According to Freddie Mac, even though mortgage rates dropped this week, they still remain about 5% for a 30 year fixed mortgage. On average rates were at 5.07% compared to 5.21% a week ago. Rates were at a record low of 4.71% in December, mainly due to the governments efforts to reduce borrowing costs for…
The process of selling a home around Cleveland, Ohio can be a complicated, time-consuming process. Here’s a step by step guide detailing everything from determining to the timing is right to sell to the final closing. Is the timing right to selling your Cleveland house? What are your financial and family goals for the next…
It’s a tough question to answer because there are a lot of variables that we have to make assumptions about. For argument sake, let’s take a look at two Cleveland housing markets, Westlake, Ohio and Lakewood, Ohio. The first graph shows the median home price trends in Westlake from January of 2005 through today. Prices…
Home staging has been a popular buzz word in the industry for a couple of years now. In the Cleveland market it’s still a relatively new marketing tool. West coast towns like Seattle and San Francisco have been staging homes for decades. In a nutshell, home staging is process of preparing a house for…
Avon’s new YMCA is set to open April 19, 2010. The facility is truly state-of-the-art. The impressive 66,527-square-foot building boasts an eight-lane indoor pool with seating, aerobics-multipurpose studio, child-care center, family gym, sauna, whirlpool and wellness center. Upcoming Events: April 17, 2010 Healthy Kids Day 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. in partnership with the…
The Obama administration officially implemented the HAFA short sale program which will be in effect from April 5th, 2010 through December 31st, 2012. Under the new program, lenders are supposed to give short sale approval to home owners within 10 days of application. The program also offers up to $1,500 in cash to the seller at closing…
This is great news for agents that use electronic signatures. I’ve been using Docusign myself for about a year. It’s a great time saver, particularly for out-of-town buyers. It allows home buyers or sellers to sign contracts online, no need to print, scan or fax. It’s keeps the contracts nice and clean. It’s better for…
For a typical real estate transaction in the state of Ohio, sellers can expect to pay the following closing costs. Of course each every deal is different, but these are the standard fees. It’s quite popular right now for first time buyers to ask for help with their closing cost as well. These credits aren’t…
