Uncategorized

Image Credit Only two things are certain in life: taxes and death. Of property taxes, this is especially true. WHAT are they? Property taxes are assessed on the value of your home or property, based on the city/state that you live in. Some cities with more businesses paying more in taxes will have lower tax

Everyone needs title insurance when buying a home. Title insurance is very regulated and costs about the same amount regardless of where you buy it (about 1% of the purchase price, which is rounded up from .77%, if you want to be technical). They are included in ‘closing costs’ as part of the fees. There

As of November 2019, there were 11 foreclosures available in Utah and Salt Lake counties. In the last year, of the 27,000 homes sold in Utah and Salt Lake counties, 77 were foreclosure homes. One quarter of one percent. What does that tell you about foreclosed homes? They are RARE. It takes a lot for

The National Association of Realtors have found that when hiring a Realtor, most people simply pick the first or second person that comes to mind, without doing much research. Buying a home is ranked as one of the most stressful and hectic life events that you’ll go through- and yet, far too many people simply

It can make people nervous when home values continue to climb. Will we have another recession? An economic depression? What will happen? While I can’t read the future and tell you everything that is going to happen, I can look back and see what the housing trends have been during recessions. A recession is defined

Photo Credit AlexanderStein Pixaby Today, I’m going to give you a case study to help you decide whether or not you should wait and save a full 20% for a down payment before purchasing your next house. Let’s start with the numbers.$329,000 home with four bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, 2,000 square feet. (Average home in

Homes that are staged sell for more money and sell faster than similar homes that are not staged. Specifically, you will get 17% MORE MONEY if your home is staged than if it is not. In fact, the National Association of Realtors did a study that found for every $100 you invest into staging your

Each day when I get to work, I pull up the MLS (multiple listing service) to check on the market. I want to see which new homes have hit the market, which have gone under contract, and generally just to watch the trends. I also enjoy checking out the photography of the houses that have

Why should you buy a home now? And why is it better to buy now? Home values have gone up, but because interest rates have gone down, you can actually buy a better house for a lower price right now than you could last year. If you bought a home at $300,000 last year at

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you already know what an appraisal coming in low means because it just happened to you.  For those who are new to it, here’s a brief description. An appraisal coming in low is what happens when you put a home for sale, and someone makes an offer