Deals like a $250,000 house selling for $65,000 has brought home buyers back into the housing market. And for the first time in three years, the S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price index of real estate values has risen from one quarter to the next. Is the...
Should you always stretch yourself financially when buying a home? This New York Times article answers with a resounding NO(!). A lot of rules got thrown around during the housing bubble that have since been turned completely upside down. Here are the new rules: 1. Go...
Nearly half of the nation's mortgages are predicted to be underwater by the end of the first quarter of 2011. That means owners owe more on their home than it's worth. Yowza.According to MSN Money, here's how you can tell if you are in danger:Lots of foreclosures in...
If you bought a home in 2009, you should examine whether you are a "first-time home buyer." The definition is looser than you might think and, if you fit the definition, you could be entitled to a tax credit up to $8,000. Free!The stimulus plan passed by Congress...
Do you speak "Realtor"? It's an important language to know when buying a home. "Listing sheets," or descriptions of homes for sale, often play up the positive and downplay the negative. With this in mind, the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents released a...
That quote is from Ed McMahon, senior resident fellow on sustainable development at the Urban Land Institute, a nonprofit land use and real estate development research organization, who was talking about the recent geographic shift in home building from suburban to...
First-time home buyers will catch a tax break this tax season with the passage of the stimulus bill on Tuesday. According to The New York Times, "First-time home buyers are eligible for a refundable tax credit equal to 10 percent of the purchase price of their home,...
Good news is tough to come by in the housing market these days. Bloomberg.com reports a record 19 million homes stood vacant at the end of 2008. The wave of foreclosures is whittling away home prices, which is good news for potential buyers, and prompting government...
Glancing over the property listings for real estate in Western Australia, I came across this listing. According to the description, it's a nice house that features "everything you require in a modern family home." Running down the list: a new kitchen, formal lounge,...
CNNMoney.com has a pair of articles surveying the collapsing housing market. Hard to believe but even in these dark times, there are markets that are experiencing growth. Here's the list of the top 10 fastest growing real estate markets. The list reads from fastest...
