28
Apr
By Jim Hasek
Real Estate, ,

The ‘Golden Girls’ Strategy? Elderly Adults Share Home Ownership

The "Golden Girls" trend got its name from the popular television sitcom about four elderly women who live together to share expenses. It is becoming a popular way in real life for elderly adults to share homeownership and it has many benefits. The cost of assisted living is quite high. The median cost in the United States for assisted living is $4,051 per month. In many parts of America, that amount makes a substantial mortgage payment. Rather than pay that high price to live in an adult assisted-living community, many able-bodied elderly are choosing to pool their resources and live…
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22
Apr
By Jim Hasek
Real Estate, ,

Disruptive Technology And The Real Estate Market

Recent advancements in technology continue to disrupt the real estate market. This includes the use of "Big Data" for data mining, artificial intelligence combined with machine learning, augmented and virtual reality, use of drones, blockchain technology, and the ongoing deployment of 5G. The Use Of Big Data Consumers have access to more information about real estate market conditions because of the collection and online presentation of the results of data mining "Big Data." For example, it is easy to learn if a market is a buyer's or a seller's market by searching for the median number of days a house…
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17
Apr
By Jim Hasek
Real Estate, ,

The Narrowing Gap Between Renting And Buying A Home In The US

According to data compiled by Realtor.com in the fourth quarter of 2019, it is still more affordable overall to rent versus buy a home -- but just barely. The median monthly mortgage payment at the end of 2019 was $1,600, while the median monthly rent payment was $1,319. This is largely due to steadily-increasing rates, rising home prices, and near-record-low mortgage rates. The Realtor.com study looked at 593 counties across the country. As compared to the fourth quarter of 2018, the average monthly cost of renting a home increased 4%, up from $1,254, while the average monthly cost of homeownership…
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16
Apr
By Jim Hasek
Real Estate, ,

What Should I Consider Most When Buying A Home This Year?

There are two times when it is best to buy a home. When you have to buy one and when you can afford to buy one. In general, owning a home is better than renting one because you are building up equity for yourself, instead of throwing your money away by helping the landlord buy the property with your rent money. Best- And Worst-Case Scenario Planning Be prepared for owning a home, especially if this will be your first time as a homebuyer. There is a natural tendency to stretch finances to the breaking point when wanting to own a…
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14
Apr
By Jim Hasek
Real Estate, ,

Home Improvements For A New Home Or When Getting Ready To Sell

With time on our hands, many of us are busying ourselves with home improvement projects. Some simple changes can increase the attractiveness of a home and may help with a sale. If you are getting ready to sell your home or if you just want to beautify it a little, here are some low-cost tips for home improvements to consider. Go Green Adding indoor plants is nice and improves interior air quality. If you have the room for it, consider a vertical garden. A vertical garden may use the entire ceiling-to-floor area of one wall. With the proper type of…
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27
Mar
By Jim Hasek
Real Estate, ,

When It Makes Sense To DIY

Many homeowners enjoy DIY, or Do-it-Yourself, home improvement projects. There's nothing quite like the pride of knowing you used your own hands to put together or improve something. With the explosion of social media sites such as YouTube, Pinterest,and TikTok, spending a weekend on DIY projects seems easier than ever before. After just a couple of minutes spent searching, you can find a step-by-step tutorial, before and after photos, or a time-lapse video of any project imaginable. Anyone can do this! Right? Not so fast. In some cases, it may not make sense to DIY. How do you decide whether…
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