Style trends come and go, so it can be pricey to continually chase the latest fads, but if you’re interested in selling your home, it’s smart to know what sells. Right now, here’s what’s hot. Statistics about performance are from the Home&Wealth newsletter. Barn Doors – but not on your barn. People are wild for … Read more
If you’re planning to buy or sell real estate, it’s best to get help from the pros. Like anything in life, you’re better at it when you’ve done it before. Most people (outside the real estate industry) don’t buy or sell houses too often. And let me tell you, there’s more to it that sticking … Read more
So you’ve graduated. Now what?! If you’re a recent high school or college graduate with people skills and a strong work ethic and you’re looking for a career that offers flexibility and plenty of money, may I suggest becoming a real estate agent? While a liberal arts degree in sociology or political science may have … Read more
There’s a wonderful children’s book series by Laura Numeroff, the first of which is If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. It goes through the problems of giving a mouse a cookie: if you give a mouse a cookie, he’ll probably want a glass of milk. If you give him milk, he’s likely to ask you … Read more
City leaders are currently discussing ways to address the local impacts of our statewide housing shortage. This is a complex problem, so I don’t envy their task. What I can offer is a perspective, one based on more than 40 years in the real estate business. First, it’s important to gather accurate data. To that … Read more
Owning a home can be costly in the best of times, so there’s no reason to waste money on expensive mistakes. Here are a few to avoid. Using Incandescent Light Bulbs – Replace traditional light bulbs with compact fluorescents (CFLs) or light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs. LEDs especially may be more expensive to purchase, but they’ll save … Read more
I recently went online in an attempt to find the best interest rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate JUMBO real estate loan with 65 percent loan-to-value. I did not go to a comparison site, but a single lender’s site, where I entered my information and requested their lowest rate. I shared the information a lender would … Read more
As state and federal law enforcement agencies try to figure out how best to deal with conflicting cannabis statutes, it can be difficult for some industries to figure out how to position themselves. This should not be the case for title insurance companies, because their primary job is to provide a policy that guards against … Read more
I recently attended several meetings that made me shake my head in disbelief. It was akin to watching people rearrange deck chairs on the Titanic while the ocean rushes in. At these meetings, people discussed how to provide rental housing for displaced fire victims. Their recommendation was to put fire victims at the top of … Read more