celebrityhomesomaha: What Would You Give? - 05/18/17 11:57 AM
Yogi Berra said he’d give his right arm to be ambidextrous. While most first-time home buyers are not going to that extreme, it is interesting to see what sacrifices are being made according to the National Association of REALTORS® 2016 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.
 
43% - cut spending on luxury or non-essential items 34% - cut spending on entertainment 27% - cut spending on clothes 14% - canceled vacation plans
9% - earned extra income through a second job 7% - sold or decided not to purchase a vehicle 44% - did not need to make any sacrifices Forty-percent of first-time buyers experienced … (0 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Proof of Purchase - 03/31/17 03:09 PM
People who experience a property loss are usually asked by their insurance company for proof of purchase which can come in the form of a receipt or current inventory of their personal belongings.
 
Even the most organized people might find it challenging to find receipts for all the valuables in their home. If the inventory isn’t up-to-date, a homeowner might forget to add some items to the claim and may not recognize the omission for long after the claim is settled.
The inventory can serve as a guide to make sure a homeowner gets compensated for all the loss.
Photographs and videos can be … (0 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Boomers Are Staying In-Place - 03/19/17 01:23 PM
There seems to have been an accepted progression for homeowners going from starter home, to gradually moving into one’s dream home, then, downsizing after becoming an empty nester and finally, into a retirement home. However, Marianne Cusato’s 2016 Aging-in-Place Report indicates that many older Americans don’t plan on following that pattern.
 
61% of homeowners above the age of 55 intend on staying in their homes indefinitely. 2/3 of them believe that the home’s layout will serve their needs without having to make aging-related improvements.
Some of the reasons being cited for staying in place are:
66% say their home is … (2 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Increase the Chance of Being Accepted - 03/10/17 02:53 PM

While all contracts must have certain required elements, mutual assent, consideration, capacity and legality, there are some things that increase its chance of being accepted.
 
The seller generally wants the highest possible price with the fewest inconveniences in the shortest period of time. In the same way, the buyer generally wants the lowest possible price with the fewest inconveniences in the shortest period of time.
 
The perspective of the principal can change depending on how these different parts of an agreement are structured.
Offer Price - While the price of the home seems to be the major point of contention in a home … (0 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Attracting Buyers - 03/09/17 12:08 PM

There is a common body of knowledge among real estate professionals that indicates that the longer a home is on the market, the lower the price will be. Many sellers discount this belief in the beginning because they feel confident their home will sell quickly.
 
Lowering the price is the most obvious thing that can be done to encourage buyers but it might be good to look at what builders do. Builders offer a variety of incentives such as upgrades, seller-paid closing costs, interest rate buy downs, washers, dryers, refrigerators or big screen TVs.
Interestingly, much of the resale market doesn’t employ these … (1 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Rent or Buy - You Pay for the House You Occupy - 03/07/17 12:17 PM

The ironic thing about people who think they can’t afford to buy a home for themselves, end up buying the home for their landlord. There are several facts that support this notion.
 
Mortgages, whether held by an owner-occupant or an investor, are usually amortized so that each payment reduces the principal amount owed so that the loan will be repaid totally over the term. A tenant is inadvertently retiring the landlord’s mortgage with his monthly rent.
In most cases, the mortgage payment including taxes and insurance will be lower than the rent tenants are paying. Some experts are saying that we may never again experience … (1 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Rental Real Estate is Preferred Choice - 02/26/17 03:51 PM

Real estate is the overwhelming preferred choice by Americans as identified in a recent survey. With the Dow Jones industrial average reaching record highs, it might be expected that the stock market would be the favored choice but that wasn’t the outcome.
Analysis of the report suggests that the popularity for houses could be that they are tangible assets that you can see where your money is actually invested compared to stocks and bonds which tend to be unclear where the money is invested.
 
There are several distinct advantages of homes as investments over other popular alternatives.
High loan-to-value mortgages available At fixed interest … (0 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: The Obvious Alternative Investment - 05/27/16 03:28 AM
Rental homes can be a natural alternative investment choice for homeowners because they are already familiar with houses. Maintenance on a rental is not that much different than on your personal home. The same plumbers, painters and other workmen can be used to make repairs.
 
Single family homes offer an investor high loan-to-value mortgages at fixed interest rates for long terms on appreciating assets with defined tax advantages and more control than other investments.
High loan-to-value mortgages – most investments require that you pay cash but rental properties can be purchased with 20% down payment. Fixed interest rates – most commercial loans … (2 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Postponing a Purchase - 03/21/16 03:36 AM
You might be surprised how many people contact real estate offices because they want to buy a home but they don’t have the down payment or the credit to qualify. Occasionally, an agent will be working with someone who does have the down payment and credit but for whatever reason, decides to postpone the decision to purchase now for some point in the future.
It’s not uncommon that once they’re out of the market, the money starts burning a hole in their pocket and they end up buying a boat or a motorcycle or some other thing that cannot positively affect their … (0 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Worth the Effort - 03/18/16 04:25 AM
“Anyone may arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible...” While Judge Learned Hand was talking about federal income taxes, it can be applied to property taxes as well.
 
States have a process of assessing the value of a property based on a number of things that can include size, amenities, location and what the owner paid for the property. Most states make adjustments to that value annually. Once it has been published to the owner, there is a process available for those who disagree with the value.
Learn the assessment process and what the filing deadlines … (0 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: Digital Showings - 02/29/16 08:16 AM
Ask any real estate professional if they have sold a house without the buyer having physically seen it and they’ll most likely tell you they have. While it may have been an unconventional sale, it is more prevalent today than it was twenty or even ten years ago.
 
The digital world of the Internet has changed the process of buying a home. It is evolving as people have become more comfortable with the reliability of the information available.
Getting in a car and driving around all day looking at homes that may or may not fit your needs or wants … (2 comments)

celebrityhomesomaha: It's a Big Difference - 02/08/16 03:02 AM
Let’s say that you just won $8,750 on a lottery scratch-off ticket. You’ve decided to be frugal and invest the money and have decided on three alternatives: buying a certificate of deposit, a mutual fund or use the money as a down payment for a $250,000 home.
To compare the three alternatives, let’s look at the equity in each one three years from now.
 
The certificate of deposit can be invested at 1.3% in today’s market and you believe you can reasonably earn 5% on a mutual fund. You expect the home to appreciate at three percent a year.
The certificate of deposit would be … (0 comments)