Buying a home comes with numerous financial planning obligations. It’s far from a turn-key operation and one of the significant challenges involves developing a working knowledge about things often outside your area of expertise. For example, working as an educator, police officer, investment banker or office staffer does not necessarily make you an expert about … Continue reading Rebuilding Costs: Rethinking How Much Homeowners Insurance You Really Need →

A young long-haul trucker driver once took an elder’s advice and invested all of his money into real estate. Even though he was seldom at home to enjoy the fruits of his labor, he hired a property management company to handle the properties. The advice that stuck with the driver was simple. “They’re not making … Continue reading Real Estate Remains A Strong Wealth Management Investment →

Opinions differ about whether home buyers are best served by purchasing an older home or new construction. New homes enjoy that “new home” smell and the idea that you are the very first occupant can be very appealing. On the other hand, older homes resonate with nostalgia and many architectural design elements are no longer … Continue reading Pros And Cons: Older Homes Versus New Construction →

With Baby Boomers already rolling into retirement and Gen X looking forward to shrugging off the stress of the 40-hour work week, downsizing could be a strategic move. For many Americans, homeownership remains their single largest investment and the monthly mortgage payment their highest bill. Lowering or nixing that cost altogether can free up a … Continue reading Pros and Cons of Downsizing After Retirement →

The world of real estate has significantly changed over the past years. Not only is there a huge difference between the supply and demand for housing, but the market rates and pricing ranges have also become complicated.   This is why if you’re looking for a new house, offering a price to your seller might … Continue reading In Today’s Housing Market: Offering a Price Might Not Be Enough →

People often prefer those that are pleasing to the eye. Whether it's furniture, a dress, or even some people in our lives, we can’t deny the fact that at times, first impressions last.   The same goes when selling a house. Even though you have an excellent property and a high valuation rate, to begin … Continue reading What is Curb Appeal and How Can You Use It in Selling a House →

When it comes to a property that's been financed with a mortgage, many homeowners can have a need to be elsewhere from time to time and see renting as a way to recover some of their costs when not using their home. And in some cases, some homeowner-landlords may decided its probably even more efficient … Continue reading Don’t Let A Renter Assume Your Mortgage Payment As A Landlord →

There’s perhaps no better indicator that we are living in the technology age than Smart gadgets infiltrating the kitchen. Whether they are little conveniences or big-ticket items, the chef in every home can benefit from the devices that help improve cooking, storage and food preparation. These are some of the next generation kitchen items that … Continue reading Check Out This Great Next Gen Kitchen Technology →

What are some of the most important factors that buyers take into consideration when looking for a new home? There are the obvious – things like price, square footage, location and lot size. Those are the basics. Other things that are often weighed are garage size, how updated the kitchen and baths are, and whether … Continue reading Buying A Home -Take Stock Of These Things →

Tax is one of the most constant things in the world–this includes property taxes. However, not everyone knows that certain tax exemptions and tax returns can reduce your property taxes.  The most important thing is that these property tax reductions should also reflect on your mortgage. If you’re looking for a legal way to reduce … Continue reading ​​Disputing Your Property Taxes to Lower Your Mortgage →