Real estate agents often become the go-to person for buyers’ questions—especially first-time buyers and people relocating to the area. What do you think I should offer? Which lender do you recommend? How quickly can I close?   Oftentimes, however, home buyers don’t think to ask about title insurance. They don’t think about all the potential issues that may botch their purchase. That’s why it’s up to agents to advise their clients on title insurance and highly encourage it ... read more

I’m getting ready to sell my home, and my agent recommended that I have a professional home inspection before I put it on the market instead of just having the buyer do it prior to closing. Are there advantages to doing it up front? Many times sellers resist pre-sale inspections because they fear the inspections will turn up issues that the sellers then must disclose. It’s a case of ignorance being bliss — but only temporarily. Most buyers will (and all should) complete a home inspection before ... read more

We just found out we’re expecting a baby this summer and we’d really like to buy a home before she’s here. Where do we start?   Congratulations! This is an exciting time full of anticipation. You have some planning to do.  Determine how much you can afford. Start by taking inventory of your financial situation. Can you show that your employment situation is stable? Is your debt-to-income ratio reasonable? How much home you can afford? Use a mortgage calculator... read more

I have $500 to spend on my home before I put it on the market. Where should I invest it? Homeowners are often surprised at what some minor improvements can do to increase appeal as well as value to prospective buyers. Even $500 can go a long way. But the best way to invest it will vary from home to home. The best advice is to take a critical look at your home and ask yourself where does it show the most wear? Is it outside or inside? Is underneath or overhead? The majority of homeowners usually find that $500 is ... read more

While homes statewide are selling in an average of five weeks, homes in our region are selling even faster. There’s clearly more demand than supply at this point in the cycle.  Unless your home is valued at more than $400,000, it should be selling within or around the local average time on market (the number of days from the time your house is listed to the time it goes under contract). If it isn’t, you need to figure out why because time on market matters. The longer your house sits on the market... read more