The Good Neighbor Next Door: Buy a Home for Half Price and Only $100 Down
News outlets across the country have reported for months that buyers face intense competition these days from other hopefuls for nearly every property for sale in the U.S. It’s a seller’s market. In fact, many homes sell very quickly, and end up selling for amounts far above the list price. But thanks to a government-run… Read More
What is Rapid Rescoring and How Can it Help Me?
Say you applied for a mortgage but your credit score was just a few points shy of landing best possible interest rate due to an error on your credit report or a high balance. If you tried to fix the error or paid down the balance, it could take several weeks for your credit report… Read More
Do You Have to Put 20 Percent Down on a New Home?
Some hopeful homebuyers know they can afford a mortgage payment – in many cases it’s lower than rent – but struggle to come up with the down payment. Saving that much money is a challenge for most of us. In some metropolitan areas, average home prices are very, very high, requiring a down payment of… Read More
Today’s Housing Market – What You Need to Know
Here’s a snapshot of today’s housing market nationwide. Rising prices Home prices in 133 of 150 major metropolitan areas rose sharply in the first quarter of 2013, experiencing their biggest gains in many years. The national median price for an existing single family home is now $176,600 – up 11.3 percent from one year ago…. Read More
Can a First-Time Buyer Get a Jumbo Loan?
What is a jumbo loan? In most parts of the U.S., “jumbo” means a mortgage larger than $417,000. In some high-cost areas like New York, the threshold is $625,000. This is not a limit on purchase price, but rather on the loan amount. So to buy a home for $500,000 with 20 percent down, a… Read More
Why Mortgage Lenders are Turning You Down
Low interest rates are one of the main factors fueling this spring’s robust housing market. And in contrast to recent years when it was difficult to borrow money, 51 percent of people now say that it’s getting easier to land a mortgage, according to a recent housing survey by Fannie Mae. So if you’re not… Read More
How to Pay for Spring Fix-Its: 3 Financing Options to Consider
Not only was there a major rainstorm outside your house—but inside, too. (Are you cursing yourself for never cleaning out your clogged gutters?) So while your yard was happy for the big drink, you’re left with quite a bit of damage to your walls and floors. Enough so, that the bill for the repair work… Read More
