Remember that first day on a new job when it sounded as if your colleagues were speaking a different language? Most industries have their own jargon and real estate is no exception. In fact, this industry seems to be the King of Jargon. What’s worse is that those who use it assume that the rest of us know what they’re talking about. Today we’re going to help you master…

  Sure, “tiny homes” are now a fact of life in the real estate world. No, they aren’t the rage some would have you think, but a minimalist lifestyle is on many American’s bucket lists. One doesn’t necessarily have to live in a dollhouse, however, to know the challenges of trying to furnish and live in and with tiny rooms. Homeowners in older homes are keenly aware of “small-room syndrome.”…

It’s safe to say anyone who was in the market to buy a home last year knows that 2016 was a hot and heavy sellers’ market across the country. We saw far more buyers than homes on the market to satiate the demand. And, while the conventional loan still remained the most popular among these homebuyers, the FHA-backed loan accounted for 17.5 percent of all purchase and refinance loans at…

  Ah, the paradox of water. We soak in it to soothe tired muscles, we relax to the sound of it falling on the roof, we frolic in it on the shores of lakes, rivers and oceans. Water nurtures life – without it we can’t survive. Yet it can also turn deadly. When winter snow storms cease, the threat of flooding increases as the snow begins to melt and the…

  When homebuilders stop building, inventories of homes for sale dwindle and we end up in a tight sellers’ market. While there are many reasons for the recent slowdown in new home construction (high material costs, unavailability of labor, etc.), there is good news on the horizon: they are building again. In fact, new home sales increased more than 6 percent in February, which is “nearly 13 percent higher than…

  One of the decisions you’ll need to make when you make an offer to purchase a home is the closing date. Yes, it goes into the contract and all efforts, from the time the contract is accepted by the seller until you’re handed the keys, are aimed at meeting this date. If you are the seller, by the way, you should know that the closing date, like many of…

  Picture this: You find the perfect buyer for your home. The offer is clean, the buyer is making few demands and the transaction begins humming along. Then, the home inspection results come in. To your chagrin, negotiations begin anew and that formerly speedy progress toward closing comes to a screeching halt. This isn’t a scenario; it is the reality of thousands of real estate transactions across the country and,…

  If your bedroom is merely a place to sleep and to store your clothing — if it isn’t a sanctuary to help buffer you from the effects of a hectic day, it’s time to make some changes. Not only will our tips help you to sleep more soundly, but they’ll help you look forward to that moment when you switch off the TV and pad down the hallway to shake…

  One of the biggest fears of most homebuyers is that there is something wrong with the home and it’s waiting for after the move-in to rear its ugly head. It is this fear that brought about the birth of the home inspection industry in the early 1970s. Today’s professional home inspector performs a thorough investigation of a home’s components and systems that are visible to the naked eye. Even…

  Just when you think the drain on your savings couldn’t get any worse, you close on your new home, unlock the door and move in. All is right with the world. Experienced homebuyers understand, however, that it takes living in a home for a few weeks to notice all those items that need fixing and those you simply wish to change. The last thing to want to do right…