homebuyer: 2 Questions to Ask Before You Turn Your Primary Home Into a Rental - 04/29/19 10:39 AM
 
How can I take advantage of tax-free capital gain? When you sell your property for more than what you paid for it, you have a "capital gain" that could be subject to the capital gains tax. The current tax rate for capital gains is anywhere from 0% to 20%, depending on your level of income. If you've lived in your house as your primary residence for two full years out of the past five years, you may be able to sell your house without paying any capital gains tax.  The primary residence capital gains tax exclusion is $250,000 for single … (1 comments)

homebuyer: Two Reasons Why You Should Keep Your Home Improvement Receipts - 01/21/19 08:49 AM
 
1: Ability to Deduct Your Mortgage Interest: If you take out a mortgage for home improvement purposes, the IRS may ask you to prove the project was a "substantial improvement" that:
Adds to the value of the home, Prolongs the home’s useful life, or Adapts the home to new uses.  For example, painting a room may not qualify, but an addition or a new kitchen may qualify. Keeping the receipts from your home improvement project would go a long way toward proving this. Also, keep in mind that the IRS gives you 24 months to reimburse yourself for improvements made in the past, or … (0 comments)

homebuyer: 3 Ways to Avoid Getting Outbid on Your New Home - 01/14/19 09:14 AM
Bidding for a new home can get pretty fierce in today's market.  Here are three potential solutions to avoid getting outbid on your new home:
Turn in your loan paperwork BEFORE you place an offer.  In many cases, you are bidding against cash buyers who don't need to wait for financing approvals.  Look at it this way:  if you were the seller, would you prefer to do business with a buyer who needs to wait for financing approvals or a cash buyer who can close the deal quickly?  With that in mind, it's important to be proactive and provide your mortgage … (1 comments)

homebuyer: Fixed vs. ARM: Four Questions to Ask When Comparing Your Options - 12/03/18 06:23 AM
  Here are four questions that can help you make a more informed decision when comparing an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) vs. a fixed rate mortgage. 

1 - How do ARMs work? Most ARMs have an initial note rate that is fixed for a period of time... usually 3, 5 or 7 years.  See Figure 1 for details.

After the initial fixed period, your mortgage interest rate would change based on adding the then-current index, to the margin.  See Figure 2 for details.
It's important to pay attention to the "caps" on your loan because these caps indicate how much … (1 comments)

homebuyer: How to Understand Your Home Appraisal ($200k) - 11/26/18 08:11 AM
 
A home appraisal is an estimate of your home's value.  It's simply a professional appraiser's opinion of what he/she thinks your home may be worth.

Why Do Appraisals Matter? Mortgage lenders base your loan amount on the LESSER of the appraised value or the purchase price. Here's an example:
You sign a contract for a $200,000 home with a $10,000 (5%) down payment.  Your loan amount, in this case, would be $190,000 (95% of the purchase price). The appraisal comes back at a value of $190,000 The mortgage lender is no longer willing to lend you $190,000 because that would … (2 comments)

homebuyer: 3 Reasons Why Homebuyers Should Consider Seller-Paid Points - 10/29/18 04:49 AM
  "Seller-paid points" are where the seller pays points to reduce the interest rate on your mortgage.  Consider a home where the list price is $300,000 and the seller is willing to accept a bottom line of $291,000.  If the seller reduces the price by $9,000, you would be able to purchase the home for $291,000.  Both you and the seller would be happy.  However, what if you purchase the home for $300,000 and ask the seller to contribute $9,000 toward your closing costs?  The seller still walks away with his/her bottom line of $291,000.  However, there are three extra benefits … (1 comments)