Category: Homes
The hidden impact of hurricanes: Higher insurance premiums
Hurricane Idalia struck Florida’s Gulf Coast with intense wind and rain, causing an estimated $9.4 billion in insured losses. 1 Big storms have an impact far …
How to become a landlord: Blueprint to buy your first rental property
I love passive streams of income from real estate, and property appreciation for that matter. But before you learn how to become a landlord, you need …
Majority of homeowners tackling home improvement projects as housing market remains competitive
Home is where the heart is, but it’s also where the hammer is lately. In the past 12 months, 68% of homeowners started or completed home …
Bring on the cold: Heat pumps are twice as efficient as oil and gas heating in cold weather, study says
A new study from Oxford University and Regulatory Assistance Project, an NGO, found that even in cold weather, heat pumps are twice as efficient as heating …
Americans are sitting on tens of trillions of dollars of home equity — here’s where homeowners are offered the largest and smallest home equity loans
American homeowners are sitting on $28.7 trillion of home equity. That’s significant, even if the amount has fallen from a record $31.8 trillion in the second …
Are there free skip tracing tools for real estate? Free & paid tools compared
What is a skip tracer? It sounds like some kind of cool, futuristic sci-fi job — like a cyberpunk private eye who tracks people down through …
8 unique storage ideas for small bathrooms
When you have a tiny bathroom with little or no built-in storage, you’ve got to get creative. Even if you forgo decor like plants and candles, …
Home climate proofing can lower your bills. Why aren’t people doing it?
All over the country, climate change is making it more expensive to own a home. In California, Florida, and other coastal states, many home insurance companies …
Majority of Americans who don’t own their own home have this common fear
Owning a home has long been considered the quintessential American dream, but the path to those white picket fences is far from smooth. Although 84% of …
Balloon mortgages: What they are & how they work
A balloon mortgage allows you to enjoy low monthly payments for several years — with a big catch. Your final payment amount “balloons” sharply, potentially leaving …
Keep your eyes peeled! These are the hidden costs of low-end rentals that don’t show up in cash flow calculations you need to watch out for
When I first started buying rental properties, I had no idea how to calculate rental cash flow. I just assumed the cash flow was “the rent …
Top 10 cities most vulnerable to flooding
Floods are one of the most devastating natural disasters in the U.S. They can destroy communities and leave homeowners with costly repairs, especially in cities that …
Texas Gov. Abbott announces $87.7M in housing tax credits
Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced on Monday that the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) had awarded almost $90 million in tax credits. These …
Revamp your home office with these pro tips
When surveyed, more than half of all employees said they want to work from home. But not everyone has a functional home office space that is …
Less for more: new-home sizes have decreased nationwide, while prices per square foot have jumped 95%
Though they’ve come down somewhat from their pandemic highs, home prices are still steep, especially compared to 10 years earlier. While some of the extra money …
States with the most & fewest break-ins
No one wants to find their house ransacked and prized possessions stolen, but, according to the latest FBI data, more than 580,000 burglaries occur yearly. Burglaries …
Experts reveal the 7 major health risks of working from home and how to avoid them
Love it or loathe it, working from home is a growing trend that looks set to stay. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home has risen …
These U.S. cities have seen the biggest jump in rent this year
A return to cities and a tight housing market upset the rental landscape in 2022, contributing to a 16.5% jump in the national average rent price. …
Home Depot has a tiny home kit with a spiral staircase for under $45K
The tiny home trend continues to make big waves in popular culture as more people seek ways to scale down and simplify their lives. By living …
One of legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s last works is up for grabs
Here’s a treat for architecture lovers everywhere: a mid-century masterpiece that bears the signature of architect extraordinaire, Frank Lloyd Wright, is now up for grabs in New …
Take a peek inside ‘Fear of Flying’ author Erica Jong’s stylish Upper East Side apartment
Marking the 50th anniversary of her groundbreaking book, Fear of Flying, novelist Erica Jong has plenty of things to celebrate. With a lucrative five-decade career in …
Thinking of selling your home? Now may be the exact right time
If you’ve been waiting on listing your home, here’s some motivation to get going: we’ve officially entered the prime period to sell. On a national level, …
These upgrades can help protect your home from climate change
In less than a year between 2020 and 2021, Lake Charles, Louisiana, faced two hurricanes, then a severe winter storm, followed by more flooding, all …
Here’s where heating costs are really soaring
Even before the outbreak of war in Ukraine and subsequent energy crisis in Europe, Germany’s Federal Statistics Office estimated that 2.6 million people in the country could not …
The surprising number of Americans who say they’ve lived in a haunted house
A whole lot of things, according to a new survey from Real Estate Witch — including mold, a leaky roof, and termites. Surprisingly, ghosts barely made the list …
Your home could be a death trap & you may not even know it
Using the word accidental to describe injuries and death gives the impression that they were completely unforeseen and unavoidable. However, most of them are considered …
How to plan the perfect bathroom remodel
A bathroom remodel is one of the most challenging projects you can take on in your home. Bathroom remodel costs range from modest cosmetic updates …
Yes, you can even vacation like Barbie, if that’s your thing
“Barbiecore” is a hot trend characterized by vivid pink hues, based on the aesthetic of the iconic Mattel doll that has been an indelible part of …
Here’s where homes are sitting empty across America
A March LendingTree study found more than 16 million vacant housing units in the U.S. This figure may seem steep but becomes more reasonable when you consider …
Bought a home with undisclosed flaws? Sue the inspector, not the seller
Your new home has a septic tank instead of being connected to the sewer. Or, something ominous is lurking underneath your floorboards, like termites, rodents …
