Whether you're readying to put your home on the market or you haven't updated your space in a while and want to modernize, approaching renovations can be a struggle. With so many things to fix up, both large and small, it can seem overwhelming to prioritize, set the money aside and get to work. If you're having trouble figuring out where to begin with budget, here are some tips for how to properly prioritize so you can maximize your renovation expenditures. Determine What Is Most Important Whether it's the tile floor in your bathroom or the outdated kitchen sink, if the need for an upgrade in … [Read More...]
When it comes to home ownership, the biggest buzzword of them all is mortgage and it’s often all people think about when it comes to price. While the ‘m’ word will be a large part of the expense that goes into owning a house, it’s important to be aware of all of the other costs that are aligned with having a home. From taxes to utilities, here are some of the other items that you won’t be able to do without once you’ve made the big purchase. The Perils of Property Tax Outside of the mortgage, one of the other more marked expenses you’ll be paying when … [Read More...]
When the market is hot some sellers are lucky enough to be in a situation where they see multiple offers come through on their property. Now the only decision left is which one to choose. It may be easy to look at the amounts offered and go with the highest one, but that is not always the wisest choice. There are several smaller factors that could mean the difference between a winning and losing bid. Have Any Of The Buyers Been Pre-Approved For A Mortgage? While an offer that comes in above the asking price can be very tempting, there is a risk that the entire sale can fall through if the … [Read More...]
Last week's scheduled economic news was sparse due to no scheduled releases on Monday and the Veterans Day Holiday on Wednesday. A report on job openings was released on Thursday along with regularly scheduled weekly reports on jobless claims and Freddie Mac's report on mortgage rates. Mortgage Rates, Weekly Jobless Claims Rise Mortgage rates rose last week according to Freddie Mac. The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage rose to 3.98 percent from last week's reading of 3.87 percent. The average rate for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage rose to 3.20 percent from the prior week's … [Read More...]
Switching houses? Then now is the perfect time to finally go through all the clutter and make some tough decisions about what needs to move and what needs to go away. There is no point in waiting until after a move to go through the junk lying around, as tempting as it may be, so here are five ways to decide what should find a new home before a move. Start With A Trip To The Dump Before starting the move, grab some garbage bags and do a sweep of the house, making sure to toss out anything that needs to go to the dump. This will clear up the home of anything unnecessary and makes it easier to … [Read More...]
If you're in the market for a mortgage, you may want to set up a pre-qualification meeting with a mortgage professional. Even if you're not 100% sure who you'd like to apply for a mortgage with, pre-qualification can still be a valuable step to take. And given that it only takes a few minutes, it's something every potential homeowner can do. So why should you go to a mortgage pre-qualification meeting with a mortgage lender? Here are just a few reasons why it's a great idea. It'll Give You A Good Idea Of How Much House You Can Afford A mortgage pre-qualification is not the same thing as a … [Read More...]
