Posts with tag 'advice'

Selling your home? You don't need a huge budget to make a big impact. The right small changes can help your home sell faster and for a better price—without spending a fortune. Here are five simple upgrades that can make a big difference.

1. Upgrade Your Lighting

Good lighting makes a home feel warm and inviting. If your rooms feel dark or outdated, swap out old light fixtures for budget-friendly, modern options. Even something as simple as replacing old bulbs with bright LED daylight bulbs can instantly make a space feel fresher and more appealing to buyers.

2. Rearrange and Stage Key Areas

You don't need to hire a professional stager to make your home look its best. Start by rearranging furniture to make rooms feel more open and spacious. Remove bulky or...

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Our hearts are with all of those who have been displaced and are dealing with loss of all kinds in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Hurricane Milton and other severe weather events. Given this recent storm activity, we felt it is worth sharing some helpful information to homeowners in regards to what property insurance covers and does NOT cover related to water events.  We would like to thank Allstate Insurance agent Whitwell Kelly for his contributions to this article.

"What does m...

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This Feels Illegal to Know…

How to Remove PMI Using a Home Appraisal or Broker's Price Opinion

Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) can be a costly addition to your monthly mortgage payments, especially if you purchased your home with a down payment of less than 20%. Fortunately, if your home has appreciated in value due to market conditions or improvements, you might be eligible to remove PMI by demonstrating increased equity. Here's a guide on how to leverage a home appraisal or broker's price opinion to eliminate PMI.

* Understanding PMI and Its Impact

PMI is designed to protect lenders in case o...

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Flipping Houses

Investing can take all different forms. It can be as simple as taking care of your home and being willing to move every couple years as your home appreciates, to renovating an entire home and flipping it for a profit. My husband and I never intended to get into flipping houses, but the opportunity somewhat fell into our lap and we decided to run with it.

How it started:
My husband and I were travel nurses. When we first started traveling, we had a house that we rented. As a travel nurse, part of our income was our hourly pay, but the other part was a housing, gas, travel, and meal stipend that remained tax-free as long as we maintained a tax residence elsewhere. It didn't make sense to continue to pay rent on a house we technically weren't living in,...

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As REALTORS, we are often asked by buyers, "Are the schools good here?"

Also, as REALTORS, we know to be careful in responding to this question. We adhere to a strict Code of Ethics, which understandably prevents us from saying anything that may hint of steering a buyer toward or away from a community based on race, color, religion, gender, disability, familial status or national origin. Further explained by the National Association of REALTORS, "Referring to a school system as 'good' or 'bad' could be code for racial or other demographic differences."

As a mother, I understand why someone searching for a home in a new area might ask this question. Before I had my first child, I established four objectives for my job as parent, and one of those was to ensure my...

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