General News - Real Estate, Updates, News & Tips

Stagers’ Secrets for Making Closets Feel More Spacious

Storage areas in a home can be viewed as a premium, particularly as house hunters have reportedly been looking for additional space since the beginning of the pandemic.A cluttered closet can make the space look small. Home stagers know the importance of organization and staging a closet to not only show off its storage space but to also improve a home's appearance.To make closets feel more spacious, leave the closet floor space open and clear of

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Searches for Manufactured Homes Surge 50%

Is a mobile home boom brewing? Twenty-three U.S. states saw online searches for mobile homes increase 50% or more from May to September compared to the same period a year ago, according to a new analysis of Google Trends data from Point2Homes. The popularity of mobile homes—or also referred to as manufactured homes—is increasing as some home shoppers search for affordability and their own space in the pandemic.Mobile home searches online incr

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Where Real Estate is Expected to Shine in 2021

The housing markets expected to be the strongest in 2021 are tech hubs with strong job creation, state capitals where home shoppers may get more square footage for their money, and smaller cities with greater affordability, according to a new analysis from realtor.com®.But none of these areas boast the cheapest home prices in the nation. In most of them, buyers will pay more than the national median home price of $348,000, realtor.com® notes.

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Luxury Pantries Satiate Buyers’ Latest Craving

Pantries, once simply closets or cupboards for storing a few perishables, have become much more elaborate—especially now that people are staying at home more. The walk-in pantry has emerged as the most desirable kitchen feature for home buyers in recent years, according to a 2019 survey from the National Association of Home Builders. More than 85% of homes larger than 3,500 square feet feature a walk-in pantry.“We’ve been offering

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FHFA Extends Foreclosure, REO Eviction Moratorium to Jan. 31

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has extended its foreclosure and real estate owned eviction moratoriums for borrowers with Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac-backed mortgages until at least Jan. 31, 2021. The protections were put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.This is the fourth time that the FHFA has extended protections to homeowners. The previous moratoriums were going to expire on Dec. 31.“Extending Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s foreclosu

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10 Places where Living Costs are Actually Dropping

Nearly half of more than 2,000 Americans recently surveyed by Lendingtree say they plan to move soon to reduce living expenses. Forty-six percent of those respondents say they plan to relocate within the next year.ApartmentGuide.com recently analyzed 250 of the largest metro cities in the U.S. to find out where the cost of living is going down. Researchers factored in groceries, housing, utilities, transportation costs, healthcare, and

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Homeowners Need to Update Insurance After a Remodel

Many homeowners have spruced up their homes during the pandemic. But major remodeling upgrades could result in homeowners needing to update their insurance, too. Otherwise, the home may be under-insured if a disaster ever strikes.“Remodeling your home can lead to higher insurance rates, since a home remodel often increases the rebuild cost of a home,” a new report from QuoteWizard.com states. “Your dwelling coverage limit should match the r

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Another Record Low for Mortgage Rates 2.71%

Mortgage rates are on a continuing streak of record lows. For the fourteenth time this year, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged its lowest on record: 2.71%, Freddie Mac reports. The previous record low of 2.72% was set just last month.Could home buyers be starting to take the low rates for granted?“Despite persistently low mortgage rates, home sales have hit a wall,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “While home b

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Company Updates - Custom Website

Hello, y'all,Overall the transition to the upgrades has gone very productive. A special thanks to those of you that gave insight that helped to keep it that way, and we even added a few features suggested as well. One of those features is part of the Free Custom Website that also provides you with Lead Capture, Adaptive IDX (that will actually adjust to the user's searching habits), and a CRM for you to manage them. Dig deep into the actual searc

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Appliance Manufacturers Focus on Hygiene

Appliance manufacturers are putting a new focus on keeping bad germs out as they look to attract virus-weary buyers to their new products. LG Electronics, Whirlpool, and others are rolling out products that focus on hygiene by removing germs and allergens.For example, LG Electronics is touting refrigerators that have sterilizing ultraviolet lights. Whirlpool Corp. is launching washing machines with built-in heating designed to eliminate germs fro

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