sidelines trying to decide if they should purchase a home or sign a rental lease. Some might wonder if it makes sense to purchase a house before they get married or start a family, some might think they are too young, and still, some others might think their current incomes would never enable them to qualify for a mortgage.
When homeowners decide to sell their houses, they obviously want to get the best possible price for their home with the least amount of hassles along the way. However, for the vast majority of sellers, the most important result is actually getting their homes sold.
As more and more baby boomers enter retirement age, the question of whether or not to sell their homes and move will become a hot topic. In today’s housing market climate, with low available inventory in the starter and trade-up home categories, it makes sense to evaluate your home’s ability to adapt to your needs in retirement.
Every homeowner wants to make sure that they maximize their financial reward when selling their home, but how do you guarantee that you receive the maximum value for your house?
Here are two ways to ensure that you get the highest price possible.
Consumers who are seriously in the home-buying and -selling market should be mindful of a variety of competing home price estimators. Solely relying on just one price estimate is likely to skew the views of what a particular property will actually transact for. When it comes to online home value estimates, however, the No. 1 caveat for consumers is that these estimates are not a substitute for formal appraisals, comparative market analyses and the in-depth expertise of real estate professionals. Nonetheless, it is important to know the different sources of automated valuation models (or AVMs) and home value estimates available online, so that you can help clients and potential clients understand these estimates in their proper context.
| Newer Posts | Older Posts |