Home | Blog
Online loans today.

Considering Kitchen Layouts: What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’?

August 10, 2012

in Home Buying Guide, Home Improvement | Tagged , ,

The single-guy-who-nukes-his-dinner-every-night crowd probably doesn’t care about a good kitchen. To the rest of us, the kitchen can make or break a real estate deal. To a lot of people a kitchen isn’t just a room in which to prepare meals. It’s a homework area, a place to sit with a neighbor over a cup […]

How to Buy a House Debt Free

July 6, 2012

in Home Buying Guide | Tagged , , , , , ,

Really want to own a home of your own, or take advantage of the many great real estate investment opportunities available right now, but don’t want to join the ranks of the millions of underwater homeowners out there or have the stress of meeting a mortgage payment every month? The Pros and Cons of Saving […]

Does Flooring Add to the Value of a Home?

June 22, 2012

in Home Appraisal, Home Buying Guide, Home Improvement | Tagged , , , , , ,

Real estate agents and brokers from Palm Springs, Calif. to Nashville, Tenn. and Garden City, N.Y. can be found online encouraging homeowners to rip up the carpet and replace it with tile or hardwood flooring to increase the value of their homes. But does flooring really add value? New flooring can add a ton of […]

What is Mortgage Life Insurance?

June 15, 2012

in Home Buying Guide | Tagged , , , , ,

The pitch is typically delivered on a postcard that arrives in the mail. Look closely – it’s most likely from your bank, not your insurance agent. The come-on: If you die (sad music in the background), your family will be forced out of their home if they can’t make the mortgage payment. Ah, but wait. […]

Your New Home and Its Appliances

June 1, 2012

in Home Buying Guide | Tagged , , , , ,

The money pit – that’s how lots of homebuyers describe their new purchase. First, there’s the down payment, then the closing costs. Then, there are all the things to purchase to make the home comfortable for you and your family. Sometimes the house just needs a new coat of paint, or new flooring. Many new […]

Buying Vacation Home Properties: What You Need to Know

May 25, 2012

in Home Buying Guide | Tagged , , , , , ,

Ah, the vay-cay! We work for it, we live for it — typically fifty weeks of the year. When the time finally rolls around, many Americans have their own slice of heaven in which to spend their well-deserved time off: a vacation home. Whether it’s a cottage by the beach, a house in the mountains […]

How to Negotiate: 7 Clever Home Buying Negotiation Tactics

May 18, 2012

in Home Buying Guide, Negotiating House Prices | Tagged

Getting the house you want at the price you want can be tricky – even in a buyer’s market. Sometimes a home seller just isn’t willing to budge on price. Don’t despair! There are other ways to sweeten the deal and drive it to close in a buyer’s market. Here are seven negotiating tips for […]

Buying a House “As-Is” With Right to Inspect

May 11, 2012

in Home Buying Guide

In this new age of foreclosures and short sales, more and more homes are offered “as-is.” For the prospective homebuyer, it’s now essential to understand what this means. Buying a home as-is sounds like it would be a disadvantage, but it also has a number of benefits that could play to your favor. First, what […]

What are Easement Restrictions? How to Ensure Clear Title on a Property

May 5, 2012

in Home Buying Guide | Tagged

When buying a home you’re bound to encounter some things that you don’t know anything about. They are things that outside of the home buying process you won’t ever run into. And since the average homebuyer only goes through this process a few times in his or her lifetime, it’s understandable that these things would […]

How Brokers Get Exclusive Real Estate Listings

April 27, 2012

in Home Buying Guide, Tips When Selling a Home | Tagged , , , ,

You’re not around real estate brokerage for long before you hear the adage, “You’ve got to list to last.” It means that to be a successful career real estate agent, you need to be listing homes for sale. Exclusive listings mean that the listing agent (technically the listing broker) is guaranteed to receive a commission […]