Unfortunately, determining how much your home is worth is a lot more complicated. Every piece of property is unique and therefore has a value all its own. The rules of supply and demand government real estate markets and changing market forces impact the value of every property, but market trends impact different properties in different…

1. People who look for a home during the Holidays are more serious buyers! 2. Serious buyers have fewer houses to choose from during the Holidays and less competition means more money for you! 3. Since the supply of listings will dramatically increase in January, there will be less demand for your particular home! Less…

According to the latest J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Primary Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study, first-time homebuyers report challenges with understanding the mortgage process and the options that are available to them. It also suggests that lenders may be doing a poor job of educating and helping borrowers navigate the loan process.   Among survey respondents purchasing…

Almost all home buyers know that higher credit scores mean lower mortgage rates, so it’s no surprise that one of the top questions home buyers ask is: will shopping for mortgage rates lower my credit scores? The short answer is “No.” But only if you manage your mortgage shopping process correctly. Here’s how to preserve…

Mortgage rates hit 16-month lows in mid-October, spent three weeks slowly inching up, and have now dipped back to those lows. Rates rise and fall when bond markets sell off or rally, respectively, based on how they interpret daily economic news and data. This rate volatility will continue as the Fed winds down its six-year…

To take advantage of near-record low mortgage interest rates and home prices undervalued by as much as three percent nationwide, now is a great time to buy a home. You've already missed the bottom of the market, but that doesn't mean there aren't great buys to be had out there. Your community may not have…

Lenders want to give you a mortgage, but they also want to minimize their own risk. The easiest way to retard risk is for them to use your credit scores to make their lending decisions. Credit scores are compiled separately by three consumer reporting agencies — Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. These credit reporting bureaus…

Owning a home comes with a mortgage. Are you wondering if you should refinance your home in California? Refinancing can be a hard decision to make. And when to refinance is even harder to decide.  Refinancing can lower your payment, get you out of a bad loan or remove PMI from your mortgage payment. Mortgage rates…

Consumers who are late on their mortgage payments have no idea how badly their credit scores can be affected, nor how long it takes to repair the damage. FICO scores, the credit-scoring system used by the Fair Isaac Corporation to help banks and other lenders determine a borrower's creditworthiness, can fluctuate for many reasons. Your…

As tempting as current interest rates are, you may want to refinance your home to a lower rate. Here are five questions you should answer before you take the leap: 1. How long do you plan to stay in the home? It makes a big difference in recouping the cost of refinancing a home loan.…