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Save Money As A New Homeowner: 19 Things to Do. Immediately.
Just found a great article from back in April that will always be appropriate. Trent Hamm pulled together these 19 money saving tips for The Simple Dollar, and with the possible exception of "Install LED or CFL light bulbs”, which may violate your personal aesthetics,...
HMI Not The Only Number That’s Up, But It’s Still Not Enough
This blog reported on Friday that the Housing Market Index beat estimates in July, and is near a record high. The U.S. Commerce Department also released data that both housing starts and building permits are substantially up year-over-year. However, with...
Housing Market Index Beats Estimates for July
The National Association of Home Builders report released yesterday shows that the Housing Market Index has come in at 60 for July. That’s tied with the highest it’s been since it hit 61 in November, 2005, and ahead of projection of 59 from economists. That, combined...
The Science of Lawn Care
I bet you didn’t know there was one, did you? Sure, we all know about agricultural colleges, but who really thinks scientifically about their lawn? Thankfully, the University of Illinois has done that thinking for you. These three simple tips will help get you through...
Home Lifehacks Designed to Make Your Summer More Fun
Sure. You’re an adult. You’re busy. OK. Fine. But believe it or not, we’re already almost a month into summer. If you haven’t started having fun yet, it’s time to get on the ball. To help you along, here’s something a little different for today: 33 DIY Ways To Have...
Housing Bubble?
Speculation is a fool's game — and so let’s turn to the Motley Fool for some exciting debate! Housing prices have been in recovery for a while, and as this blog pointed out recently, are now officially higher than the previous high of 8 years ago. But just because...
Pay Off Your Mortgage Early: When To, And When Not To
It seems like a no-brainer. "Why pay $20,000 in interest to get $6,600 back from the IRS?” Paying off your mortgage early, either in a lump sum, or through regular, extra payments can be a smart choice for many people. However, it’s not always the case. You need to...
A Millennial on Millennial Home Buying
This blog has covered the status of home-buying by the Millennial generation several times now; but, all those times have been based on articles written in financial publications, and have largely been positive. If the title doesn’t give it away (Millennials can’t...
Understanding WHY Greece and China Are Affecting U.S. Mortgage Rates?
Just last week mortgage rates were at a high for the year, but there’s been lots of news this week out of China, Greece, and even the halting of trading on the NYSE, which have caused rates to drop. What most of the articles fail to cover is the actual reason that...
Greece Is Still Impacting You!
Lest you thought last week’s blog about the futility of timing markets in the face of continued globalization was a one-off, rest assured, it wasn’t. With the Greek “no” vote last week, and on-going efforts to maintain Greece as part of the Euro Zone being announced...