April 2017

“More has been lost due to indecision than was ever lost to making the wrong decision.” Interest rates have as much effect on housing costs as price and when they are both trending upward, it can be very expensive to wait. There can be some legitimate reasons for postponing a purchase such as needing to save the down payment, improve your credit or waiting to find out about a possible transfer. The...

Some Highlights:The National Association of REALTORS® surveyed their members for their monthly Confidence Index.The REALTORS® Confidence Index is a key indicator of housing market strength based on a monthly survey sent to over 50,000 real estate practitioners. Practitioners are asked about their expectations for home sales, prices and market conditions.Homes sold in 60 days or less in 36 out of 50...

This time of year, many people eagerly check their mailboxes looking for their tax return check from the IRS. But, what do most people plan to do with the money? GO Banking Rates recently surveyed Americans and asked the question - “What do you plan on doing with your tax refund?”The results of the survey were interesting. Here is what they plan to do with their money:41% - Put it into savings38% - Pay...

Real Estate mogul, Sean Conlon, host of The Deed: Chicago on CNBC, was recently asked the question, should you buy? Or should you rent a house?Conlon responded:“I am a true believer that you save every penny and you buy your first house… and that is still the fastest path to wealth in this country.”Conlon went on to suggest that first-time buyers put down 10-20% “if they can make it work,” and to...

In school, we all learned the theory of supply and demand. When the demand for an item is greater than the supply of that item, the price will surely rise. SUPPLY The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently reported that the inventory of homes for sale stands at a 3.8-month supply. This is considerably lower than the 6-month supply necessary for a normal market. DEMAND Every month...

Some would-be buyers have emotional reasons to own a home like having a place of their own where they can raise a family, feel safe and secure and enjoy their friends’ company. Other buyers’ dominant reasons might be financial in nature such as building equity or lowering their cost of housing. Regardless of what might be motivating people to want their own home, it is easy to justify that now is a...

Saving for a down payment is often the biggest hurdle for a first-time homebuyer. Depending on where you live, median income, median rents, and home prices all vary. So, we set out to find out how long it would take you to save for a down payment in each state.Using data from the United States Census Bureau and Zillow, we determined how long it would take, nationwide, for a first-time buyer to save enough...

Some Highlights: Interest rates are still below historic numbers. 88% of property managers raised their rent in the last 12 months! The credit score requirements for mortgage approval continue to fall. Source: Keeping Current...

Many Americans got some depressing news last week; either their tax return was not as large as they had hoped or, in some cases, they were told they owed additional money to either the Federal or State government or both. One way to save on taxes is to own your own home.According to the Tax Policy Center’s Briefing Book -“A citizen's guide to the fascinating (though often complex) elements of the...

The cartoon character Wimpy would say that he’d gladly repay you Tuesday for a hamburger today. Some real estate investors say a similar thing to Uncle Sam to be able to hold on to their proceeds from the sale of an investment and agree to pay the tax later. The benefit of a 1031 exchange is that it allows the investor to defer the tax due from the sale into the replacement property. This allows more...

Credit card debt in America is back to levels prior to the recession. The average credit card APR is just under 16% according to CreditCards.com Weekly Credit Card Report.  Homeowners have an advantage over renters when it comes to getting their arms around debt issues. Basic money management suggests that higher rate debt be replaced with lower rate debt. Credit cards, personal cars, boats, motor...

Rental homes are the IDEAL investment because they offer a higher rate of return than other investments without the volatility of the stock market. With certificates of deposit and bonds at less than 2%, people need an alternative investment that they understand and with a reasonable amount of control. In this case, IDEAL is an acronym identifying the advantages of rental properties. Income from the...