As a homebuyer, it’s important to plan and budget for the expenses you’ll encounter when you purchase a home. While most people understand the need to save for a down payment, a recent survey found 41% of homebuyers were surprised by their closing costs. Here’s some information to help you get started so you’re not caught off guard […]
Would-be to Should-be Some would-be buyers have emotional reasons to own a home like having a place of their own where they can raise a family, feel safe and secure and enjoy their friends’ company. Other buyers’ dominant reasons might be financial in nature such as building equity or lowering their cost of housing. Regardless […]
According to the National Association of REALTORS most recent Profile of Home Buyers & Sellers, married couples once again dominated the first-time homebuyer statistics in 2016 at 58% of all buyers. It is no surprise that having two incomes to save for down payments and contribute to monthly housing costs makes buying a home more […]
Down Payment: FOUND! Saving the down payment may be unnecessarily keeping would-be buyers from getting into a home. They may be unaware that the funds might be available. The NAR Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers reports that 81% of first-time buyers got all or part of their down payment from savings. Less than 4% said […]
I organized a Lunch and Learn at Northside Realty this week. Eleven of my Northside colleagues joined me for lunch and an enjoyable presentation by David Stokes of Retirement Funding Solutions. Agents gained valuable information about the ‘Home Equity Conversion Mortgage – HECM‘ A type of Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insured reverse mortgage for those age 62 […]
Becoming debt free is as much a part of the American Dream as owning a home but there certainly can be conflicting circumstances that make the decision to pay off your mortgage early unclear. The advantages of paying off debt early is increased cash flow, less interest paid and a higher credit score. The disadvantages […]
