2016

  • Renting Out Your Home? Hire A Real Estate Agent To Help With These Jobs


    Buying a second home to rent out can be an effective way to increase your net worth over time as well as enjoy some passive income. Instead of going through this process on your own, it can be helpful to hire a real estate agent who specializes in rental properties. Your agent can not only help you buy the right home for renting out, but also provide assistance as you secure tenants to live in the residence.
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  • Managing From Afar -- A 3 Step Guide To Being A Great Long Distance Landlord


    If you're planning to become a long distance landlord, you face unique challenges in managing your properties. Because of the distance involved, it can be harder to resolve not only emergency issues but also day-to-day ones. So, how can you meet this challenge? Here's a handy 3 step guide to doing just that. Decide Your Involvement The first thing a new long distance landlord should decide is how much he or she wants to be personally involved in the running of the properties.
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  • You Can Ask To Have These Repairs Completed Before You Buy A Home


    If you've found a home that fits your search criteria but there are certain elements of the residence in disrepair, you don't necessarily have to abandon the hope that you'll be able to buy the home. Instead, you can work closely with your real estate agent to draft up a purchase offer that is conditional on having some repairs completed. This will then give the current owner an opportunity to hire the necessary contractors to get the work done.
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  • Should You Refinance? 3 Things To Think About


    If you've ever received those refinance advertisements from your local bank or loan company, they always make it look so great on paper. Their ads say things like, "you could save hundreds on your mortgage", or "refinance and pay off your mortgage faster". It all looks great, and may be very tempting, but refinancing may not be for every homeowner. Each homeowner's situation is different; one's credit may be better than the other, or one may have more equity in their home than the other.
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  • 3 Things To Look For In A Starter Home


    When the time comes for you to purchase your very first home, it can be very exciting. It is also going to be a very big deal, so you want to make sure that you get a home that is right for you. Since this is your first home, you are likely looking for a good starter home for sale. There are several great starter homes out there, and the key is going to be to find the one that will best meet your specific needs.
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  • Things To Consider Before You Take Your Home Off The Market


    If your home hasn't sold in what you deem a reasonable amount of time, you might get frustrated and tell your real estate agent to cancel the listing. While it's true that this might be the right approach, you should take care to avoid acting in a rash manner. There certainly may be a legitimate reason for taking your home off the market, but in many situations, the right strategy can compel you to keep the real estate listing active, and you may end up selling your home quickly.
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  • How To Have An Open House To Help Sell Your Home


    When you select a real estate agent to help you sell your home, this person will become your home selling agent. This agent will help you find ways to make your home more marketable and will advertise the sale of your home. In addition, the agent may recommend planning an open house to attract more people to your home. If you have never had an open house before, here are a few things you should know.
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  • Extracting Cash From Your Property: Two Profitable Options To Consider


    Needing some extra cash is a problem that most households experience from time to time. Whether the cash is needed to cover a child's upcoming college costs, make home repairs, or is just needed to provide a bit more financial security for your family, taking on debt to provide the funds is not always the best option. If you happen to own your home or a larger parcel of real estate, you may be able to extract the money you need from it without having to worry about taking out a loan or paying it back.
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  • Look For These Features In A House When You Plan To Work From Home


    When you're looking to buy real estate, there are always a number of features to take into account. If you're someone who operates a home-based business, you'll need to view each property you visit not just as a residence, but also as a place that you'll be working. There's no universally ideal setup for a home office — everything depends on the type of work you do, the amount of space you need, and several other factors.
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  • Use These Strategies To Convert A Home Office Into A Spare Bedroom Before Your Open House


    If you work from home and have decided to list your residence for sale, it can be a good idea to convert your home office to a spare bedroom before your first open house. Even though people touring through the home will understand that the room you've been using as an office doesn't have to be used in a similar manner if they were to buy the house, they may have trouble visualizing the space as a bedroom.
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