Vacation Home Sales Soar
According to the 2014 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey by the National Association of Realtors, vacation home sales jumped dramatically in the last year or so. The survey reveals that vacation homes increased by almost 30% in 2013, their sales accounted for 13% of all real estate transactions. Meanwhile, investment home sales plummeted by […]
Why Real Estate Agents Should Focus on Baby Boomers
Want to focus on a particular niche for your real estate business? Consider the baby boomer generation! Why, you ask? Well, there are many reasons why it’s a good idea for agents to spend time and money marketing to baby boomers. Their generation accounts for about fifty percent of discretionary spending, not to mention that […]
The Advantages of Reverse Mortgages for Seniors
Reverse mortgages have had a bad reputation for many years and has not been seen as a viable option for most seniors. With a combination of bad publicity and complicated terms the product has been greatly misunderstood among consumers. The challenge is that with America’s large aging population, the concept of reverse mortgages needs a […]
Online Home Sales are Changing the Real Estate Business
It’s a fact that online sales in general have dominated the shopping experiences of many people, no matter what they are looking for. The real estate industry has seen a huge change in online home sales due to the ability to buy online. Before the days of the Internet, home buyers looked at papers for […]
Fixed Mortgage Rates Rise
Recently, fixed-rate mortgage rates moved up slightly higher. According to Freddie Mac, the average interest rate at the end of May/beginning of June was 4.12%. Last week, lenders offered 30-year loans at an average rate of 4.14%. The rise occurred during a week the market’s direction was very unclear. A year ago, the interest rate […]
Older Americans Facing Substantial Mortgage Debt
A few decades ago, homeowners could retire without a mortgage. They could enjoy the golden years of their life. But the refinancing trend resulted in a great deal of mortgage debt. Many people also bought homes later in life, and this is another reason why retirees will be left with a mortgage. According to an […]
How Realtors Can Benefit from Big Data
The last few years have been quite tough for the real estate industry. In fact, the subprime mortgage crisis in the US made it nearly impossible to get loans and drove buyers away from the market. The recession caused people to lose their jobs, and consequently, many of them were sapped of their ability to […]
Provisions in the New Expire Act That May Impact Homeowners
When Ronald Regan revamped the tax code and signed the reform bill in 1986 there were only 14 provisions that had expiration dates. Today that number has grown to 55. These expirations create uncertainly from year to year as to what is tax deductible and what is not. At the end of 2013 55 provisions […]
All About Adjustable Mortgages
An ARM or an adjustable mortgage has a fixed rate of interest during the initial period of the loan. This initial period can range between one month and 7 or more years. When the initial period expires, the interest rate will change. Note that borrower’s monthly payments can change even if the interest rates remain […]
The Psychology of Real Estate Investment
Despite the hammering dealt by recessionary trends, real estate has continued to be a preferred investment zone for some investors. Buying preferences and home ownerships dynamics have witnessed many changes in the recent past. However, some individuals will always have a penchant for owning more than they need. Here, we would like to concentrate our […]
