Most real estate experts would agree the first thing you should do when thinking of purchasing a home is to get pre-approved. Getting pre-approved and/or shopping for a home loan means getting your credit pulled. There’s no way around it. Your credit is pulled when you submit a rental application, buy a car, get a cell phone, or open a bank account. But I’m amazed by the number of people who don’t want their credit pulled when thinking of buying a home. Are you kidding... [read more]

With the holidays quickly approaching this is a good time to take stock of your worth. There are a lot of women who believe they are successful because they have a lot of income, but are in essence wearing all their hard earned money on their back, and feet. However,  your net worth is more of an indicator of wealth than an income, because it shows you how much you have amassed in capital, liquid assets, and other forms of investments other than cash. Another way to look at it is... [read more]

The mortgage lender will give you a mortgage, but a down payment will be required. Some of the most popular questions is how much money do I need down? How much money do I need to close?   We always talk about down payment, but the reality is you will need both down payment and closing cost to purchase your home.   There is a wide variety of loan programs with minimum down payment requirements ranging from 0% to 20%, and closing cost can run an average of another 3% to... [read more]

Tis the season of giving, which often means it is also the season of spending.   The season of spending where retail companies win and personal bank accounts lose. The holidays are fueled with emotions, and when high emotions and money meet, people tend to overspend without having a real plan in place.   Since we’re  just a few short weeks from the Christmas holiday. It’s a little late for this advice, but not too late to implement it for next... [read more]

People get hung up on all kinds of things during a real estate transaction. Preconceived notions of good and bad often blind people from the bigger picture, and emotion almost always runs amok. One of the things people get hung up on are seller paid closing cost.  Many buyers mistakenly think the seller must pay their closing cost. This is simply not true. Paying the buyer’s closing cost is the buyer's responsibility. However, your real estate agent may be able to negotiate... [read more]