Category: Local Events!

Written by Jaymi Naciri on Wednesday, 06 January 2016 12:18 pm

You found what you think is the right house. The bank approved you. The lender secured your loan with just five percent down. You’ve got your closing costs together and you’ve lined up your movers. But are you really making the right move?

Turns out, a simple personality test might help you figure it out.

A study titled “Real Estate and Personality” from the Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics shined a light on the relationship between personality and buyer decisions, suggesting “that a person’s personality traits are predictive of his or her real estate decisions” said Lakeside Real Estate Group. “Researchers gave more than 1,100 respondents a personality-assessment test, asking them to rate themselves on several personality traits.”

Those traits are based on the Five Factor Model (FFM), “a widely examined theory of five broad dimensions used by some psychologists to describe the human personality and psyche,” said Wikipedia. “The five factors have been defined as openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.”

Employers and universities use the FFM to screen applicants, and now it’s being used for a new purpose.

Are you a saver or a spender? Do you have a tendency to buy more than you can afford or do you always live comfortably within your means? Does the idea of an adjustable rate loan give you anxiety? Being able to assess your personality can help determine how you behave as a homeowner—or if you even become one.

About the study

Among the 1,110 questions in the study, participants were asked to rate themselves on personality traits related to the FFM, including: “openness (e.g. artistic and imaginative); conscientiousness (efficient and organized); extroversion (sociable and energetic); agreeableness (forgiving and undemanding); and neuroticism (tense and moody),” said Lakeside.

The next step was learning more about their real estate preferences—mortgage offerings, whether they preferred to buy or rent, and investment strategies—controlled by factors including age, gender, income, and education.

“The results showed ‘a very solid correlation’ between personality and real estate choices, co-author Danny Ben-Shahar, a professor at Tel Aviv University, told The Wall Street Journal,” said the National Association of Realtors®. “High scorers of neuroticism, for example, showed a preference for home ownership over renting and tend to opt for mortgages with lower loan-to-value ratio — likely because neurotic people tend to be more averse to risk, Ben-Shahar says. Meanwhile, respondents who scored high on agreeableness or extroversion, as well as conscientiousness, showed a preference for investing in real estate over stocks. Researchers speculate that conscientious people are more willing to postpone gratification and likely to make a less-risky investment while also diversifying their portfolio.”

Other results showed that “efficient, organized, thorough, diligent and detail oriented” people were well matched with fixed-rate mortgages.

Take the Test!

Before you think you can do it read below!

What’s Happening in the Real Estate Market!

Don’t let the Rent Trap You!

Rising Home Prices Means Rising Equity!

You Need to Sell Your Home Twice!

Is Haven’t Sold Yet This Maybe Why!

Written by Blanche Evans on Thursday, 29 October

Many a distraught homeowner has had to deal with water damage only to find out that their hazard insurance policy does not cover the damage. According to American Insurance, your homeowner’s policy will pay for sudden and accidental water damage from inside water sources but does not pay for losses caused by water that finds its way into your home from the outside.

Where the leak originated ultimately determines whether a loss may be covered or not, but what you really have to watch out for are exclusions in your policy. For example, a leaking roof can cause water damage which is covered by your insurance, but the roof itself may not be covered because of “wear and tear.”

First, make sure potential damage isn’t caused by negligence. According to Don Vandervort’s Home Tips, most roof leaks are caused by worn out, broken or missing shingles and failing flashing around vents, skylights and chimneys.

Just because you don’t see a leak doesn’t mean you don’t have one. Vandervort advises looking for signs of moisture during the day when you’ll readily be able to see breaches and stains on the roof, under the eaves, and in the attic.

On the interior, proper home and appliance maintenance is the best prevention to water damage. Have your heating, cooling and water heater serviced regularly. Don’t leave an appliance such as a dishwasher or washing machine running while you’re out of the house for a long period. Check occasionally under the sinks for leaks and see for yourself that the pipes are dry. Stay in the room while filling a bathtub; it fills faster than you think.

Get regular inspections of plumbing and drain systems. Most insurance companies consider water backups to be preventable with good maintainance. Whenever the plumber is at your home, ask him or her to check on all the plumbing. Turn off the water supply to outdoor spigots before the first freeze of winter. Make certain all drains are clear and operating.

Repair any leak promptly. Even minor drips can grow into bigger problems, possibly hiding pipe leaks or plumbing issues behind a wall. Mold and mildew issues usually stem from undiscovered and unrepaired leaks because they need moisture to grow.

Carefully monitor your water bill for unusual spikes. You could have an underground pipe leak that will cost you thousands of dollars to repair. If the leak occurs on your property, it’s your obligation to fix, not the city’s water supplier. And don’t expect the city to reduce your water bill because you unintentionally used too much water.

Get enough insurance

Don’t be satisfied with basic or minimum coverage insurance coverage. Read your policy carefully to make certain that your home has the coverage necessary for all kinds of situations, from a child flushing a toy down the toilet to a tree falling on your roof during a storm.

Written by Jaymi Naciri on Sunday, 25 October 2015

We saw an ad today for an acreage community in Texas offering barndominium shells during their Grand Opening special. That’s right, barndominium shells.

Don’t know what that is? Yeah, neither did we (they’re apparently structures built with prefabricated materials like metal shells, which can then be customized to individual specifications.

Because much/most of the structure is prefab, the construction can be quick, and cheap). Great. Good to know.

Anyway, it got us thinking that there may be a lot of real estate terms out there that are confusing or misunderstood. So, behold our first real estate terms rundown. We’ll be back with part two soon.

Alley-loaded: This is a type of home that puts the garage in the rear of the home, accessed by a common alley.

Appraised Value: When you are buying or selling a home, an appraiser will tour the home and assign a value according to several factors including similar homes in the neighborhood and condition, size, and location of your home.

As-Is: An as-is home is typically sold without a warranty and without any commitment to making repairs. As-is homes are commonly foreclosures.

Backup Offer: This is an offer that’s second (or third or fourth…) to an accepted offer on a home. The idea is that if the home falls out of escrow for some reason, the backup offer can move up in line.

Buying down your interest rate: Your lender may offer you the opportunity to buy down your interest rate. This means coming up with money out of pocket in exchange for a lower interest rate.

Closing: Closing takes place once all the escrow requirements have been met. This is when the buyer signs all the necessary documents and takes ownership of the home.

Comparables: These are homes that compare to the one you are buying or selling. Comparables or “comps” are used to identify a home’s sales price by comparing the home to others that are similar in terms of size, age, location, condition, and other factors.

Contingency: A contingency is sometimes attached to an offer, making said offer dependent on other factors, like the sale of a potential buyer’s existing home.

Earnest money: This is typically paid when making an offer on a property. If your offer is accepted, you enter into escrow and the earnest money becomes part of your down payment.

FSBO: A home that’s being sold “For Sale By Owner” instead of with a Realtor. You may hear this pronounced “Fizbo.”

HOA: Newer communities and masterplans usually have a Homeowner’s Association, which charges a fee to homeowners for things like landscaping and amenities. In acreage communities, there is instead a Property Owner’s Association (POA).

P&I: Refers to principal and interest only. You always want to make sure you keep in mind all the other monthly charges you’ll be responsible for, like taxes, insurance, and an HOA fee if there is one.

PITI: Principal, interest, taxes and insurance, otherwise known as the four main elements of a monthly mortgage.

PMI: This stands for private mortgage insurance, and is typically required on homes where the buyer has put less than 20 percent down.

Points: You may be charged points by your lender when processing your loan. One point equals one percent of the loan amount, and so on.

Zero lot line: Zero lot line homes, also known as Z lots, are built differently than traditional single-family or attached homes. “Zero-lot-line house are built very close to the property line in order to create more usable space,” said Investopedia. “Rowhouses, garden homes, patio homes and townhomes are all types of properties that may be zero-lot-line homes. They may be attached (as in a townhome) or detached, single story or multistory.”

45X better financially than Renting!