About.com

Should You Rent Out Your House?

Wed, 22 May 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Might it make more sense to rent out a house over selling it?

In some markets, it's almost impossible to write a contingent offer, that is an offer that is conditioned on selling your home. So, one way around that dilemma is to qualify to own two homes at the same time and buy a home without selling your house. Some people might find it easier with fewer complications to rent out a house. If you can find the right tenant.

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: rent out house

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Should You Rent Out Your House? originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 at 05:00:00.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Is There a Real Benefit to an Open House

Mon, 20 May 2013 05:00:19 +0000

Some real estate agents are reluctant to hold an open house, and with good reason.

That's because in many neighborhoods, open houses don't really have a benefit. If you looked at a pie chart of who benefits from the typical open house, the little slice of pie that the seller gets might only be a sliver. There are plenty of other people who benefit from an open house, though. It's just that, sometimes, there is no benefit for the seller. Doesn't that make you wonder why agents hold a house open?

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: open house

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Is There a Real Benefit to an Open House originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Monday, May 20th, 2013 at 05:00:19.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Why VA Home Buyers Have a Hard Time

Fri, 17 May 2013 05:00:10 +0000

In many major metropolitan markets, home buyers who are utilizing the financing of a VA loan are having a super difficult time trying to buy a home.

Some sellers and their agents think they can do much better than a buyer with a VA loan, so they'll either not offer that type of financing option in the terms for sale or they will pass over that VA offer for a conventional or even an FHA buyer. It's extremely difficult if not almost impossible in some markets to buy with a VA loan. It's not fair that VA buyers get penalized for trying to buy a home. Haven't our nation's veterans and active duty military been through enough?

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: va loans

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Why VA Home Buyers Have a Hard Time originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Friday, May 17th, 2013 at 05:00:10.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

What's the Deal With Proof of Funds?

Wed, 15 May 2013 05:00:38 +0000

Years ago, proof of funds was rarely an issue when buying a home.

Nowadays, being asked to provide proof of funds is more common and expected. It's not enough to do business on a handshake. Sellers want to examine every aspect of an offer to try to ensure that it will close. Smart buyers will not send sensitive information to the sellers such as their bank account numbers or Social Security numbers when releasing proof of funds documents. It's just never a good idea to send more than what is required.

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: proof of funds

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

What's the Deal With Proof of Funds? originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Wednesday, May 15th, 2013 at 05:00:38.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Potential Challenges When Selling a Rental Home

Mon, 13 May 2013 05:00:49 +0000

Selling a rental home can present a different set of challenges over, say, selling your own home.

Part of the difficulty in selling a rental homes lies with gaining the tenant's cooperation. Many tenants adopt the attitude of WIIFM: What's in it for me? They don't want to move. They don't want to be interrupted or inconvenienced. Sometimes, I suspect that tenants might forget who actually owns the home. Not to mention, there are also tenant-landlord laws to follow. And taxes? Did we talk about taxes?

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: selling rental home

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Potential Challenges When Selling a Rental Home originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Monday, May 13th, 2013 at 05:00:49.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

What You Need to Know About Log Homes

Fri, 10 May 2013 05:00:33 +0000

Before I studied log homes, everything I knew about them consisted of what I saw in the movies.

You chop down a tree, cut off the branches, round out the edges, notch the log and try to put it together with other logs. Except there is much more to it than that. For example, how do you make sure no little varmints like rats or snakes can squeeze through the spaces between the logs and creep into your bed at night?

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: log homes

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

What You Need to Know About Log Homes originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Friday, May 10th, 2013 at 05:00:33.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Crediting Non-Recurring Closing Costs to the Buyer

Wed, 08 May 2013 05:00:35 +0000

Not every buyer has funds to pay for closing costs, so it's not odd to ask a seller to help, especially with the buyer's non-recurring closing costs.

What's kind of interesting is if a seller agrees to pay, say, an amount equal to 3% of the sales price toward closing costs, sometimes buyers think if their closings costs are less, the sellers should just pay them the difference. It doesn't work that way. If the closing costs are less than the amount of the credit, it's to the seller's advantage, not the buyer's. To avoid confusion, a seller might want to agree to pay UP TO 3% of the sales price toward non-recurring (and maybe recurring) closing costs, or, whatever percentage is agreeable between the parties.

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

_{©Big Stock Photo}

Technorati tag: non-recurring closing costs

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Crediting Non-Recurring Closing Costs to the Buyer originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Wednesday, May 8th, 2013 at 05:00:35.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Home Buying and Selling at the Same Time

Mon, 06 May 2013 05:00:05 +0000

Seller's markets can make buying and selling at the same time a very difficult task.

Whether you think it's good or bad, the real estate markets in many parts of the country are experiencing a strong seller's market. Low inventory, meaning very few homes for sale, makes it an even stronger seller's market. This means that many sellers are sitting in the driver's seat, and these sellers are in control. They can make demands that buyers will have to meet. But what does it say for sellers who also want to buy? What does this mean for sellers who want to sell a home and buy a new home at the same time?

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

Technorati tag: buying selling same time

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Home Buying and Selling at the Same Time originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Monday, May 6th, 2013 at 05:00:05.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Do You Need a Short Sale Agent to Buy a Short Sale?

Fri, 03 May 2013 05:00:08 +0000

When buyers find out their offers for short sales are not getting accepted, they can begin to wonder if they should hire a short sale agent.

I know this because they call me. It's not a secret that I sell a lot of short sales in Sacramento, but I primarily represent sellers. Yet, this experience does put me in a unique position to know what happens in just about any kind of short sale. I can pretty much predict how long it will take and what kinds of problems we should try to avoid.

Moreover, I realize that kind of information can be helpful to buyers. So, I can understand why it might be a good idea for buyers who want to buy a short sale to find a short sale agent to help them.

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

Technorati tag: short sale agent

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}

Do You Need a Short Sale Agent to Buy a Short Sale? originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Friday, May 3rd, 2013 at 05:00:08.

Permalink | Comment | Email this

Tips for Investing in Land

Wed, 01 May 2013 05:00:25 +0000

If you've ever thought about buying land, you've probably imagined it's fairly easy.

Land typically doesn't produce any income. It just sits there. So, while you might think it's as easy as handing over money to collect a deed, there is a lot more to it. You need to have access to the land and, if you're planning to build, it would be a good idea to find out about digging for a well, and how to get utilities to the property. You might also want to check out who owns the land around you because what's bare today could be developed into something you don't want tomorrow.

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub, click below:

Technorati tag: buying land

_{At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.}