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Before you pay cash for a home

Before you pay cash for a home, ask yourself if there is a possibility, at some point in the future, you might put a mortgage on the home and would want to deduct the mortgage interest on your federal tax return. Current federal tax law allows homeowners to deduct the interest on up to $750,000 … Continue reading Before you pay cash for a home →

Homeowner Equity and Wealth Accumulation

National homeowner equity grew in the fourth quarter of 2020 by $1.5 Trillion or 16.2% year-over-year based on a CoreLogic analysis. The study was done on the six out of ten homeowners who have mortgages on their home. The fourth quarter of 2020 also saw the number of mortgaged residential homes with negative equity decrease … Continue reading Homeowner Equity and Wealth Accumulation →

Skip the Starter Home

For generations, people have begun their homeowner experience with a “starter” home. Part of the logic may be that by beginning with a smaller home, they can learn what it takes to run the home and discover some of the unexpected costs that come along with it. A slightly longer view into the future could … Continue reading Skip the Starter Home →

Your Refund Could Open the Door

One of the silver linings to filing your income tax return is finding out that you are going to receive a refund that could literally open the door to owning a home. If you happen to be one of these fortunate taxpayers, your next decision is what to do with it. With the average tax … Continue reading Your Refund Could Open the Door →

Transferring Property Prior to Death

Sometimes, as people approach the inevitable, they start trying to get their things “in order”. They may even have a will, but they decide to transfer title to real estate prior to their death which could be an unnecessary expense for the would-be heir. Generally, when property is passed through direction of a will, the … Continue reading Transferring Property Prior to Death →

Is It Time to Cancel the Mortgage Insurance?

Mortgage insurance benefits the lender if a borrower with less than a 20% down payment defaults on their loan. Most conventional mortgages greater than 80% and all FHA loans require the borrower to have this coverage. Private mortgage insurance on conventional loans can range from 0.5% to 2.25% based on the loan-to-value and the credit … Continue reading Is It Time to Cancel the Mortgage Insurance? →

Make Your Best Offer FIRST

This strategy is not about trying to negotiate the best price; it is about beating out the competition and buying the home. It may be difficult to understand until you have lost a few homes to better offers but when the reality of the situation is that there are not that many homes on the … Continue reading Make Your Best Offer FIRST →

Home Insurance and Mortgage Insurance

Many homeowners with mortgages pay for both types of insurance but only one of them protects the owner. Homeowner’s insurance covers damage to your property and losses from fire, burglary, vandalism, and other named natural disasters. When an insured has a loss, they file a claim with the insurance carrier which would be subject to … Continue reading Home Insurance and Mortgage Insurance →

Moving UP or DOWN

Staying at home in 2020 caused of lot of owners to think about how nice it would be to have a larger home to accommodate the additional activities that come along with isolating. Particularly for people with children at home or possibly, the potential of either adult children or parents coming to live with them. … Continue reading Moving UP or DOWN →

Moving UP or DOWN

Staying at home in 2020 caused of lot of owners to think about how nice it would be to have a larger home to accommodate the additional activities that come along with isolating. Particularly for people with children at home or possibly, the potential of either adult children or parents coming to live with them. … Continue reading Moving UP or DOWN →