If you’ve followed the housing market over the last couple of years, you’ve likely heard about growing affordability challenges. But according to experts, the key factors determining housing affordability are projected to improve this year. Selma Hepp, Executive, Deputy Chief Economist at CoreLogic, shares: “. . . with slowly improving affordability and a more optimistic economic… [Read More]
2023 Pre-Approval: What to Know
One of the first steps in your home-buying journey is getting pre-approved. To understand why it’s such an important step, you need to understand what pre-approval is and what it does for you. Business Insider explains: “In a preapproval [sic], the lender tells you which types of loans you may be eligible to take out, how much… [Read More]
Avoid the Rental Trap in 2023
If you’re a renter, you likely face an important decision every year: renew your current lease, start a new one, or buy a home. This year is no different. But before you dive too deeply into your options, it helps to understand the costs of renting moving forward. In the past year, both current renters… [Read More]
Goals in the Housing Market This Year
If buying or selling a home is part of your dreams for 2023, you need to understand today’s housing market, define your goals, and work with industry experts to bring your homeownership vision for the new year into focus. In the last year, high inflation greatly impacted the economy, the housing market, and your wallet. That’s… [Read More]
Ways To Avoid Applying For A Mortgage
While it’s exciting to start thinking about moving in and decorating after you’ve applied for your mortgage, there are some key things to keep in mind before you close. Here’s a list of things you may not realize you need to avoid after applying for your home loan. Don’t Deposit Large Sums of Cash Lenders need to source your money, and… [Read More]
Financial Fundamentals for Homebuyers
Are you prepping to buy your first home? If so, one of the steps you should take early on is to ensure you’re financially ready for your purchase. Here are a few financial fundamentals you’ll need to focus on as you buy a home. Build Your Credit Your credit is one element that helps determine which… [Read More]
What Makes a House a Home? 🏡👨👩👧👦
There’s no denying the long-term financial benefits of owning a home, but today’s housing market may have you wondering if now’s still the time to buy. While the financial aspects of buying a home are essential, the non-financial and emotional reasons are too. Home means something different to all of us. Whether it’s sharing memories with loved ones… [Read More]
Mortgage Rates Are Dropping📉
Mortgage rates have been a hot topic in the housing market over the past 12 months. Compared to the beginning of 2022, rates have risen dramatically. Now they’re dropping, and that has to do with everything happening in the economy. Nadia Evangelou, Senior Economist and Director of Forecasting at the National Association of Realtors (NAR), explains it well… [Read More]
Negotiation When You Buy a Home👌
Did the frequency and intensity of bidding wars over the past two years make you put your home search on hold? If so, you should know the hyper-competitive market has cooled this year as buyer demand has moderated and housing supply has grown. Those two factors combined mean you may see less competition from other buyers…. [Read More]
Homeownership Is an Investment🏡💰
Many people are thinking about buying a home, but with everything affecting the economy, some wonder if it’s an intelligent decision to buy now or if it makes more sense to wait it out. As Bob Broeksmit, President and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), explains: “The desire for homeownership is strong. Many prospective buyers are… [Read More]