Color Consult
Posted On: 03/17/2010
With a new Paint Remedy iPhone app, the Paint Quality Institute has taken a portable, pocket-sized approach to helping homeowners solve their paint problems, but larger paint predicaments still loom.
“Fear of color choice is a consumer’s biggest mistake when it comes to...
Claiming Your Credit
Posted On: 03/10/2010
1. Complete IRS Form 5405 to determine your credit amount. Download one at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5405.pdf (Note that although the form is titled "First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit" it is the correct form for both the $8,000 first-time buyer credit and the $6,500 repeat buyer credit.)...
Make the Living Room More Alive
Posted On: 03/03/2010
My client had a spacious and beautiful new home, but the complaint about her living room revealed she wasn't happy with the some of her home's aesthetics or usefulness.
Our job was to make an attractive living room that she could feel proud to share with guests.
Before
-The green rug...
Get Your Docs in Order.
Posted On: 02/24/2010
The first thing any potential homebuyer needs to do is get a sense of his or her buying power. In her book “Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties” (Simon & Schuster, 2009) finance writer Beth Kobliner outlines the paperwork to get in to apply...
If I Had $6,500 ...
Posted On: 02/17/2010
A recent Coldwell Banker survey looked at how the newly expanded federal housing tax credit, which was opened to existing homeowners, would impact the economy. The survey polled more than 1,000 homeowners and found the following:
• 83 percent said if they qualified for the tax credit...
Marriage & Money
Posted On: 02/10/2010
Do you and your partner have a financial plan? If so, you may communicate better and share greater trust than couples who don't, according to a Country Financial survey of 2,000 married Americans. Among the findings:
• 88 percent of those who have a financial plan rate their spousal...
5 Kitchen Trends for '10
Posted On: 02/03/2010
1. Traditional Style
Traditional will continue to be the most popular design style, with contemporary closely behind.
2. Cabinets Staying Cherry
Cherry remains on top the most popular cabinetry wood, followed by maple.
3. Tile Rising
Ceramic and porcelain tile, in addition to...
Approval Amendments
Posted On: 01/27/2010
You often see it blazoned on a sign promoting a new condo development: FHA Approved! But beginning Feb. 1, "FHA Approved" won't just mean buyers are subject to FHA approval - the building's condo association also must be up to snuff. Under the new guidelines, condo associations must meet the...
I Wanna Be Rich
Posted On: 01/20/2010
Given the economy, many Americans have the feeling that it’s not as easy to get ahead as it was in the past. According to the Bankrate “How to Prosper” survey:
• 70 percent of Americans believe that it is more difficult to get rich today than it was in the...
FHA Financing: Getting Tougher
Posted On: 01/13/2010
FHA financing typically is the ideal way to go for homebuyers - with no minimum-required credit score and a down-payment requirement of only 3.5 percent. But speaking last month, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan hinted that changes may be on the way for FHA applicants in 2010. Among the possible...
