The NFT House on Florida’s Gulf Coast

A First for U.S. Real Estate

This year, the California real estate tech company Propy directed the first U.S. real estate NFT auction. The asset was a four-bedroom, 2-and-a-half bath house in Gulfport, on the western coast of central Florida. The Spanish-style building looks like many other Florida homes (readers may view a picture of the actual home by Josh Rojas for Spectrum Bay News 9 of Tampa). It sold for about $655K — which translates to about 210 Ethereum (ether) coins.

The key parties to the transaction were:

Leslie A., the seller. Founder of DeFi Limited and a real estate investor.
Amanda J., the buyer. The new owner received a non-fungible token (NFT) encompassing the house title. This is a unique unit of data, etched on the blockchain as indelible proof of ownership.
A company named Never Forget to HODL LLC, which had been created to transfer the property rights.

What’s “never forget to HODL” about? Depending on who you ask, HODL is either a legendary typo made in a chat forum by a frazzled crypto owner, or the acronym for “hold on for dear life.” In any case, it’s well-known slang in the cryptocurrency world.

March 21, 2022April 25, 2024

Eleventh-Hour Tax Tips for Homeowners

Did You Claim Everything?

It’s that time again. Here, we note 6 checklist items, to help ensure your ducks are in a row for Monday, April 18, 2022 (or Tuesday, April 19 if you live in Maine or Massachusetts).

March 18, 2022April 25, 2024

As Boomers Retire, the Transfer on Death Deed Comes of Age

The transfer on death deed comes of age as Boomers retire

Each day, about 10,000 baby boomers reach retirement age. Their recent frustrations, as they’ve grappled with Covid-19, have only accelerated the national jump to retirement. And now, this large cohort of retirees is thinking about getting its financial affairs squared away.

Baby boomers still hold the lion’s share of real estate assets in the United States. At some point, their thoughts turn to what they’ll do with the houses they own. Right on cue, the concept of the transfer on death deed is rising in popularity. This year, the Washington Post wrote about TOD deeds as good alternatives to wills and trusts. Forming a trust can expensive, the article notes, and might be too complicated for someone with few assets beyond the home.

This new breed of beneficiary deed will transfer a great deal of real estate wealth to upcoming generations — without the use of a will or the complications of joint ownership.

The transfer on death deed does for houses what a beneficiary form does for a retirement account or insurance benefits. It’s main selling points? Simplicity. Control. And the ability to transfer ownership of property upon death, without putting the beneficiaries through the probate process.

March 16, 2022April 25, 2024

Four Thoughts on Starting a Small Rental Business

Image of a computer screen showing real estate rental listings on a map.

Is There Profit in Your Property?

Renting is a critical market today. Why is renting on the rise? For one thing, many people have not been able to buy into today’s sky-high real estate market. Shortages of workers and supplies are intensifying already-existing housing shortages. Decent and affordable places to live could not be more vital.

At the same time, the shift to remote and hybrid work has dispersed workers and opened up opportunities for homeowners to rent out space in various locations. This can create win-win situations for owners and their renters.

Have you thought about of trying your hand at turning your extra living space into much-needed housing — and a business opportunity? If so, here are 4 points worth considering.

March 14, 2022April 25, 2024

As Mortgage Interest Rates Nudge 4%, There’s a New Rush to Buy

A new rush to buying homes as interest rates rise.

Fear of Missing Out?

Higher mortgage rates can be daunting for many buyers. And here they come.

The silver lining? As interest rates begin to rise, this frenzied real estate market could start to level off. But first, it looks like a last-minute rush is on as people anticipate steadily rising rates throughout 2022.

Let’s see what’s going on here.

March 11, 2022April 25, 2024

How to Work With a Lender and Win

Calculator sitting on top of a mortgage application.

Ready to Buy a Home?

Choose a good mortgage consultant, and you’ll have support throughout your loan application journey. You’ll probably get a lot of phone calls along the way, but it’s all to help you and your real estate agent prepare to head to the closing table.

Knowing what’s coming will help you stay calm and focused. Here are some thoughts on how to navigate the journey in style.

March 9, 2022April 25, 2024

The Cost of Owning a Home

Image of a sink with a unique backsplash - the real cost of home ownership

More Than a Mortgage

Imagine you’ve made it through closing. You’ve purchased a reasonably priced home. You paid around $5,000 for closing cost fees, taxes and insurance; another $2,000 for moving in and fixing up. You have a an ample reserve fund set aside in your bank and retirement accounts. You know you’re going to make the mortgage loan payments and interest (plus homeowners’ association payments, where applicable). Your budget is ready. Homeownership is your new reality.

Of course, along with your mortgage, you’ll have other expenses to anticipate. Insurance. Repairs and upkeep.

Let’s look at these expenses. Then, you can enter them into your budget, and see what you’ll really need to keep up a home. Here goes…

March 7, 2022April 25, 2024

Six Common Reasons House Sales Fall Through

Person banging their hands on a wall after their home sale falls through.

Forewarned Is Forearmed

Buying a house is a major milestone for most people. After the weeks, months, or even years of preparation, a buyer wants to cross the finish line with confidence. Buyers and sellers alike need to know what glitches come up most, and how to avert these issues.

Let’s look at six very common (and possibly avoidable) types of eleventh-hour home purchase fumbles.

March 6, 2022April 25, 2024

Airbnb Could Decide to Accept Cryptocurrency in 2022

Image of a phone screen with icons on it.

Meanwhile, the Homesharing Platform Is Helping Homeowners in Ukraine

This might just be the year Airbnb meets bitcoin. A team of Airbnb employees is currently looking at how the platform could accept cryptocurrency payments. Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky has said the most requested feature for 2022 is a crypto payment option.

It’s likely to happen. Chesky has been tweeting since 2014 about Airbnb taking bitcoin. And other players in the short-term home rental world have already taken the plunge.

Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange. It has formed a blockchain-based homesharing service, Dtravel, with a presence at Travala.com. Blockchain-based Dtravel, which announces itself as the next evolution of homesharing, is decentralized — “community owned” and run by its participants, not by a company. That said, Dtravel is being guided through the process by people from established companies, including Airbnb.

Dtravel charges less than Airbnb does, and the profits go back into Dtravel. This enables the project to hire developers and cover travel insurance for homeowners who rent out their properties. Spending decisions are made through community votes.

March 4, 2022April 25, 2024

What’s Best to Buy—Existing Home? New Construction?

Weighing the Environmental and Financial Factors

You might be wondering if a newly built home is right for you, or if it’s better to get a lived-in home. Once upon a time, that question was a simple matter of personal preference. But for today’s buyers, compelling questions arise about affordability in a very hot market, as well as the environmental impact of housing.

So, let’s take a look at a few considerations on each side. The question is complicated, and there is no set-in-stone answer. But we can certainly offer a springboard for you to do further research in the areas that you’d like to live in.

Deeds.com

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