Category: General

What’ll this market do in 2023? Economists envision home prices dropping throughout the year. A report from the research firm Capital Economics predicts an 8% drop, which is in the range others are predicting, too. Then, its forecast shows property values rising back up again — by 2.5% in late 2024. Morgan Stanley analysts believe…

Most of us know home sharing platforms are a thing — but how about home swapping platforms? Yes, they exist. Hundreds of thousands of people have signed up for subscriptions, across the country and worldwide, so they can immerse themselves in each other’s surroundings for a few days or weeks at a time. Some look…

Plenty of tech innovators are coming up with interesting options to support home buyers, agents, and window shoppers. Many have multiple useful features, and some are pretty fun concepts, too. Here are some of the standouts. Note: We’re not advertising here or getting paid by anyone connected to the app world. This overview is simply…

After the 2007-09 financial crisis, a string of companies bought up foreclosed houses and flipped them into rental homes. Sometimes, they rented to the very same people whose homes were foreclosed and bought out. Ever since then, these firms have profited handsomely from rising real estate values — and the existence of a growing class…

If you’re a mortgage borrower, you pay interest on your loan every month. As the end of the calendar year approaches, you’ve probably paid quite a lot of interest on your loan. The silver lining is your ability to add it all up for your mortgage interest deduction. The deduction means you can cut your…

When you buy a home, it can be a primary residence, a second home, or investment real estate that you plan to rent out to others. Most individual home buyers are purchasing homes they want to live in — primary residences. But what if you have more than one property? Getting your primary residence status…

If you’re like most mere mortals, your real estate will outlive you. That’s why your real estate title does double duty as an estate planning aid. It tells the world how the title can move on, whether or not there’s a will. So, be sure to vest your home title to match your long-term vision. ☛…

As our readers know, the typical 30-year fixed mortgage rate is above 7% now — having surged several percentage points in just the past year. The tension is high for potential buyers looking for access to finance, and mortgage lenders are clearly concerned. The home loan giant Rocket Companies made $60 million in the second…

Millennials have finally arrived — in their own homes. It hasn’t come easy to them. Millennials and younger people do want to buy homes, but they’re presented with an obstacle course along the way. Of millennials, 65% believe buying a home is the key measure of financial success. Around 60% of post-millennials (Gen Z) agree.…

Reacting to a pandemic, the U.S. Federal Reserve launched a monetary policy that pressed mortgage rates astonishingly low — at one point they dipped below 3%. In late 2021, the Fed did an about-face. And the rates shot up. The Fed doesn’t manipulate mortgage rates directly — but banks generally raise their interest rates following…

The question is more loaded than you might think. Almost every buyer finds something amiss in the home after taking the keys. A few minor things here and there? No big deal. But often, the problems are far more than a buyer bargained for. And some home sellers know exactly what the buyers will find.…

Summer 2022 has drawn to a close. The pace of U.S. home sales has slowed for most of the year. The issue? It’s the prices. Many hopeful buyers are still waiting for real housing affordability. Just as we find light at the end of the tunnel, mortgage interest rates for borrowers are over 6%. Maybe…

In these days of sky-high home prices and abruptly rising interest rates, you might be thinking of giving a boost to a sibling, an adult child, or someone else close to you who could use some help. Here, we look at some example scenarios. How would you approach these situations?

If you own a vacation home and only rent it to guests every blue moon, you might wonder: Do I need to report this on my federal income tax returns? The first thing to know is this. A vacation house, cottage, apartment, mobile home, condo, or boathouse used partially for renting out and partially for…

For the past two-plus years, sellers ruled. Buyers had to race for homes that entered the market only to be gone within a day or two. But talk of a looming recession has changed buyer attitudes. Now, the average home is selling below its list price, and that hasn’t happened in a long time, as…