Category: General

When you buy a home, it can be a primary residence, a second home, or investment real estate that you plan to rent out to others. Most individual home buyers are purchasing homes they want to live in — primary residences.

But what if you have more than one property? Getting your primary residence status right is critical. Lenders care about this information, because homes are collateral. Lenders know buyers tend to keep personal homes well maintained. And if you have multiple properties, the IRS wants to be sure you claim your primary residence correctly.

Occupancy fraud occurs when homeowners knowingly misrepresent their intended use of a residence. Since Covid 19 struck, it’s on the rise. The government is looking for signs of fraud. Here’s what you need to know. 

Continue reading “How Does the IRS Check Primary Residence Status?”

If you’re like most mere mortals, your real estate will outlive you. That’s why your real estate title does double duty as an estate planning aid. It tells the world how the title can move on, whether or not there’s a will. So, be sure to vest your home title to match your long-term vision.

☛ Looking for your deed? The deed to your home is a signed legal document that proves real estate ownership and indicates how that ownership is vested. Some counties keep property records available online. Or retrieve a copy of your house deed on Deeds.com.

Whether you’re a current homeowner thinking about estate planning, or a future buyer, it’s always important to know how you legally hold the title. The way you own your home becomes part of your life story, and the land’s story.

Continue reading “Various Ways to Own or Co-Own a Home”

As our readers know, the typical 30-year fixed mortgage rate is above 7% now — having surged several percentage points in just the past year.

The tension is high for potential buyers looking for access to finance, and mortgage lenders are clearly concerned. The home loan giant Rocket Companies made $60 million in the second quarter of 2022 — quite a bit less than its $1 billion in profits for the prior quarter.

The corporation is now sweetening its range of offerings to potential borrowers. One is the “Inflation Buster” — and to get it, a loan applicant needs to lock in a rate by the end of 2022.

Continue reading “Mortgage Companies Roll Out New Deals for Inflationary Times”

Millennials have finally arrived — in their own homes. It hasn’t come easy to them. Millennials and younger people do want to buy homes, but they’re presented with an obstacle course along the way.

Of millennials, 65% believe buying a home is the key measure of financial success. Around 60% of post-millennials (Gen Z) agree. And they’re either buying, or trying.

Continue reading “What the New Generations Want in a Home”

Reacting to a pandemic, the U.S. Federal Reserve launched a monetary policy that pressed mortgage rates astonishingly low — at one point they dipped below 3%.

In late 2021, the Fed did an about-face. And the rates shot up.

The Fed doesn’t manipulate mortgage rates directly — but banks generally raise their interest rates following the Fed’s moves. This year, rates have soared beyond most analysts’ predictions and are currently in the 7% range.

So let’s get straight to the question. Is it too late to refinance now? 

Continue reading “Is It Too Late to Refinance My Mortgage?”

The question is more loaded than you might think.

Almost every buyer finds something amiss in the home after taking the keys. A few minor things here and there? No big deal. But often, the problems are far more than a buyer bargained for.

And some home sellers know exactly what the buyers will find.

Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty on seller disclosures — or the lack thereof.

Continue reading “A Seller Wouldn’t Hide a Defect, Right?”

Summer 2022 has drawn to a close. The pace of U.S. home sales has slowed for most of the year. The issue? It’s the prices. Many hopeful buyers are still waiting for real housing affordability.

Just as we find light at the end of the tunnel, mortgage interest rates for borrowers are over 6%. Maybe that’s not high in the grand scheme of things. Some boomers bought when rates were in the double digits. But the speed of the current rise is amazing.

Here’s Lance Lambert of Fortune magazine on Twitter this week:

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate moves up to 6.87%. This is getting pretty close to a 1981-level mortgage rate shock.

And with homes so darned expensive (and property taxes soaring right along with them), the current mortgage rate spike is certainly spooking buyers.

Continue reading “Could This Be the Season Home Prices Fall?”

In these days of sky-high home prices and abruptly rising interest rates, you might be thinking of giving a boost to a sibling, an adult child, or someone else close to you who could use some help.

Here, we look at some example scenarios. How would you approach these situations?

Continue reading “When a Relative’s Housing Depends on You”

If you own a vacation home and only rent it to guests every blue moon, you might wonder: Do I need to report this on my federal income tax returns?

The first thing to know is this. A vacation house, cottage, apartment, mobile home, condo, or boathouse used partially for renting out and partially for personal enjoyment is deemed a mixed-use vacation property. Here’s how mixed uses break down at tax time.

Continue reading “I Rented Out My Vacation Home for a Week. Must I Report It?”

For the past two-plus years, sellers ruled. Buyers had to race for homes that entered the market only to be gone within a day or two.

But talk of a looming recession has changed buyer attitudes. Now, the average home is selling below its list price, and that hasn’t happened in a long time, as Bloomberg reports.

The housing market is in reset mode, as the economy has entered a “growth recession” phase — maybe not a full-blown recession, but an obvious financial slowdown.

It’s not all bad news. Finally, some first-time buyers expect to get a break.

Continue reading “How a Recession Helps First-Time Home Buyers”