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Articles By Ilyce

Ilyce Glink is an award-winning, nationally syndicated columnist, television reporter and radio talk show host who is widely known for her expertise on trends and issues in real estate and finance. Her syndicated column REAL ESTATE MATTERS offers common sense information and practical insights for anyone thinking about buying, selling, rehabbing or refinancing a home.

  • Mortgage Brokers - Not sure whether to get a mortgage loan through a mortgage broker? Learn what mortgage brokers and mortgage bankers do and how they get paid. How can you find a good mortgage broker? 

  • Credit Score - Having a good credit score will help you get a better mortgage interest rate. Learn how mortgage lenders use your credit score from mortgage broker Victor Benoun. You should try to increase your credit score before you apply for a mortgage.  

  • Audit - The U.S. Internal Revenue Service audits taxpayers to see if they’ve filed their taxes correctly. While the word audit may seem scary, it doesn’t have to be if you’re prepared for an audit. Learn about what you should do to be ready for an audit and what an audit means from CPA Michelle Swenson.  

  • Tax Forms - Every year when you go to file taxes you will have to collect various tax forms. Learn about various tax forms including the W-2, 1099, 1098 and K-1 from CPA Michelle Swenson. Understanding different tax forms will ensure smoother tax filing.  

  • Minimalist Home Design - What is minimalist home design? Author Sarah Susanka describes minimalist home design concepts she learned from Frank Lloyd Wright. The minimalist home design trend will continue to grow says Susanka. 

  • Garden Design - What makes for a good garden design? Garden design includes envisioning how the garden will change with time. Garden design should also factor in house or home design. Learn tips from garden design expert Sarah Susanka. 

  • Filing Taxes - What can you do to make filing taxes less stressful? CPA Michelle Swenson gives tips for filing taxes on time. If you keep records throughout the year filing taxes will be easier. 

  • Home Design - How can you design the home of your dreams? Learn about home design from Sarah Susanka, author of the Not So Big House series of books. Good home design may vary depending on where you live and who you are. 

  • Medical Identity Theft - Are you at risk of medical identity theft? What is medical identity theft? What can you do to protect yourself from medical identity theft? What can your medical provider do to protect you from medical identity theft? 

  • Mortgage Fraud - Mortgage fraud is a given in the marketplace whether times are good or bad, but recently mortgage fraud seems to have exploded into the public conscience. While information about mortgage fraud seems to be everywhere it can still seem unclear as to what exactly mortgage fraud is. 

  • Top States for Mortgage Fraud - Mortgage fraud is fast becoming a nationwide problem. Florida, Nevada, Michigan, California and Utah topped a recent mortgage fraud list. Learn how mortgage lenders track mortgage fraud data.  

  • Mortgage Fraud Protection - What can you the consumer do to protect yourself from falling victim to mortgage fraud? Learn some ways to figure out if your lender is trustworthy and steers clear of mortgage fraud.  

  • Mortgage Lenders and Mortgage Fraud - What can banks and mortgage lenders do to protect themselves from falling victim to mortgage fraud? How do they protect themselves mortgage fraud? 

  • Retirement - What’s the best way to save for retirement? To fund your retirement, you can choose from a number of different retirement plans like a 401(k) or Roth IRA. Learn about retirement savings options here.  

  • Identity Theft - What can your company do to prevent identity theft? What steps can companies take to achieve identity theft protection and prevention? Learn about preventing identity theft here.  

  • Social Networking Sites - How can you reach Generation Y through social networking sites? Ilyce shares what social networking sites she has profiles on and how real estate agents can benefit from using social networking sites.  

  • 1031 Exchange - A restaurant building owner asks about avoiding capital gains tax when using a 1031 exchange. You can minimize taxes depending on how your 1031 exchange is structured. Is a 1031 tax exchange right for you? 

  • VA Loan Rates - A veteran asks how to find out current VA loan rates. Ilyce suggests contacting the VA regional loan centers for the most current VA loan rates. In addition to VA loan rates you should look at VA loan fees. 

  • Home Mortgage Rates - A parent asks about selling a property to her daughter who has good credit. She wonders about home mortgage rates and whether they will fall. Even if the daughter sees high home mortgage rates now she can refinance in the future.  

  • Eligibility for Medicaid - A daughter asks about her father’s eligibility for Medicaid after he transfers his home to her. Will his eligibility for Medicaid be affected by the transfer of his real estate wealth? Find out about eligibility for Medicaid and the Medicaid lookback period. 

  • Investment Property - The owner of an investment property in Albany, NY, asks what the housing market is like there. He wonders how to gauge the housing market for the investment property he may want to sell. How can he decide what to do with his investment property? 

  • EIFS - A home owner asks about replacing synthetic stucco before selling his home. While in this case the EIFS, or synthetic stucco, has been problem free the seller worries about the siding’s stigma. Ilyce suggests researching whether replacing the EIFS will be cost-effective.  

  • Mortgage Fraud - A seller asks about putting money down for a buyer who has no down payment. Lenders want to see buyers put down their own down payment, otherwise it could be seen as mortgage fraud. In this case, it would be mortgage fraud because it would appear that the buyer has money she really does not have. The seller can help the buyer with closing costs and not incur mortgage fraud. 

  • Bad Credit Car Loan - A reader asks about getting a car loan with bad credit after filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. He wonders what his options are for getting a car loan with bad credit. Ilyce suggests looking at person to person lenders for getting a car loan with bad credit.  

  • Apartment Finder - A reader asks about starting an apartment finder web site and whether she needs a real estate license. This apartment finder web site would allow landlords to post listings for about $20 per month. Ilyce suggests contacting in intellectual property attorney to fully understand what it takes to start an apartment finder web site. 

  • VA Loans - A home buyer who is also a veteran, asks about buying a home from his girlfriend with a loan from the Veterans Administration, or a VA loan. He wants to know whether he can use his girlfriend’s income on his VA home loan application. He needs to consider not only the VA’s requirements, but also the future of his relationship with his girlfriend. 

  • MLS Listing - A Baltimore reader asks about how long his home has to be out of an MLS, or multiple listing service, to get a new listing. Each area’s MLS has its own listing rules. Aside from adjusting the MLS listing, Ilyce suggests some ways to help sell your home in a down market.  

  • Drainage - A couple writes that their new home may have water drainage problems. After a rain storm, they returned to find their home’s ground level covered one-third with water. They suspect drainage problems but are not sure. Can they hold the seller liable for not disclosing that the drainage problems led to water entering the home? 

  • Earnest Money - After a home sale falls through, a buyer asks about getting earnest money back from a real estate agency. The real estate agency cashed the earnest money check. What can the buyer do to get her earnest money back?  

  • Earnest Money - A home buyer asks whether he can lose his earnest money after the home he wanted to buy appraises at a lower value and the seller will not lower the price. The seller may be able to keep the earnest money depending on the terms of the house sale contract.  

  • Response to Reader Feedback - Ilyce responds to reader feedback to recent columns about zero down home loans, homeowners insurance and disclosing the results of a home inspection report.  

  • Transfer on Death and Tax Basis - A woman asks how her friend can transfer his apartment to her on his death and what the tax basis will be if she chooses to sell the place. If a property is transferred on death the tax basis is the value of the property on the day of the transfer. If the new owner sells the property right away she will pay no tax.  

  • Contract - A home buyer asks about breaking a home sale contract after he learns about a cracked plaster wall. The seller wants to fix the problem but the buyer still wants to terminate the contract. The buyer does not want to fulfill the contract and buy the home with the structural issue, even after it is fixed. The buyer may lose his earnest money depending upon the terms of the contract.  

  • Savings Account - A reader asks where to get the best rate on a short term savings account. He wants to use the money in the savings account for a down payment on a home. Ilyce suggests looking at one type of savings account: a money market account at an Internet bank. 

  • Condominium Sale - A buyer asks about a condominium sale. She purchased the condominium because the living room had a partition in it. Before the condominium sale was finalized, the seller removed the partition. The buyer no longer wants to go through with the condominium sale. What are her rights?  

  • Quitclaim Deed - A woman says she signed a quitclaim deed to her ex-husband and then he died without a will. She wonders who owns the property after his death and her signing of the quitclaim deed. It depends on state laws but first claim usually goes to family members.  

  • Earnest Money - A builder asks about receiving earnest money for a home he’s selling. The buyer is depositing earnest money on the home as a gift for his brother. What should the builder watch out for when accepting this earnest money? 

  • Mortgage Loan - A homeowner asks about prepaying her mortgage loan. She says she has paid extra on her mortgage loan every month and has reduced her loan. Her goal is to pay off her 15-year mortgage loan in five years. What will it take to do that? Ilyce goes through some scenarios. 

  • Credit - Your credit history includes your use of credit such as credit cards and bank loans. Ilyce explains the different parts of a credit history and how they impact credit scores. Having access to credit over a long period of time helps you to have a high credit score.  

  • Estate Planning - An adult child asks about his parents’ estate planning. He says his parents transferred property titles to his name and he wants to know whether he can be sued. Ilyce explains tax issues to consider in estate planning and how to manage liability as a property owner.  

  • Foundation Repair - A home owner asks about who should pay for repairing his home’s foundation. He discovers his home needs foundation repair five years after buying it. Whether to sue the seller depends on the cost of the foundation repair and the extent of the foundation’s damage.  











































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