Buying a house in cash: closing costs and fees. The expenses are slightly different when you buy a house in cash instead of taking out a mortgage. Q: Thanks for your recent article in my local paper titled "Is it better to buy for cash or take out a mortgage." You imply, if not suggest [...]
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 [...]
Should I pay cash or get a mortgage? This home buyer wants to know if it’s better to pay in cash or get a mortgage to take advantage of low rates. Q: We are considering purchasing a new home in a national home builder’s development. We could go through their loan people or pay cash. [...]
Buying a flipped house: nightmare. This homebuyer discovered a host of expensive repairs right after moving into their new home. Buying a Flipped House: Nightmare Q: My question relates to buying a house that was flipped. I searched Ilyce’s website and only found articles for those who were flipping houses, not for buying what turns [...]
First-time home buying tips for 2020. A look at the real estate market heading into 2020 and four tips for homebuyers in the new year. In a few days, we’ll start a new decade. Rarely has a decade produced the kind of wild swings in residential real estate prices as we’ve seen over the past [...]
Gen Z home buying preferences in 2020. They want to become homeowners by 30 and they’re realistic about the housing market challenges they’ll face. Gen Z (ages 14-23) has high hopes for homeownership. According to research by Freddie Mac, Gen Z has a more positive perception of what it means to own a home than [...]
How much commission do real estate agents make? Research shows a lack of commission rate transparency and negotiability at traditional real estate firms. Please note that this story has been updated to add in additional information that shows how real estate commissions get split between brokers and the real estate agents who work for them. [...]
Latest housing market news for 2019. Home sales are up but can the national supply keep up with the demand from homebuyers? Home sales increased by 2.5 percent in July, according to the latest national housing market report by RE/MAX. The jump was enough to end nine months of year-over-year inventory growth as the number [...]
Seller didn’t disclose water damage, now what? These homeowners moved in and found themselves with flooded basements from cracks, leaks and clogged drains. From time to time, we get a series of questions on the same topic. This week, everyone seems to have water on the brain. Literally. We’re running some of the questions and [...]
Should I buy a house now or wait until 2020? New research from JCHS shows a strong housing market, but not without its challenges for homebuyers. Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) delivered an in-depth analysis of America’s housing market in its State of the Nation’s Housing 2019 report. And for those of [...]
