Here, you’ll find helpful articles and other resources that cover issues related to the real estate market: buying, selling, financing, refinancing, credit and debt, insurance, second homes, vacation homes, real estate investment, new construction, and renovation.
How Do I Verify Details in an Online Real Estate Listing?
How do I verify details in an online real estate listing? This reader wants to avoid contacting listing agents after they got spammed with emails. Q: I am interested in selling a house in Cincinnati and moving to Maryland near D.C. I’d like to do this in the near term future but not immediately. A [...]
How Will the Coronavirus Pandemic Impact the Spring Market?
How will the coronavirus pandemic impact the spring market? Unemployment claims, mortgage rates and home buying activity in the spring of 2020. It’s been another week of dreadful news about the economic repercussions of the COVID pandemic. And, while there have been slight improvements here or there, it’s all pretty dark. How Will the Coronavirus [...]
Coronavirus Real Estate Market Impact 2020
Coronavirus real estate market impact 2020. A new report takes a look at the stability of home prices and home sales in the U.S. after pandemics. Mortgage rates are nearing an all-time low and refinance activity is high, but home sales have slowed due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report by Freddie Mac. [...]
How Will the Coronavirus Impact the Housing Market in 2020?
How will the coronavirus impact the housing market in 2020? How renters, homeowners, mortgage lenders and iBuyers are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. How Will the Coronavirus Impact the Housing Market in 2020? Last week’s news included the reports that as many as one-third of apartment and home renters failed to make their rental payment [...]
Real Estate Closings and COVID-19
Real estate closings and COVID-19. Electronic signatures and remote online notaries could assist with closings during the coronavirus pandemic if the system adapts. Q: I’m in the process of closing on the sale of a home. I was able to do all the document review electronically, but as the settlement approaches (in a few days), [...]
Coronavirus 2020: Home Buying, Selling and the Real Estate Market
Coronavirus 2020: home buying, selling and the real estate market. Answering reader questions about how COVID-19 will impact the housing market. In the past few weeks, we have begun to receive questions about COVID-19 and how the coronavirus pandemic has affected local real estate markets. Many buyers and sellers are worried about making a [...]
How Will the Coronavirus Impact the Real Estate Market?
How will the coronavirus impact the real estate market? How will COVID-19 impact home buying, selling, real estate closings and the housing market? We’re only getting one question this week although it comes in many forms: How will the coronavirus, COVID-19, impact the real estate market? At this point, buyers are still buying homes and [...]
Will Mortgage Rates Continue to Drop in 2020?
Will mortgage rates continue to drop in 2020? Should you refinance your mortgage now or wait and see what happens with the real estate market next? The coronavirus is wreaking havoc on the global economy, but there is one bright spot here in America. Thirty-year mortgage rates in the U.S. dipped to 3.29 percent earlier [...]
Are Pocket Listings Unethical?
Are pocket listings unethical? The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has a new rule regulating how and when properties are listed. Our recent article on pocket listings and “coming soon” listings elicited quite a number of comments. Here is one take: Comment: I think you did your readers a disservice by not informing them that [...]
Cannabis Legalization and Real Estate: What Happens to Property Values?
Cannabis legalization and real estate: what happens to property values? How has recreational cannabis legalization impacted the real estate market? This year, Illinois joined 10 other states and Washington, D.C., in legalizing recreational cannabis use. Nearly $3.2 million of marijuana and cannabis products were sold on January 1st in Illinois, and there are still dispensaries [...]