SmartAboutMoney.org in a nonprofit foundation – run by the National Endowment for Financial Education. Their website helps visitors plan their household budget, examine their debt, and shop smarter. It also offers a quiz to help users assess their financial situation. They are committed to educating Americans on a broad range of financial topics and empowering them to make positive and sound decisions to reach their financial goals.
Here is the campaign they are running: The national financial literacy campaign is a large-scale public awareness effort aimed at motivating Americans to get smart about their money. The campaign, sponsored by the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®), encourages Americans to start achieving their financial goals today by accessing practical information on the smartaboutmoney.org Web site.
Today’s rate cut will have little if any impact on 30-year fixed mortgage rates. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 5.01 percent on Tuesday from 5.06 percent a day earlier.
There is a plus for the home buyer. Home Buyers can get an incredible value right now. There is a lot of inventory and there are many attractive prices to choose from. Falling mortgage rates and the tax incentive for first-time buyers also make this the perfect time to buy a home.
This may also be a good time to refinance you mortgage as they are at a 45 year low right now. Keep in mind that in order to refinance there is a minimum credit score needed because the banks are really tightening up. We offer a free credit report on our site as well as information on the different financing options that are available to you.
I wanted to share with you this great article from Barbara Ballinger @ Realtor Magazine that tells sellers the best way to display their holiday decorations without turning off potential buyers.
HERE IS A SMALL EXCERPT FROM THE ARTICLE: to read it all click here.
Sellers don’t have to forgo all holiday trimmings just because their home is on the market. But they should decorate in a way that won’t turn off buyers.
Many sellers want to pull out the stops and decorate according to family traditions, but houses that are on the market shouldn’t be overly personalized or cluttered at any time. Your job as a real-estate practitioner is to help sellers strike a balance between enjoying their traditions yet showing restraint. Explain that too much “stuff” camouflages what’s most important when decorations come down: a home’s architectural details, its condition, location, and price.
Amid all of the challenges of listing a home during the holidays, there is one big plus: Most buyers who are actively looking at this time of year are serious. The following tips will help sellers achieve the right decorating balance:
- add tasteful, generic decorations – nothing with monograms on it; one wreath; tall narrow tree to emphasize height.
- staging a kitchen as if the owners were going to throw a cozy holiday party
- select efficient LED bulbs have a fire going in the fireplace
- tells sellers to leave out a plate of cookies, which buyers will associate with the spirit of giving.
- play nonseasonal favorites that appeal year-round, says Sears.
- shovel walks rather than have snow and ice become part of the décor.
Those of you that like to do your research on-line know that you can look up real estate tax information at the Polk County Property Appraiser website. Were you also aware that you could estimate taxes? For example, if you were considering purchasing a home for a value in excess of its current “tax accessed value,” you could input the property location & new price & thus arrive at an approximate tax range. This would be extremely helpful for those trying to stay on a tight budget. Knowing what taxes will be, will give you an idea of what to expect come tax time, or what you will need to escrow (along with insurance) in your mortgage. Also consider that you may also file for exemptions that will reduce your tax liability. For a list of these exemptions go to this site: Exemption Eligibility
Here are some additional links that will assist you in the area of real estate taxes:
Experience has shown me that many prospective home buyers shop for homes during the summer months for a variety of reasons. First off, there is more time. Many people take vacation time during the summer months. Other “snowbird” retirees elect to buy a summer home during their regular time here in sunny Florida. More often than not however, the reason involves children. Many parents have told me that they would prefer buying during the summer so they will not have to uproot & disrupt their children’s school year midway, in the event that a change of school is necessary.
One important thing (especially in Florida) to consider if you are buying during the summer is HURRICANE SEASON! For buyers who have identified a home and are in the closing process, thoughts of mortgages, inspections, & moving dominate. Another important item to consider is binding your homeowner’s insurance policy. One can not close on a purchase transaction without binding insurance coverage if there is a mortgage attached to the transaction. At many points during the hurricane season, writing & binding policies is suspended, however. This can & will delay your closing.
There are two ways insurance companies determine when to temporarily suspend issuing new coverage:
2. When a tropical storm or hurricane enters a company’s “storm box.” A storm box is literally a box drawn on a map around a large geographical area. When a name storm enters that “imaginary box,” policies are no longer written or bound until the threat of said storm has passed.
There can be delays in real estate closings when availability of insurance coverage is suspended. This is unfortunate, but suspensions only span a couple of days, unless there has been a major hurricane landfall, and then the delay could be longer. When a company suspends binding privileges it only affects those people who don’t already have insurance. If you are in the midst of a closing & have already secured insurance, your closing will not be delayed.
In the event a real estate closings are delayed, the properties are still, of course, insured. If it is a new home, it is still covered by the “builder’s risk insurance.” A re-sale property theoretically would still be insured by the current owner.
Posted by gatearty 
Posted by gatearty 
Posted by gatearty 
Those of you that like to do your research on-line know that you can look up real estate tax information at the 
