Blog – Page 695 of 741

23 Oct 2013

City Lights Or Starlit Nights, What Home Location Is Best?

Home Buyer Tips

If you are looking to buy a home, you might be wondering whether you should be looking for properties that are right in the center of the city or property in a rural area a short drive away. The rural or urban decision will ultimately be up to you, as there are advantages and disadvantages to either option. The main difference will lie in your priorities – what type of lifestyle is most important to you? Living In The City One of the main perks of buying a property that is located in the heart of the city is that…

22 Oct 2013

By Mark Feder

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The Government Shutdown And Its Effect On Existing Home Sales

Housing Analysis

Existing home sales for September fell by 1.90 percent from August's revised reading of 5.39 million sales to 5.29 million sales. Economists had expected 5.30 million sales for September, so a slow-down in existing home sales had been anticipated. The National Association of REALTORS cited higher home prices and mortgage rates as factors contributing to fewer sales of previously owned homes. Home Prices Easily Outpaced Income Growth According to Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, home prices "easily outpaced income growth." Consequently, affordability has fallen to a five-year low. Mr. Yun also indicated that a government shutdown was expected to affect home sales…

21 Oct 2013

By Mark Feder

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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – October 21, 2013

Housing Analysis

Many of the economic and housing reports typically scheduled were delayed by the federal government shutdown. The National Association of Homebuilders Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for October was released Wednesday with a reading of 55, lower than the projected 58 and previous month's revised reading of 57. The original reading for September was 58, which was the highest measure of builder confidence since 2005. NAHB cited concerns over mortgage rates and the federal government shutdown and its consequences as reasons for homebuilder confidence slipping. While the NAHB HMI reading was lower than last month, it remains in positive territory…

18 Oct 2013

By Mark Feder

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How To Manage Those Fallen Leaves

Around The Home

The kids are back in school, the weather is getting cooler and your yard is covered in a layer of fallen leaves. Yep, it's that time of the year again, but don't think of fall leaves as a chore. They can be a useful resource for fertilizing your lawn or even decorating your home for autumn. Finish The Raking It's tempting to just let the leaves lie in the yard. It's good fertilizer anyway, right? Wrong. You should rake everything up as soon as the trees begin to look bare, or else risk the blanket of leaves smothering your lawn…