Speeding up the short sale process: Is it possible? The answer depends on the lender, the seller, and the real estate market. Q: I’ve been reading a lot of your columns about short sales. Why do short sales take so long to complete? How can I make the short sale process go faster? A: Short [...]
Will buying a house hurt your credit? Research on how taking out a mortgage impacts your credit score is finally here to answer this age-old question. Your credit score will fall an average of 15 points over a period of four months after buying a house, according to consumer analysis by LendingTree. More specifically, your [...]
You may wonder why you need to get a land survey when buying property. The answer is simple: You should always get what you pay for. A few weeks ago, a reader asked if he was entitled to extra compensation from the seller because he found out that the seller had sold a piece of [...]
This reader wants to know how condo assessments are determined because they don’t think their building developer got the ownership percentage split right. Q: Our building has six units, all the same size and layout. It is located in Illinois. The assessment percentage was designated by the builder and laid out in the declaration of [...]
Are transfer on death (TOD) deeds smart? This reader wants to know if it’s a safe way to avoid costly probate for children after their death. Q: I am thinking of doing a transfer upon death (TOD) deed to avoid costly probate for my children. Is this wise and safe to do? Would my heirs [...]
Is renting or home buying right for you in retirement? The answer depends on both your financial situation and your health. We recently received a couple of questions dealing with couples who are in their sixties, seventies and eighties that are planning to move and wonder whether they should buy or rent their next home. [...]
What happens to my taxes when I buy my parent’s home? New tax laws haven’t changed much, but there are still implications to consider for you and your parents. Q: My parents want to sell their house to me as part of a retirement plan. We’re hoping to find a way where I can make [...]
Which housing market is the biggest real estate bubble? Depends on how you measure, and we won’t really know for sure until it pops. But according to the new UBS Global Real Estate Bubble Index, Hong Kong faces the greatest risk of a housing bubble. Housing prices in the Hong Kong real estate market have [...]
A home buyer says their seller sold a part of the property to the city without telling them. The buyer is seeking restitution, but may not get the payout they want. Q: I bought a home recently and found out that my seller had sold a portion of my property we bought to the city [...]
How many more homes will be sold in 2018? The exact number is up for debate, but housing industry and residential real estate experts say that 2018 home sales will be less than the number of homes sold in 2017. Sales of existing U.S. homes have peaked for the year, according to a team of [...]
