Balancing Wants vs. Needs in Your First Home

Buying your first home comes with a mix of excitement and pressure, especially when it comes to balancing wants vs needs in first home decisions. It’s easy to get drawn to stylish finishes and dream features, but the most successful buyers focus first on how a home functions day to day – and what th

How to Refinance an Inherited Property to Buy Out Heirs: A Comprehensive Guide

Key Insights The “buying out” concept: This process involves one heir taking out a new mortgage to pay the other heirs their share of the home’s equity. Appraisals are essential: You cannot determine a fair buyout price without a professional, neutral appraisal of the current market value. Credit re

Higher Rates Hit Mortgage Apps, But Only Modestly

Mortgage applications declined last week, reversing some of the prior period’s gains as rates climbed to their highest level in a month. The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported a 4.4% decrease on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending May 1. The decline was broad-based, with both pu

2-Month Glut of Data Brings New Home Sales Back to Center of The Range

New home sales moved higher in March and February. Both months were reported on a single day this week as the Census Bureau continues catching up from the government shutdown.  After dropping to 587k in January, sales rose to 635k in February and 682k in March. This represents a solid bounce ba