It's 2017 and that means it's a GREAT time to start preparing yourself for buying a house in 2018!

A lot of the people who are currently reaching out to us about buying a home, in our local market of Raleigh, are preparing themselves for a purchase in 2018. These folks are the inspiration for this article and my hope is you will be well prepared by the end of it.

In Real Estate it's not uncommon for people to keep their eye on the market long before they become serious buyers and thus we are writing a how to guide for buying a home in 2018.

Buying a house requires preparation and the more prepared you are the more confident you will be heading in. Real Estate is one of the safest investments you can make, especially if you're buying in a

Are you preparing your home for sale and wondering what home improvements add the most value?

We put together a list of the best home improvements for resale!

There are ways in which you can force equity back into your home, and make it more appealing to buyers. Just be careful not to overdo it and improve your house outside of the neighborhood price range!

The tips we will discuss in the article are low-cost ways to net your more money on the sale of your home. If you’re preparing your home for sale you’ll want to be sure to pay attention to the tips in this article that will help you maximize the return on your investment!

Without further ado, here are…

Home Improvements to Increase Value for Resale

Cleaning your Home Before

Preparing Your Home for Real Estate Photography - 8 Tips!

Here is how your home should look when you list it for sale!

Want to make the most money on the sale of your house? Real estate photography preparation is one of the major keys. In this article, you will find home staging photography tips and a real estate checklist that is going to help you market your property. Any seller who puts the effort into reading this article and incorporating everything into your real estate photography prep list will likely make thousands of dollars more on the sale.

So how do you prepare your home for real estate photos?  

Real Estate Photography Checklist - How to Prepare your Home to Sell!

Overview: Real estate photography checklist

One of the largest investments most people will make is a home purchase. Undoubtedly, home buying is wrought with paperwork, inspections, contingencies, and that ever-looming escrow process. Each step along the way can feel like it’s dragging on into infinity. But, does buying an already existing home differ greatly from building your own home?

Buying an Existing Home: Pros and Cons

There is a definitive upside to purchasing a home that’s already built: you don’t have to wait for it to be constructed. Also, depending on if you’re interested in one of the fully constructed homes in a new neighborhood, most neighborhoods are already established. As such, you can readily see how others maintain their homes.

One nice thing about mature

There are many moving parts when it comes to buying or selling real estate. Financially speaking, most buyers will need to find a mortgage broker who can facilitate the mortgage process based on individual considerations. Use online mortgage calculators to assist you in how much house you can afford.

The first step is understanding the differences between a mortgage broker versus a mortgage lender. Quite simply, a mortgage broker matches the buyer with an appropriate lender. Meanwhile, the lender is the institution who is providing the funds for the buyer to finalize the home purchase. Mortgage brokers are not loan officers. Yet, they do work with loan officers, if need be, on your behalf.

While securing the services of a mortgage broker isn’t a

If you’ve been on the fence regarding selling your home in 2017, it's time to get out there and actually do it. Here are some of the best reasons why you should sell your home in 2017:

Low Mortgage Rates

if you are familiar with low mortgage rates, simply put the lower the mortgage rate, the lower your monthly cost will be. Because current mortgage rates are still low, many buyers are very interested in making a purchase a lot sooner than later. This is music to a seller’s ears.

Even though rates have been increasing little by little since around October, many of the most popular home mortgage loans have rates that are still at historic lows. According to market experts, they are expected to remain around the 4% level for a bit longer prior

Home Design Trends in 2017

Now that we’ve bid adieu to 2016, the New Year brings with it exciting possibilities that encompass many spheres of our life. When it comes to home decor and interior design, 2017 promises to be a year that will make people look beyond the obvious color palettes and the “oh so!” style themes.

• For the Kitchen
• For the Bedrooms
• For the Bathrooms
• For the Living Room
• What is out of style?

Over the last couple of years, home decor has completely changed its ballpark with new trends emerging every season. As the world becomes more compact, tastes and preferences are no longer defined by geographies. Now, people are also more willing to spend a generous amount of money to give their home a makeover it

How to Save Up for a Down Payment

Let's start with some great news: You DON'T need 20% down to buy a house. In our market, here in Raleigh, North Carolina, and in a lot of other places, you can buy a home with 0% down

A great way to build wealth over a period of time is through the building of home equity. Obviously, this means that one of the main requirements needed to build this home equity is to actually own a home. Many aspiring home buyers typically run into the problem of acquiring the funds needed to make their first down payment on a new home. Not a problem. This article lists the many steps a person can take to save up the money needed to do just that. 

More than likely, one of the biggest single purchases an individual will make

How to Get The Best Mortgage Rate and Lender

Over the last 12 months, mortgage rates have been at historic lows. A mortgage can be daunting since you will be incurring a lot of debt, however, it is going towards something that will help you build wealth, a home. In this article, we are going over simple steps that anyone can take to getting a great mortgage rate.

There is speculation that rates will soon begin to go back up as inflationary fear starts to creep back in. For now, the question we want to address is how to get the best mortgage rates. There are numerous options and strategies out there. Read on a bit further to learn all of the details.

Do the Math

The first thing you want to do is to figure out the math involved with your

Tax Breaks for Homeowners

This article is for informational purposes only. If you're seeking tax advice please consult with a tax advisor.

When you decided to own a home as opposed to renting one, you were getting started on the road to creating an investment. To assist homeowners such as yourself with the strain caused by paying high mortgages, the US government has created numerous tax deductions specifically designed to lower the payments you’ll have to make during tax season. Now that you qualify for them, your next step should be to learn as much about them as possible.

We’re sure that up until recently, you’ve probably only been claiming standard deductions on your taxes. Now that you’re a homeowner, you’ll learn to itemize the extra