The final home walk-through before closing is an important time for homebuyers and sellers. To make the most of it, it’s helpful for both parties to know what they should look for ahead of time. A walk-through before closing can help homebuyers avoid getting burned if sellers leave the home in worse condition than it [...]
There are four key times during new construction when homebuyers should schedule a home inspection to protect their investment. Building a new home does not guarantee that everything will be perfect the first time, and with so much at stake it can be easy to get overwhelmed. Homebuyers can ease some of their concerns by [...]
Home prices nationwide increased year-over-year, according to a new CoreLogic report. From January of 2013 to January of 2014, home prices, including distressed home sales, increased by an average of 12 percent. If you look at single-family sales in certain areas, appreciation is higher when distressed sales are included rather than excluded. You would think [...]
This article was updated on 4/25/17. If you are gearing up to buy a home, your credit score could mean the difference between a manageable mortgage payment and one that breaks the bank. That’s because your credit score is one of the biggest factors lenders use to determine your mortgage interest rate and how much [...]
Contract contingencies offer protection for people buying a home in case something goes wrong. There are three standard contract contingencies homebuyers should know about to make sure they can get out of a home agreement if they need to. Under certain circumstances, contract contingencies can keep homebuyers from facing penalties if they decide to walk [...]
Last year, housing prices increased more than they had in seven years, and buyers’ markets turned into sellers’ markets overnight. In many cities and towns across the country, this price jump was a result of inventory shortages that forced buyers to compete over the few homes that were available for sale. Will the housing recovery [...]
Making a low-ball bid can be risky, but if your dream home is out of your price range, it might be your only chance of owning it. There are ways to make your low-ball bid attractive to the seller and real estate broker, not offensive. Present the offer well and sellers could be enticed to [...]
Earnest money could seal the deal when buying your dream home. When a homebuyer finds his or her dream house and it’s time to get serious, putting down earnest money is a great step toward closing – but what is earnest money? Earnest money is how homebuyers show the seller they are truly interested in [...]
In many ways, the Internet has made buying a home easier. Instead of relying on a real estate agent to mine the best listings for you, you can simply plug in your search criteria to a national or local real estate listing site to see what’s available in your area. You can also apply for [...]
Sometimes first-time homebuyers are unsure of exactly how finding a good real estate broker can help them. While it may be tempting to save money on searching for a new home by going it alone, using a real estate broker can have big benefits. Namely, real estate brokers often have access to more information about [...]
