It was supposed to be a momentous occasion for Brian, who was about to close on his first home. But after signing a thick stack of documents–and taking part in the ceremonious passing of the keys–something felt off for the then 26-year-old Montgomery County, Md., resident. There wasn’t...
Buy, don’t rent a home when you can afford the down paymentAfter looking at all the costs involved in buying house, you may have begun to have second thoughts: Perhaps, it is better to rent a home. Real estate in most areas today is not a top investment compared with investment securities. “You’re not going to get a 30 percent return on your house,”...
Home-Buyer tax credit: should it expire?The $8,000 first-time-home-buyer tax credit that’s been helping juice the housing market is set to expire on Nov. 30. A lot of people don’t want to see that happen. Since some of those people are in Congress, there’s a decent chance the credit will be extended into 2010. Among the bills...
Top places to cash in on real estate dealsAcross America, tall towers of unsold condos stand like monuments of another age. In many markets, sales activity has virtually stalled, with sellers enduring a sales drought that’s lasted longer than a year. That means lots of opportunity for buyers. That’s the case in Lake Tahoe, Calif.,...
4 signs your home is about to lose valueDespite signs that the real estate market is bottoming out, millions of homeowners are likely to find themselves in worse shape within the next two years. Nearly half of the nation’s 52 million mortgage borrowers will have negative equity by the end of the first quarter of 2011, up from the 14...
Where to find america’s most affordable real estateBuying a house in the U.S. hasn’t been this affordable in a generation. Not only have housing prices plunged from Miami to Los Angeles, but interest rates are near historic lows. And for first-time buyers who act fast, Uncle Sam will kick in $8,000 toward the purchase. Interestingly, the most affordable...