Tips for Gen X and Gen Y Home Buyers

According to a recent survey, people who belong to the Generation X and Generation Y demographics haven’t been deterred by the housing market downturn at all.

A Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate survey found that 75 percent of Gen X and Y respondents believe owning a home is a key indicator of success; 69 percent said the recent housing downturn made them more knowledgeable about homeownership than their parents were at their age. Read more

Homeownership as an Investment

In Real Estate: Today’s Golden Opportunity we compared the current housing market to the market for gold about a decade ago. Some commented on the fact that you can’t compare gold to real estate as an investment as gold is a very liquid asset and it would take more time and effort to sell a house. Read more

7 Reasons to Start an Emergency Fund

Saving up your hard-earned cash to stash away an emergency fund?

Well, it can be a hard sell. Spare cash can be hard to come by, and, after all, taking a vacation is a heck of a lot more fun. Read more

What You Should Know About Fragmented Credit Reports

There you are, humming along nicely, when all of a sudden the finance and insurance manager at a local car dealership tells you he pulled all three of your credit reports from the same credit reporting agency.

Wait a minute: Three credit reports from one agency?

Of course, this makes zero sense, and your knee-jerk reaction might be to wonder if you’ve been a victim of identity theft. Don’t worry, fraud probably isn’t the problem. Read more

8 Things to Consider Before Relocating

Moving to a new area can be daunting. You can ease the anxiety if you do your home work and take a few precautions that might not be necessary if you were selling one house and buying another one in the same area.

First consider why you want to move to a new location. Empty nesters whose family lives elsewhere often want to move to be closer to children and grandchildren. Financial considerations often enter into the decision. The cost of living may be lower elsewhere than it is where you currently live. Read more

U.S. Home Values Climb for Eighth Consecutive Month

“The following is information taken from “U.S. Home Values Climb for 8th Consecutive Month” on The Zillow Blog.”

After reaching a national home value bottom in Q2, the housing market has continued on a positive streak through the summer months. July marks the eighth consecutive month of home value appreciation, according to Zillow’s July Real Estate Market Reports, which were released today.

Nationally, home values climbed 0.5 percent from June to July. Additionally, most of the metros (62 percent) covered in the reports saw home value gains over the past month. Of the 30 largest metros tracked by the Zillow Home Value Index, Phoenix, San Jose and San Francisco, experienced some of the largest monthly increases, rising 2.2, 1.2 and 1.2 percent, respectively. Read more

Is There a 3.8% House Sales Tax in the Health Care Bill?

“The following is information taken from “Is There a 3.8% House Sales Tax in the Health Care Bill?” on The KCM Blog.

We have received many questions about a possible 3.8% tax which will be put on home sales beginning in 2013. We want to do our best to clarify this situation for everyone. We are not accountants and give you this information just as a simple answer to the misconception. Understand that, when it comes to IRS regulations, you should check with your accountant for the most accurate and up-to-date information.

A little history on the confusion. Fact Check.org explains it this way:

The truth is that only a tiny percentage of home sellers will pay the tax. First of all, only those with incomes over $200,000 a year ($250,000 for married couples filing jointly) will be subject to it. And even for those who have such high incomes, the tax still won’t apply to the first $250,000 on profits from the sale of a personal residence — or to the first $500,000 in the case of a married couple selling their home. Read more

What to Know About a Down Payment

When you buy real estate, it’s very exciting. First, you shop until you find your dream home (or maybe your dream home minus some bedrooms and closets). Then, you write possibly the biggest check of your life.

What is it? What happens to it? Read more

Your Real Estate Choices Today Will Matter Later

Decades from now when you retire, you are going to take a look at your income and assets to see if you will be living a comfortable retirement. One big portion of your retirement picture will probably relate to real estate. You may have paid off a home, and/or rental properties; and that would be great! Or you may still be paying a fairly large amount on your home mortgage or paying rent each month to a landlord.

Obviously, the scenario where you are still paying monthly for your housing is not an optimal scenario. Luckily, you can do a lot to increase the chances that the real estate you own will have been a net wealth builder over your lifetime. You do this by educating yourself and reducing the risk on real estate you buy and own. It is the real estate choices you make decades before you retire that will probably will be the difference between a comfortable retirement or living on social security to social security check (Note: We all know that Social Security may not be around a few decades from now). Read more

6 Tax Breaks Every Homeowner Should Know

Regardless of the current state of our economy and the housing market, buying a home is still a great investment. However, the resulting taxes that accompany owning a home can lead to confusion and uncertainty.

In most cases, you need to itemize your taxes in order to take advantage of all the tax breaks that accompany home ownership. This might seem overwhelming, but the benefits of completing this process make up for the inconvenience. Read more

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