Will Closing Credit Cards Hurt My Credit Score? Q: I am looking to buy a home in the near future. I recently heard that my credit card with a big box discount store would come to an end. I signed up for a credit card with the big box store years ago to get a [...]
Zoning: Selling Separate Lots Q: We bought our home in 1984. The deed read that the home was built on one of two separate lots. We are now thinking about moving. In considering our options, we realized the property values in our neighborhood have increased dramatically. In fact, they’re so high that we’re thinking of [...]
Home Sale Tax Exclusion: What are the rules? Q: I learned something new in your recent article about the home sale tax exclusion. I did not know that a person could receive the benefit of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rule that allows homeowners to exclude from federal taxes the first $250,000 in profits from [...]
Homeowner Association (HOA) and Owners Bad Behavior Our recent articles about homeowner associations (HOAs) have stirred many readers to write to us about why people don’t want to volunteer for HOA boards and the difficult situations sitting HOA members face every day. If you're wondering what that might look like, here’s one email we recently [...]
Who Do You Call When the Landlord Won't Fix Things? Ten-year resident says landlord won't fix things like leaks, mold and pest infestations. Q: My son and his wife live in an apartment complex in Orlando. He’s been a resident there for over ten years and has always been a good tenant. The ownership has [...]
Real Estate Commission: How Much Should Buyers Agree to Pay Q: First time home buyer here. I'm thinking about commissions. I just finished reading your 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask book, and I sure took lots of notes! It’s super fun when real estate commission rules change as you are learning them. [...]
Bad Home Inspection Q: I just read your column on the bad home inspection. First, who paid for the inspector? If the mortgage company paid, the lender didn’t get their money's worth. Second, on the question of the open sewerage, that seems like a no brainer to me as it was clearly a housing code [...]
HOA: Changing Homeowner Association Rules Q: I just read your response to the question about the 20-unit homeowners association (HOA) that can't get people to run for the board. I used to manage HOAs and have a few thoughts for your readers. 1. Before they do anything, they need to carefully read their HOA documents [...]
New Construction Problems Builder forgot to frame basement windows when pouring foundation in new construction home Q: We enjoy reading your real estate column each week. Our daughter is having her dream house built in Maryland for around $800,000. They picked a “flat” lot to build the house. They paid a premium for that lot. [...]
Selling Rental Properties? Real estate investor wants to know if he should sell his rental properties and invest the proceeds elsewhere Q: I am 60 years old with a pension. I've invested in rental properties in the past and currently own six rental properties. I have no mortgages on these properties and paid around $100,000 [...]
