Real Estate Blog

Can 0.5% Really Equal 5%?

Since the election, rates have started going up and it will have a direct effect on the cost of housing. There is a rule of thumb that a ½% change in interest is approximately equal to 5% change in price. As the interest rates go...
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Time May Be Running Out

During the Great Recession, some homeowners elected to rent their home rather than sell it for less than it was worth. IRS tax code allows for a temporary rental of a principal residence without losing the exclusion of capital gain based on some specific time...
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It Isn’t Final Until It’s Funded

Mortgage approval isn’t final until it’s funded. Things can change prior to the loan being closed that can affect a pre-approval such as changes in the borrowers’ financial situation or possibly, factors beyond their control like interest rate changes. Good advice to buyers is to...
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Gift or Inheritance – Does It Matter?

A person called into a radio talk program with a situation that was troubling to the caller and disturbing based on the potential tax liability that may have been avoided. The caller’s elderly father had deeded his home to his daughter a few years earlier...
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It’s the Principal of the Thing

Most people think they’ll have a house payment and a car payment for the rest of their lives but it doesn’t have to be with a plan and a little discipline. The plan is to make additional principal contributions to a fixed rate mortgage to...
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