Credit Scores Help Insurance Premiums, Not Just Mortgage Rates
The key to obtaining a lower mortgage rate is a good credit score. But new research has also found a direct link between credit scores and insurance premiums.
Real Estate Agents Balk at Negotiating Fees
Homebuyers looking to pay their agents directly have found little success, according to a new consumer group study.
Few Changes in Real Estate Agent Fees
The supposedly “earthshaking” legal settlement that was supposed to drive down real estate commissions wasn’t so tumultuous after all.
An Untimely Death Changes Everything
What happens when the person buying your house dies before the closing date? Or when your tenant passes away mid-lease?
How to Save on Selling Expenses
If you think it costs a bundle to buy a house – what with a down payment and all – wait till you learn what it costs to sell one: more than $67,000, on average.
Don’t Dismiss Lowball Offers
You’ve finally gotten an offer on your house. But it’s ridiculously low – tens of thousands under your asking price. So, what do you do?
How Homeowners and Buyers Can Weather the Government Shutdown
Experts are weighing in on how the standoff over health insurance subsidies affects renters and homeowners.
When Should Buyers Demand Repairs, or Seek Credits?
There comes a time in most house sales when the buyer and seller have to decide who will pay for any necessary repairs. As with all real estate matters, it depends.
Price Cuts A-Plenty in New-Home Market
Homebuilders are going to great lengths these days to move product. Many are still offering exceptional deals, especially on homes that are move-in ready.
AI Helps Compare Contractor Bids
One of the most difficult parts of beginning a home improvement project is comparing bids from various contractors. It’s almost impossible.
What Happens When You Lie on Your Loan Application
Even if you are not prosecuted, if your lender finds out you equivocated, they can call your loan due and payable on the spot.
Good Buyers Look Beyond Home Staging
House hunters who visit homes that look like they belong in Architectural Digest need to take a closer look. Those places have been staged to hide their flaws.
Review Your Homeowners Insurance Yearly
The beginning of hurricane season should serve as a reminder to homeowners in affected areas to make sure their homeowners insurance is up to date.
Protection Against Condo Special Assessments
Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of condominium apartments are languishing on the market these days, and not just because of high interest rates and high prices.
Protect Your House from Break-Ins
Thefts from the houses of sports stars Ketel Marte, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes and Rob Gronkowski should raise the hackles of every homeowner – celebrity or not.
Equity Contracts Aren’t So Hot
There comes a time in practically every homeowner’s life when they consider using the equity they’ve built up in their house for one purpose or another.
The Property Insurance Conundrum
Recent storms highlight just how few Americans go without homeowners’ insurance – 1 in 7 – and how nearly everyone does without flood insurance.
40-Year Listing Firm Run Out of Business
Remember the company that was offering homeowners a few thousand dollars in exchange for the promise that if they ever decided to sell their houses – at any time in the next 40 years – they would list it with them?
It’s Not All Bad for Buyers
Now might not be the best time to buy a house. But if you are a member of the must-buy group, fear not: the inventory of houses for sale hasn’t been this large since 2019.
Unhappy Agents Voice Concerns
According to the surprisingly candid results of a survey delving into agents’ psyche by the Redfin brokerage firm, half expect their fees to fall in the coming months.
