There is a high cost of low appraisals. If you are trying to do a cash-out refinance loan and your appraisal comes in too low, there could have to pay for a second appraisal or your loan application might not be approved. That's what happened to one of our readers. The High Cost of Low [...]
Mom owns the house but I pay the bills. What do I do now? Welcome to the inaugural Love & Money Column. In this column, a reader says her mom owns the house, but she pays all the expenses. She's ready to put the house into her name, but is worried about causing an issue [...]
Reverse mortgage vs. HELOCs. What happens if you do a reverse mortgage but realize it might have been a mistake? Is a reverse mortgage better than a home equity loan or line of credit? And what are some other ways to tap your home equity other than taking out a reverse mortgage? Several different fintechs [...]
In 2018, there were a million electric cars on the roads in the U.S. By 2025, there will be more than 18 million electric cars on U.S. roads, according to PolicyAdvice and Business Insider. Electric car owners will want to charge their cars at home, at the mall, at work or in every parking garage. [...]
Should a reader's wife take a Social Security benefit at age 62? What happens to the Social Security Spousal Benefit? Here's this week's Question and Answer about Social Security. Should my wife take my Social Security benefit? Q: I would like your opinion on a Social Security question we have for my wife. First, I’ll [...]
Buying a house in 2021 is hard. Is building more homes the answer? We spoke with leading real estate industry economists and observers about why it is so difficult to buy a house this year, and whether rising mortgage interest rates or building more homes will solve the new housing shortage. This week, the National [...]
Update: June 16. 2021. According to the National Association of Realtors, the U.S. is now short between 5 million and 6.8 million housing units. A new study has called for a "once in a generation" governmental response to push builders to add more single family homes, townhomes, condos, multi-family and rental properties. "We're four [...]
What can you do if your mortgage is underwater? This homeowner wants to know if she can foreclose and move on, but that should only be her last resort. Q: I am a widow in my 70s and my mortgage is underwater. Can I just let the bank foreclose and move on? I don't want [...]
Real estate market recap for 2020 and housing outlook for 2021. An overview of how COVID-19 impacted real estate in 2020 and what to expect in 2021. Safe to say that 2020 will go down in history as a year like no other. Even, or perhaps especially, in real estate. Real Estate Market Recap for [...]
How to manage inherited property split between siblings. This reader wants to either buy his sister out or sell the property, but she refuses. Q: My boyfriend’s mother died several months back. He wants to either buy his sister out or sell the property, but his sister has refused his verbal requests to buy her [...]
