Rob Thom

News for Home Buyers Here's some more bad news for home buyers: It's getting even more expensive to buy a home. The average rate of a 30-year fixed rate mortgage jumped to 4.40% this week — the highest level since April 2014, according to Freddie Mac's late...

Millennial Home Buyers It's going to be an intense house-hunting season -- especially for young buyers. After years of many experts lamenting how Millennials weren't interested in becoming homeowners, it turns out many are actually diving in. But they're facing a l...

Saving for a Down Payment. Saving for a down payment is often a major hurdle for wanna-be homeowners. And for good reason: Putting 20% down costs two-thirds of the average household income. Very few are saving for a down payment in one year, it's something they do over multip...

New Federal Tax Law and Home Owners The new federal tax law created a lot of confusion over whether tax filers may still deduct the interest they pay on their home equity loans and home equity lines of credit. The new law suspends the deduction for interest on home equity indebtedness for ...

February Mortgage Update In February, prevailing mortgage rates continued to rise, and recent increases are starting to have a notable impact on home affordability, which will leave consumers choosing between a higher payment or a lower-priced home. According to the Mortgage Bank...

February Sales The three (3) most prominent national market trends for residential real estate are the ongoing lack of abundant inventory, the steadily upward movement of home prices and, most recently, year-over-year declines in home sales. Sales declines are a natural...

Selling Your Home: Making the Move Selling Your Home: Making the Move After all the effort it takes to sell your house, perhaps the most frantic period could be when it finally comes time to relocate and make the final move. From coordinating movers, packing your belongings and handling a...

Selling Your Home: Making The Deal Selling Your Home: Making the Deal With or without an agent, you’ll need to make your home available for an appraisal and a buyer’s home inspection — and, of course, any home showings. Contingencies — those “if-then” p...

Selling Your Home: Listing and Marketing Your Home For Sale Selling Your Home: Listing and Marketing Your Home For Sale You’ve probably noticed homes that have a little extra sizzle in their online listings, with photography that really pops and descriptions that are easy to read and packed with info. The ...

Selling Your Home: Pricing Your Home To Sell Pricing Your Home to Sell When determining the list price of your home, you may want to give yourself a little cushion for negotiation, unless you live in a hot seller’s market. There also will be some expenses, including a broker fee to deduct fro...

Selling Your Home: Agent or For Sale By Owner? Selling Your Home: Agent or For Sale By Owner? While the temptation to do it yourself may be strong, sometimes an objective voice can make all the difference. Whether you hire an agent or go the for-sale-by-owner route, you’ll want honest feedback ...

Selling Your Home: Before Your House Goes on the Market Selling Your Home: Before Your House Goes on the Market Teeing up your home for sale might be the most important part of the process. From curb appeal to decluttering, make a commitment to set aside sentimentality and focus on maximizing your home’...