7 Tips for Negotiating Your New Home Construction Price
Buying a new home—especially for a new homebuyer—can be an arduous process. Thankfully, with a few solid tips on hard negotiating, you can turn a grueling search into an exciting adventure. Ultimately, if you’re prepared when it comes time to talk numbers, you’ll have the...
The True Cost of Buying a Home
Buying a home is an exciting chapter in one’s life. It shows progress, growth, and is at the crux of the American Dream. Furthermore, homeownership has some significant advantages over renting. But, what is the cost of home buying? For instance, buying a home can: Provide...
Home Renovation Loans: How Do They Work?
Renovation Loans Are A Rising Trend Among Home Buyers It’s hard to ignore how much more common it is to see homeowners taking on home renovations these days. There is no doubt that much of the popularity of doing home renovations can be attributed to...
The Down Low on Escrow: What it is and How Does it Work?
If you’re currently looking for a home, chances are you’ve been hearing the term escrow quite a bit. Despite how frequently the phrase is used in the home buying and selling process, a thorough understanding of the word seems to elude people. For that reason,...
Should I Pay Back Debt or Start Saving?
To pay back debt, or start saving: that is the question. Common advice and some simple math will probably lead you to believe that paying off debt is always the best option; however, this might not always be the case. Generally, there are two common positions...
Renting vs Buying: What’s Better for You?
Renting vs Buying ... When it comes to deciding whether to buy or rent, everyone seems to have a different opinion. Obviously, there are many factors to consider when deciding to purchase or rent a home, but ceteris paribus, is one option better than the...
Put More Money in Your Piggy Bank with a Piggyback or LPMI Loan
If you haven’t done any research on the mortgage process, private mortgage insurance (PMI) has no meaning to you. PMI is required on all loans that have less than 20% down. The insurance is a safety net for the lender in case you are unable...
Understanding Hidden Costs of Homeownership
By no means should this article discourage you from homeownership. In fact, in the vast majority of the country, buying a home is actually cheaper than renting one. However, it’s important that new homeowners are well educated on some of the “hidden” costs of homeownership....
Top 10 Benefits of VA Loans for Veterans and Active-Duty Members
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 21 million veterans and service members live in the U.S. today but only about six percent of have purchased a home using a VA home loan in the past five years. Because there is such a surprisingly...
How and When Do I Refinance My Home?
If you’re considering a home refinance, you might find yourself drowning in questions: What are the risks of loan refinancing? How does my credit score affect the refinancing process? What does it even mean to refinance a home? Simply put, refinancing means replacing your current mortgage with...