Cheryl Karr - Your Solid Source Realty Agent

    Homes with pools have become the target of buyer envy since the pandemic began. Pool additions are soaring, and more house hunters say they want one in their backyard, according to HomeLight’s “Top Agent Insights for Spring 2021” report. Prior to the pandemic, many buyers were shunning properties with pools, which present maintenance issues and potential liability. The average pool can cost between $3,000 and $5,000 per year to maintain, according to HomeAdvisor data. Only 2% of REALTORS® in 2018 said that a pool helped to sell a home, according to data that year. But the pandemic has made Americans reevaluate their fondness for pools, which have become a mode of entertainment while sheltering at home. Pool sales have tripled in the last year. Properties with an in-ground pool are selling for a premium, too. Real estate professionals surveyed by HomeLight estimate that prior to COVID-19, a house with a pool would net about $16,137 more tha...

  Being a first-time home buyer can be intimidating. Not only do you need to navigate the house-hunting process, but you also need to find yourself a loan to finance that purchase. And if you don't know much about mortgages, you may have a hard time getting approved for a home loan. With that in mind, here are a few key pieces of information you should have if you'll be applying for a mortgage in the near term.   1. Your credit score matters – a lot Mortgage lenders generally require a minimum credit score of 620 for a conventional home loan. But that's just the minimum, and lenders can insist on a higher score – and deny you a loan if you don't have one. Also, the higher your score, the better the interest rate you're apt to snag on your mortgage. So it pays to approach the application process with solid credit.   2. Keep your existing debt to a minimum Mortgage lenders will want to make sure you're not too overextended with your debt before loani...

  Low mortgage rates, financial assistance from parents, and personal savings are helping first-time buyers stretch their housing budgets more than they thought they could, according to a survey from realtor.com® of 1,000 prospective and recent first-time home buyers. More than two-thirds of survey respondents say they are surprised at what they can afford; 47% say their budget is larger than they thought it would be. “The dramatic decline of mortgage rates in 2020 was a pleasant surprise for many buyers,” says George Ratiu, senior economist at realtor.com®. “For first-time buyers, the drop in the 30-year mortgage rate from 3.65% in March 2020 to a record low of 2.65% in January has provided unexpected leverage. Lower rates allowed many buyers to stretch and buy more expensive homes while keeping their monthly budget the same.” Still, many first-time buyers acknowledge having to compromise on their recent purchase, and nearly half of survey respond...