Real Estate Blog for Buyers and Sellers - Madhu Sarkar - HOMES BY M...

Understanding the Documentation Required to Sell a House

Organising the Legal Documents before you decide to Sell a House Once you have decided to put your house on the market, get yourself prepared. There’s a long list of legal documents required to sell a house. They are critical at different stages in the sales process. To avoid unwanted hiccups for
Will Rates Go Down in September 2023?

September Mortgage Rates…. Up, Low, Moderate? What do our Experts have to say??? Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at National Association of Realtors Forecast: will lower mortgage interest rates in the fall and winter “In the coming months, with inflation easing, one hopes the Fed wi
August Rates

Will mortgage rates go down in August? Expert mortgage rate predictions for August Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at the National Association of Realtors Forecast: hopeful signs rates will start to fall "The Fed should react positively to the recent ease in inflation. If so, this will
Homebuyers Are Still More Active Than Usual

Homebuyers continue to stay active The housing market is experiencing a slower pace, it is no more a frenzy like the unicorn years, however, that doesn’t mean today’s market is at a cessation. In actuality, buyer traffic is still strong today. Maybe it’s not running but it surely is brisk walking
Will Rates Go Down in July 2023?

Will Rates Go Down in July 2023? Current mortgage rates are averaging 6.96% for a 30-year fixed-rate loan and 6.30% for a 15-year fixed-rate loan, according to Freddie Mac’s latest weekly rate survey. Will this go down? Let’s hear what our experts have to say: Molly Boesel, principal econo
Home Equity

Home prices vis a vis Home equity There is a buzz about home equity decline and that must have got you worried. Let’s first understand what is equity? Your home's equity is the difference between how much your home is worth i.e. the current market value and how much you owe on your mort
What's your Home Equity?

Are you aware What’s Your Home Equity? Let’s understand how it works…. To calculate your home's equity, divide your current mortgage balance by your home's estimated current market value. For example, if your current balance is $100,000 and your home's market value is $400,000, you have
Choosing the Right Expert

Whether you’re actively house hunting or just starting to browse homes, the process of buying a home can feel a bit intimidating, considering the number of checkpoints you have to go through and managing too many fronts all alone. It is difficult even when markets are normal however, today’s ma
No Falling Prices

The aggressive moves from the Federal Reserve in order to curb the high inflation, has left many economists warning us that we’re heading towards a recession. Forbes mentions that the U.S. consumer price index (CPI) rose by 6% in February from a year ago and 0.4% from January, according to the
First Republic Bank

First Republic Bank’s shares plunged nearly 40 per cent on Friday as the San Francisco-based lender reported an exodus of deposits in the first quarter. The drop in share value of more than 40% is despite a $30 billion infusion from 11 rival lenders on March 16 as the government and the private s
First Time Down Payment

Down Payment & First Time Buyers Escalating home prices make it stiffer for first-time homebuyers to purchase a home in today’s market. But when renters become homeowners, communities benefit. New homeowners make home improvements, increase curb appeal, and raise the property values. With that
Calculate Home Equity

What is Home Equity? Home equity is the current market value of your home, minus any liens attached to it such as existing mortgage. How does it work? The amount of equity in a house fluctuates over time in two ways , one is while the debtor makes payments towards the mortgage balances or as th
Unlock Fixed Rate

Lock in a mortgage rate Locking in a mortgage rate means a borrower entering into an agreement with the lender that allows to lock in the interest rate and cost structure that binds the borrower and the lender throughout the loan tenure. A mortgage rate lock includes the annual interest rate,
Mortgage Interest Rates

How can you avail the best interest rates available for you? Let’s see the factors that influence your mortgage interest rate and what all matters: Your financial health: Lenders assess your financial situation that includes your credit score, down payment, existing debt burden, and the
Good Mortgage

What is a good mortgage rate today? A good mortgage rate differs for every individual based on their capacity of repayment. However, a better rate is always a lower mortgage rate. So, to get the right picture of the mortgage rates, one must take the quote from different lenders and compare the
2023

Wishing all our Readers are Very Happy & a Prosperous New Year. How do we see the 2023 Housing market? 1. Mortgage rates are likely to pull back: The increasing trend of mortgage rates after reaching its peak in early November is expected to gradually edge lower and stabilize, with ra
Homeowners Insurance 2

Home Insurance Continued….. Determine How Much Coverage You Need How much insurance coverage you require depends on your specific need. First look at each standard coverage type and adjust the amount according to your specific need, then add extra coverage to fix any gaps. Let’s take a look:
Homeowners Insurance 1

What Is Homeowners Insurance? The house you live in and all the valuables inside add up to a big investment that deserves quality protection, which is why homeowner’s insurance is vital. Homeowners insurance is a form of property insurance that covers a private residence. The insurance insures ag
Down Payment 2

The down payment amount you decide to pay can dictate the terms for a few different aspects of your mortgage repayment process. What should be The Right Mortgage Down Payment Before you conclude with the amount you want to pay as a down payment, it is pertinent to weigh the benefits of both
Down Payment

DOWN PAYMENT What is a down payment? While in a real estate transaction the amount of cash, which is a percentage of the purchase price the buyer pays upfront is called the down payment. Down payments are typically a percentage of the purchase price and can range from as little as 3% to as
Credit Score

CREDIT SCORE Credit is basically the practice of borrowing money, with the promise of paying off the debt within a stipulated amount of time. Consumers, purchasers, and business ventures alike are highly dependent on credit in the present day. The entire system of the availability of credit,
Opportunities Are Like Sunrises

“Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you miss them.” - William Arthur Ward Are you worried that you have lost your opportunity of buying your dream home while the interest rates were low? Keep your worries aside and let’s see what best we can advise you to turn your dream
Uncertainty Opens Door to Opportunity

Uncertainty Opens Door to Opportunity My clients Ronita & Rohit chose a beautiful house and we had already offered. The seller had bought the property at 1.135 million in the month of may and then they flipped, by the month of July they got the property listed at 1,198 million. There expectatio
Rent or Buy?

Unsure if You Should Rent or Buy? People generally have two options living in a place and ultimately calling it their home. One is to rent a home that someone else owns and the other is to purchase a home to own themselves. However, all these rising costs can make deciding whether to rent or
Waiting For Market Correction

WAITING FOR MARKET CORRECTION Are you waiting for a market correction to buy your home? Can you predict how the market will behave even 3 months down the lane? Today the inventory is low but increasing, the prices can be negotiated. Tomorrow the asking price goes beyond your affordability. Can
Mortgage Rates Are Dropping

MORTGAGE RATES ARE DROPPING … WHY??? Even though national GDP contracted for the second quarter in a row and around the same time as the Fed’s rate increase was announced, new data showed the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate made a big move in the reverse direction. The average 30-year fi
San Francisco Buyers

SAN FRANCISCO BUYERS For San Francisco Potential Buyers, San Francisco saw the fourth-highest decrease in housing transactions in markets across the U.S. with a 29.1% drop in sales between June 2021 and June 2022. Are you worried to buy a home in San Francisco in this situation? Hey
I'Mpossible

The Tale of Three Homes Introduction: It was a bright sunny day. The phone rang and there was a lady on the other end. Her name was Smita, she was referred by one of my esteemed clients. She expressed her interest in buying a property in the bay area. During the conversation I came to know t
Understanding Equity

UNDERSTANDING EQUITY All those buyers being frustrated by the bidding war and the above-list sale prices that reigned the last year’s red hot housing market was dismayed with the wait for this year. Unfortunately for them, the new year did not bring any magic. The Seller’s Market Is stil
Deceleration

DECELERATION There is a lot of buzz around the word “deceleration of home prices”. What exactly is Deceleration? Experts in the real estate industry use words to define what’s happening in the industry. They might sound similar but there lies a huge difference in their meaning. While App