A real yard. Closets bigger than your average microwave. The freedom to decorate however you darn well please! Making the switch from renting to owning is exhilarating, but many rookie homebuyers find the process trickier to navigate than they expected. This is why we created our First-Time HomeBuyer Checklist. The 12-month timeline will help you […]
What to Do BEFORE You Start House Hunting Read More »
Tight-fisted lenders have made home equity loans harder to come by. So what’s a fixer-upper to do? Meet the 203(k) loan. Lenders’ weak stomach for extending credit doesn’t have to sour your upgrade dreams. The old but new again FHA 203(k) loan rolls remodeling and mortgage costs together, whether you’re buying or refinancing an existing
Ready to Renovate? The Rehabbers’ Guide to 203(k) Loans Read More »
Selling your house can be scary: It’s been your home, where you’ve lived and made memories. Chances are good it’s your most important asset and your biggest investment so far. Wrestling with the emotional heft of putting your home on the market is a difficult byproduct of real estate — but once a closing date
Image: Libby Walker for HouseLogic ‘Home renovations on a budget’ isn’t an oxymoron. It can be done with these 5 tips. When Kelly Whalen demolished her built-in bookshelves as part of a living room DIY, she found it gave the room some much-needed space. Unfortunately, she also found a hidden subfloor made from asbestos(!) tiles.
Don’t Be One of Those Homeowners Who Goes Over Budget on a Renovation Read More »
For Lucas Hall, finding that answer has been trial and error. As a “DIY landlord” for more than two years and founder of Landlordology, an online resource for landlords, he’s gutted three homes and renovated countless others. “I’m just handy enough to be dangerous,” Hall says. He’s suffered more than his fair share of
4 Ways to Avoid DIY Mistakes — From a DIYer Who’s Made Them All Read More »
When planning a garage addition, you’ll need to consider size, siting, access, and how the garage relates to the architecture of the house. Maybe you’re tired of getting drenched as you dash to your car on stormy days. Or you dream about having more space for storage, a workshop, a home gym, a kids’ play
Evaluate Your House for a Garage Addition Read More »
Getting a bit queasy as tax time nears? Worried about making mistakes or missing out on a deduction — especially if this is your first time itemizing? Unless you’re a CPA, it can be easy to miss deductions, or worse: raise a red flag with the IRS because you got deduction happy. Here are the
Don’t Panic! You CAN Do Your Taxes Error-Free. Here’s How Read More »
Your home is a great source of tax savings if you know what qualifies and don’t forget to claim deductions and credits. If you missed any of these five, you can go back in time — roughly two to three years — by amending your tax return. (Read more nitpicky details in How to Amend
5 Good Reasons to Amend Your Tax Return — and How Read More »
As you calculate your tax returns, be careful not to commit any of these nine home-related tax mistakes, which tax pros say are especially common and can cost you money or draw the IRS to your doorstep. #1 Deducting the Wrong Year for Property Taxes You take a tax deduction for property taxes in the
9 Easy Mistakes Homeowners Make on Their Taxes Read More »
Do you know what important documents to keep and why? You risk wasting money and time if you don’t back up your income tax records. Millions of Americans will remember to do their taxes juuust in time to sprint to the April 15 finish, fists stuffed with W2s and receipts. But if you’re a homeowner,
4 Dangers You Face If You Don’t Back Up Your Income Tax Documents Read More »
