MORE HOUSE. MORE YOU.
A BLOG ABOUT BUILDING, DESIGNING, DECORATING AND LIVING IN YOUR DREAM HOME
Recommended Readings
ALLOWANCE VS. UP-FRONT HOMEPRICE
WHY YOU SHOULD ABIDE FROM BUILDER ALLOWANCE AT ALL CHARGES Charlotte McCourt, 11, could teach new home builders how to use allowance pricing. Charlotte McCourt, a New Jersey Girl Scout is serious about honesty, particularly when it comes to customer service. She wrote in a letter, "I would love to tell you about cookies themselves, for some descriptions, I'm afraid use false advertising." . . "I love being open with my clients." Charlotte rated each cookie from 1-10. She said, "Savannah Smiles taste like sweet lemon wedges. They have the perfect balance of sweet and tart." This cookie is a 7 because of its delicious taste." She ended her remarks with the Toffeetastic. It received a 1 because it was "a bleak, flavorless and gluten-free wasteland". It's as tasteless as dirt. Her candid pitch for selling cookies went viral and she was rewarded with record-breaking sales. Truth in advertising is [...]
How do I buy a home if I already own one?
This is a crucial question that needs to be answered. You will ultimately have to decide how you want to proceed based upon your situation and your tolerance for risk. There are two options to consider when you purchase a new home and presently own a home: 1. SELLING YOUR PRESENT HOME BEFORE STARTING CONSTRUCTION ON THE NEW HOME You can sell your existing home before you build a new one. This allows you to estimate how much you will need to pay. If the buyer does not allow you to stay in your current home, it will most likely require you to find temporary living quarters or move furniture twice. The buyer should not settle on the current house until the new one is completed. However, buyers will often want to buy and move in before the normal building time for a new home. A buyer might also be [...]
SEARCHING FOR THE GREAT RATE: HOW DO YOU FIND THE BEST MORTGAGE RATES?
There are many factors that go into mortgages. This is especially true for first-time homebuyers. The wrong choice can lead to thousands of dollars in interest payments and negatively affect your financial future. There are many factors to take into consideration when looking for the best mortgage rate. This article will explain how to find the best mortgage rate. You can feel confident that you have made the right choice. TIPS TO FIND THE BEST MORTGAGES RATE Are you unfamiliar with the different types of home loans or what to look for in a mortgage interest rate? These are the top tips and best practices to help you choose the right one and build your dream home. CONSIDER MORTAGE TYPES There are two types of mortgages that you need to be aware of: adjustable and fixed rate. Fixed-rate mortgages lock in a fixed interest rate for the life of the [...]
KEEP YOUR HOME AVAILABLE FOR SALE
Once you have found a buyer, all that is required to close the deal is to avoid these five traps. Finding a buyer is only the first step in the home-selling process. Be careful in the coming weeks, as if you make any of these common selling mistakes, your deal might not close. First Mistake: Ignore contingencies Do what your contract calls for. You shouldn't make the sale conditional on repairs. Buyers won't notice if you do cheap fixes. Second Mistake: Don't bother fixing things that break A seller doesn't want buyers to notice that the home isn’t in the same state it was when they offered. Sellers must repair any damage to a house that is about to be bought. The furnace should be repaired by a qualified professional. If you fail to maintain your home, buyers will lose faith in your integrity and home's condition and may decide [...]
WHY NEW HOME IS COST VARIES WHEN COMPARING THE SQUARE FOOTAGE
It's exciting to build a home. You will finally be able live in the house of your dreams, with all the features and comforts you desire. Now you're ready to start getting bids. That's when you run into an unexpected, seemingly-unexplainable puzzle: The cost-per-square-foot conundrum. This is why it's so mysterious. It's simply the fact that it doesn't make sense to compare the cost of building two new homes based on square footage. A 1800-square-foot house might cost $100 per square foot. However, a house of the same size could cost between 10-20% more or less per square foot. Although they look identical, why is their final cost so different? It is possible to break down the answer into three parts. The first is the question of square footage. The second concern is that of materials. The last consideration is buyer personality and needs. SQUARE FOOTAGE - NOT ALL SQUARE [...]
