Real Estate, Updates, News & Tips - Leckesia Pablo - iPro Real Estate

Each Generation’s Favorite Renovation Projects

The average homeowner is spending more money on a greater number of home improvement projects, according to HomeAdvisor’s 2017 True Cost Survey, a study of 14 million service requests received between July 2016–17. However, the projects vary by generation, income, and geography, the study finds. Here are the top five most popular home improvement projects by generation.Millennials Install outdoor play equipment Install childproofing Install

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Fannie Loosens ARM Down Payment Rules

Fannie Mae is changing the requirement that borrowers pay a higher down payment to qualify for an adjustable-rate mortgage, announcing that it is bringing this type of financing more in line with that of fixed-rate mortgages.Now, borrowers can make as little as a 5 percent down payment on a one-unit primary property using an ARM. Also among the changes is that borrowers need less equity in order to refinance into an ARM; they now need just 5 perc

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Harvey Sparks Flood Insurance Disaster

The majority of the thousands of Texas homes submerged in floodwaters after Hurricane Harvey slammed the coastline over the weekend do not have flood insurance—a costly reminder of the importance of extending the National Flood Insurance Program, which the National Association of REALTORS® is fighting to support. Only 15 percent of homes in Harris County—which includes Houston, now under two feet of water—are covered by flood insurance, C

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3 Remodeling Mistakes That Hurt Resale Values

“Projects that take a home significantly beyond community norms are often not worth the cost when the owner sells the home,” says Scott Robinson, president of the Appraisal Institute. “If the improvements don’t match what’s standard in a community, they’ll be considered excessive.” Lifestyle website CheatSheet.com highlights a few renovation mistakes that could inadvertently lower a home’s resale value. Letting minor damage go unf

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Suspicious Buyer Puts Mass. Agents on Edge

Two local REALTOR® associations in Massachusetts have issued safety advisories to their members after female agents reported suspicious incidents with a male prospective buyer. The REALTOR® Association of Southeastern Massachusetts sent out its alert after two incidents, one in which an agent in Dartmouth found the buyer in a closet during an open house, and another in which the buyer asked an agent in New Bedford to go down into the basement a

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Gated Communities Take Privacy to New Level

Developers of gated communities are discovering that high-end buyers are attracted to neighborhoods with more land, more privacy, and fewer occupants, The Wall Street Journal reports. “There are lots of people who are looking for a golf course development without the golf course,” conservation planner Randall Adrendt told the Journal. “You can lure them with open space, woodlands, meadows, and home sites that back up to wetlands so they

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Top Destination Cities for Relocation Buyers

Home buyers looking to relocate are most likely to be heading to Colorado Springs, Colo. The city nabbed the top spot on ATTOM Data Solutions’ list of top moving destinations for the third quarter of 2017. Also likely to receive more transplants are Chicago; Washington, D.C.; Reno, Nev.; and Lexington, Ky.According to ATTOM Data Solutions’ Q2 2017 Pre-Mover Housing Index, the top five markets among the 122 metros researchers analyzed all post

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Inventory Relief for Desperate Buyers?

If your buyers have been frantically searching for a home as the inventory crunch grows tighter, some relief may be on the way. It’s a challenging environment, with homes in July selling at the fastest pace this year, prompting “desperate buyers to bid up prices and move quickly to close,” according to realtor.com®’s monthly housing report.Additionally, realtor.com® reports that homes sold at a record pace in August, as listings moved

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30-Year Mortgage Rate Hits New 2017 Low

Borrowers applying for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage this week locked in the lowest rate of the year, as it dropped to its lowest average since November 2016, Freddie Mac reports. Additionally, “the 10-year Treasury yield fell 6 basis points this week amid concerns over lagging inflation,” says Freddie Mac chief economist Sean Becketti.Freddie Mac reported the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Aug. 24: 30-yea

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30% of Luxury Deals Are ‘Suspicious’

A new watchdog program designed to monitor real estate deals involving shell companies has found that the buyers in 30 percent of high-end deals were linked to “suspicious activity,” the Treasury Department reported this week. Federal officials are now expanding the program, which aims to prevent money laundering by overseas buyers who use shell companies to mask their identities.The program, called the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network,

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