Tag: Home Ownership
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Mortgage Life Insurance: What Is It? Who Needs It?
As soon as you close on your new home and the deed is in your name, expect to find a whole lot of marketing materials in your mailbox. Some of these items will be from insurers. You might get offers for mortgage life insurance (a.k.a mortgage protection insurance) and wonder if it’s worth looking into.…
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When a Co-Owner Has Dementia: What’s Ahead?
Do you co-own a home? Then you could one day be asking if your deed can be signed over to someone else if either co-owner develops dementia. You might even want to transfer the deed entirely, and move to a place that will be easier on one or both of you. Let’s take a look…
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When a Homeowner Dies, What Happens to the Home?
What happens when a homeowner dies depends on whether there’s a will, the level of debt left behind, and how members of the deceased person’s circle think about others who could be beneficiaries of the estate. Understanding these factors can help a homeowner write a will that works. And if you stand to inherit an…
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What If the Deed Is Not Recorded? (Never Let This Happen.)
By accepting a deed, you become a new property owner. Be sure to file the deed you accept with the county recorder’s office. The recording becomes your public notice that you now own the property described on the deed. You might have heard that a deed works to transfer property as soon as it’s offered…
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Should I Agree to Put My Partner/Fiancé on the House Deed?
Maybe you’re buying a new home. A home for you and your significant other to live in. Or maybe you already hold a deed, and are thinking of quitclaiming it from your name into both names: you, and your unmarried partner. Perhaps your partner is paying a percentage of the housing costs, and would like…
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Get in Early, Make a High Down Payment: The Case for Assertive Home Buying
Have you noticed the big home finance companies desperately touting their low-down-payment deals? You’d think no one wants to put 20% down anymore! But interest rates are high, so keeping your debt high is a pricey thing to do. Therefore, it can make sense, for those who can swing it, to: Let’s explore the case…
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What is a Special Warranty Deed?
If you’re like most people planning to make a real estate purchase, you want to know that the property you’re purchasing is actually owned by the seller, that it’s in reasonably good shape, and that the title is free of defects. Real estate transactions aren’t always as seamless or clean as buyers might like, though.…
