Most people don’t even think about garage doors when they are buying a home. But the look of the garage, particularly an attached garage, can make or break the look of your house. You might purchase a home with a nice garage that matches the color and look of your home, yet the garage doors [...]
Should you sell your home? Or perhaps you should rent or complete a major renovation to get the home you want. There are reasons to sell your home just as there are reasons for finding alternatives to selling. View what’s best for you before starting down this road. Selling There are many reasons people sell their [...]
You’ve purchased a house in Virginia. However, you don’t actually own it yet. You need to complete the final transaction. This is known as closing or settlement. The escrow agent conducts the closing and is often affiliated with the title insurance company. Their job is to ensure the buyer obtains a clean title, the lender [...]
Congratulations! You’ve found the home of your dreams. But before you make a formal offer, you need to make sure the home is priced correctly. You don’t want to overpay. Typically used when selling a home, a comparable market analysis (CMA) lists the recent sale information of nearby homes, including how long each home stayed [...]
You’ve done all the preliminary work. Now is where the fun begins: actually looking for your new home. Looking around, attending viewings and open houses can either be daunting or fun, depending on how you view it. Try to see it as a new adventure. If you choose to buy a property directly from a [...]
Congratulations on making the decision of buying a new home! The first thing you need to decide is how much you can afford. Determining this early in the buying process will save you a lot of time and frustration. Not only will you have a clearer idea of the amount you can spend, but you [...]
Buying a home, whether for the first time or the tenth, can be very exciting and scary at the same time. Most first time home buyers will experience a full range of emotions as they go through the buying process. This is a completely normal reaction. Owning a home can be a wonderful thing. Having [...]
Earlier we did a post on building your own home. Now we can take it a step farther and go on to discuss tips on options and upgrades. Determine which options and upgrades you want. Bear in mind that for many builders, the profit margin is highest in upgrades. Some builders can sell a home [...]
You are focused and certain: it’s time to buy a house. Your very first home on your own. But wait. Don’t just dive in. Define Your Search Parameters. Almost 80% of all home searches today begin on the Internet. With just a few clicks of the mouse, home buyers can search through hundreds of online [...]
Condos, single family, single story, multi-level, side streets, corner lots, busy streets, country, city? There are all kinds of houses out there and with the buyer’s market that’s in existence today, you can probably find a good deal. But what kind of home is right? First, the pros and cons of location. Urban, suburban or rural? [...]
Many people don’t want to buy a used house when only a new house will do: when they can have it their way! The home must be brand spankin’ new, fresh and clean without so much as a finger print on the walls. Is this you? If it is the following tips will help protect [...]
Should you buy a new home or a resale house? The choice is up to you, of course, based on what you can afford and where you want to live, but buying new offers a whole range of advantages that are not available in a resale property. Here are some of the reasons that have [...]
If you are in the market for a new home in Washington D.C. but are concerned about the cost of building from scratch – and the time it takes to build a house – you may want to investigate manufactured houses. The term “manufactured house” specifically refers to a home built entirely in a protected [...]
Buying a home is a huge purchase, probably one of the biggest purchases most people ever make. Naturally, people want to protect the value of their property. Homeowners insurance is a contract between a homeowner and an insurance company. As long as the owner pays the required premiums and meets the other policy requirements, the insurance [...]
What to do before buying a new home is a common topic and very important, but what many people don’t think of is what not to do before buying a home. Make no major purchases. Avoid buying a car, or major appliances or purchases of any kind that will add debt. This can also include [...]
There are a lot of methods to utilize on the search for a perfect home. Below are the most popular ways, as well as some not so popular methods of house searching and reasons for their success or failure. Yard Signs. Many people see a house as they drive by and see the For Sale [...]
Home buying today is very different to what it was five years ago. When the market was at its peak the moment a home came on the market there were people falling over themselves to get a view and perhaps submit an offer. Today, a home comes onto the market and while there may be [...]
If you’re in the market to buy a home, consider casting your net just a little bit wider. Research is becoming a real key to home buying and some of that research should include settlement and ongoing costs. There can be a huge variation between states when it comes to transfer and annual taxes – [...]
If you’re looking to buy a home in Maryland and you don’t know the state, you will need to do some research first to ensure you select the right area for your research. For many new residents, their move is motivated by employment so the general area will be known, but sometimes you need to [...]
Today is the last day to settle if you are looking to claim the tax credit as a first home buyer. However, if you cannot settle today then all may not be lost. The Senate is due to debate and vote on legislation that could extend today’s cut off date to September 30. Before I [...]
Buying a home is not a simple process. You cannot walk up to a seller, make an offer and exchange the keys for cash. At times we wish it was that simple. However, from the time you make an offer to the time you get the keys in your hot little hand could be as [...]
Okay – so a home you are interested in is going to have an open house this weekend. Naturally, you’re interested in the property so you’re going to give it a thorough look over. But what are you actually looking for? There are some things you should be looking for, areas that can often be [...]
If you’re buying a home in Maryland and the sales price is lower than the official valuation used for taxation, you can lodge an appeal. However, it must be lodged between January 1 and June 30 so you don’t have much time. If you are in the final stages of settling, don’t delay that settlement [...]
If you’re new to home buying then I have no doubts you are filled with both excitement and apprehension. It’s only natural. After all, you are about to make the biggest commitment of your life, buy the most expensive item in your life (unless you’re into expensive collectibles) and join millions of others as property [...]
A contingency is something that has to be done before another act can proceed. When buying a home, for instance, you have a home inspection contingency as a right – it’s also a form of protection for the buyer. The sales process cannot proceed until the home inspection has been done and the report acted [...]
How can you tell a seller is desperate? It’s not easy but there are some indications. The questions is, as a buyer, should you look for those desperate sellers? A cautious approach is always a good idea and desperate sellers can be ideal for finding homes below market value. Some indications of a desperate seller [...]
Home buying in a buyers market should be fairly straightforward and, generally speaking, it is. However, there are some traps that home buyers could fall into if they are not careful and one of those is aggressive pricing. This is the reverse of overpricing. Why is aggressive pricing a possible trap? Properties that look good [...]
Part of the home buying process is the negotiation phase where buyers make offers and sellers make counter offers. It doesn’t always follow that trend, of course. There are times when a seller will reduce the advertised price hoping to attract interest and then be unwilling to negotiate any further reductions. When it comes to [...]
Although there are a lot of properties on the market at present, finding the right one for your family may still be difficult. If you are looking at real estate in Virginia, for example, and you’re not in a hurry, receiving email alerts when new properties are listed may be the best approach. This can [...]
There are a lot of home buyers that rushed everything through before the end of April so that they could claim a tax credit before it came to an end. Having beaten that deadline, it could be a timely reminder to keep the pressure on. If you haven’t completed the sale by the end of [...]
