Other Data and Analysis on Wildfires and Insurance Wildfires are a reality for many Californians, and by analyzing multiple data sets over several years the Department can identify trends affecting the insurance market. Data and its objective analysis have driven actions by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara focused on preserving available and affordable insurance options for homeowners and businesses. As the state regulator, with […]
Buying Top 5 U.S. Home Buyer Must-Haves for 2023 Revealed According to new research, functional outdoor space is the new must-have for 2023 home buyers in the U.S. The evolution of the backyard tops the top five home trends to watch in 2023. Here are the top 5 buyer must-haves for 2023: Backyards move to the forefront The humble backyard, once overshadowed by chef’s kitchens […]
Buying Should I Buy a Home After 60? While you might not immediately associate retirement with homeownership, buying a home after age 60 can be thrilling and financially savvy. Instead of looking for highly rated school districts, you can find the ideal combination of comfort, affordability and proximity to those who matter most. That said, no matter your circumstances, buying a house as you […]
Buying How to make your homebuying dreams come true The past couple of years have been a wild ride for the housing market. With historically low mortgage rates, buyers were entering the market at an unprecedented rate—a rate so fast that supply couldn’t keep up with demand. As the pandemic progressed, prices soared while homes were swept off the market within hours. Eventually, mortgage […]
Home Improvement Thinking of selling in the spring? Here are home improvement projects you should tackle now (and which to skip) Sellers gearing up for the spring home shopping season need to roll up their sleeves now and spruce up their homes if they want to attract a shrinking pool of buyers. Investing in improvements, maintenance and repairs could pay off when it’s time to sell. New research conducted by The Harris Poll finds a majority of […]
Market Trends NorCal Sales & Trends for November 2022 vs November 2021 NorCal Sales & Trends for November 2022 vs November 2021 For Sale / Sold / Days on Market / Sold vs Original List Price / Median Price. Information provided by David Woods of Lennar Title Company. Click here for a better look!
Buying Home buyers’ and sellers’ biggest misconceptions in a shifting market The housing market is rapidly rebalancing, but buyers and sellers are struggling to keep up with the changes. A new survey of real estate agents finds the most common misconception among would-be buyers is that home prices will crash, while sellers are holding on to outdated expectations of bidding wars and quick sales. Nearly half […]
Real Estate Real estate is the safest investment you can make today, millionaires say—Here’s why If you’re planning for retirement, you’ve most likely watched your 401(k) plan run away like a car on a roller coaster. Each upward movement is a long, slow creep to a dramatic crest, met with an expected fall that takes your anxiety with it. If not in stock and bond markets, where are affluent consumers […]
Don't Miss Our Next Post
Subscribe Now
Uncategorized 7 Reasons It’s Worth Buying a House at the End of the Year The end of the year is upon us, and you still haven’t found a new home. Friends and family are likely advising you to put your real estate search on pause until spring, but something tells you this isn’t the best idea. This is definitely a time to go with your instincts and keep searching, as your […]
Uncategorized Mortgage rates are soaring. Is it still OK to refinance your home? Mortgage rates, over 7% or so, are at their highest levels in 20 years and loan applications are down. So, it should follow, that homeowners looking to refinance loans would also be headed to the sidelines in droves. But according to experts, it might still make sense for homeowners to refinance. Why? Rates, even at […]
Market Trends Will Homeownership Soon Be A Thing Of The Past? The Strategy Millennials Are Using To Enter Real Estate Market As the economy teeters on the brink of a recession, potential home buyers wrestling with high-interest rates, low affordability, and overpriced homes are asking themselves how to build the wealth they need to purchase their first primary residence. According to a consumer insights report issued by tech-enabled real estate company Mynd, millennials have found the answer. A […]
Buying Buyers Embrace Adjustable Mortgages as Rates Surpass 7% Rising interest rates have increased the average monthly loan payment by a whopping $1,000 year over year. With the rate for a 30-year mortgage rising to 7.08% this week—the highest average since April 2002, according to Freddie Mac—the average monthly loan payment is now $1,000 more than a year ago, Nadia Evangelou, senior economist and […]
Buying Yikes! Every Time Mortgage Rates Rise, Buyers Need To Make This Much More To Afford a Home For home shoppers who thought 2022 would be their year, a pervasive sinking feeling is taking hold. They’re realizing the monthly payment for a home they thought they could afford—perhaps just barely—is now hundreds or even thousands of dollars more than they would have paid earlier this year. Their dream home is getting further and […]
Buying Common Mistakes When Closing on a Home Ever notice that when you’re unprepared, it heats up stressful situations? Take the preclosing stage of the home buying process. You may keep thinking about the money at stake, while forms, disclosures, and reports fly at you. It’s enough to overwhelm anyone. Anyone who isn’t well prepared, that is. You can get a head start, […]
Appraisals Quick, the Appraiser Is at the Door! Take the listing? Check! Sell the home? Check! Inspection completed? Check! Appraisal okay? Things could have gone better! What happened? Everyone benefits when appraisers and listing agents work together. Often a low appraisal value could have been avoided if all parties knew their roles at the beginning of the assignment instead of at the end. […]
Buying As the Housing Market Corrects, Is It Better To Rent or Buy? Q:I’ve heard the housing market is ‘correcting’ and home prices are falling. However, mortgage rates and rents keep going up. So should I wait to buy until prices go down further and rent now instead? Whether to rent or buy a home has long been on the mind of potential homebuyers. Soaring mortgage and rental […]
Selling Tax Breaks for Older Couples Who Sell Their Homes Consider Irene, who recently became a widow when her husband, Henry, died. Like most married couples, they held the title to their home in joint ownership with the right of survivorship. In plainer language, this means that co-owner Henry’s death results in his loss of all ownership in their dwelling. Surviving co-owner Irene automatically acquires all […]
Real Estate 5 terrible reasons to refinance your mortgage — that have nothing to do with today’s rising rates After years of record-setting low mortgage rates, the days of easy loans are long gone. But even with rates on the rise, there are plenty of excellent reasons to refinance your mortgage — like changing the length of your loan, switching from a variable to a fixed rate or tapping into your home’s equity. Americans are facing a […]
Buying How to Move Past Student Debt — and Into a Home You want to buy a house. But you’re worried you won’t qualify for a mortgage because of your student loan debt. You’re not alone. Half of non-homeowners (51%) say student loan debt is delaying them from buying a home, according to a survey from the National Association of REALTORS®. That number jumps to 60% for […]
Uncategorized 7 Most Popular Bathroom Upgrades Homeowners are spending more money to spruce up their bathrooms as the pandemic-fueled home renovation boom continues. The national median spend for bathroom renovations jumped nearly 13% year over year to $9,000, according to the 2022 U.S. Houzz Bathroom Trends Study, a survey of more than 2,500 homeowners who are planning or recently completed a bathroom […]