Home Inventory
Generally speaking, when you need an inventory of your personal belongings, it is too late to make one. Sure, you can reconstruct it but undoubtedly, you'll forget things and that can cost you money when filing your insurance [...]
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Standard or Itemized Deductions
Standard or Itemized Deductions
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 increased the standard deduction to $24,000 for married couples. There will be some instances that homeowners may be better off taking the standard deduction than itemizing their deductions. In the past, homeowners would most likely be better off itemizing but the $10,000 [...]
Eliminate FHA Mortgage Insurance
Eliminate FHA Mortgage Insurance
Mortgage insurance premium can add almost $200 to the payment on a $265,000 FHA mortgage. The decision to get an FHA loan may have been the lower down payment requirement or the lower credit score levels, but now that you have the loan, is it possible to eliminate [...]
Year End Tax Newsletter
Year End Tax Newsletter
One of the first steps in a good outcome is knowing a little bit about what you're about to undertake. By being aware of some of the areas regarding homes that may not come up every year in a tax return, you'll be able to point them out to your tax professional or seek more information from [...]
Your Real Estate Resource
Your Real Estate Resource
Being a better homeowner is a full-time job. It's not just about making better decisions when you buy and sell; it's making better decisions throughout the time you own the [...]
More Comfortable, Convenient and Secure
More Comfortable, Convenient and Secure
Smart home technology promises to make your home more comfortable, convenient and secure. It may not be the home from the Jetson's but artificial intelligence is the hope to make it the home of the future which is available now and controlled from anywhere you have an Internet [...]
Another Type of Financing Concession
Another Type of Financing Concession
Price, condition and terms are factors that any owner must consider when marketing their home. Price is usually the easiest to adjust to compensate for shortcomings in location or condition of the home. Improving the condition of the property is more time consuming but updates to kitchens, baths and [...]
44 Times More Than a Renter
44 Times More Than a Renter
The Federal Reserve Board's Triennial Survey of Consumer Finances recently revealed the net worth of a homeowner was $231,400 compared to $5,200 for a renter. The net worth of homeowners increased 15% from 2013 to 2016 while renters' decreased by [...]
Gift of Equity
Gift of Equity
There is a little-known mortgage program that could provide the vehicle for the right person to get into a home. If a person sells their home to another for less than the fair market value, the difference in the appraised value and the sales price is considered a gift of equity for the [...]
Do You Know the Way?
Do You Know the Way?
It may be natural for first-time buyers to be unsure of the process of buying a home because they haven't been through it before but even repeat buyers need to know changes that have taken place since the financial housing
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