|
|
|
A Beginner's Guide To Real Estate Investing Strategies
If you're thinking about investing in real estate to make money, you need to first determine your financial goals. Do you need to make money quickly, invest for your children's college fund, or build wealth for your retirement? Once you determine...
How To Find A Real Estate Agent
You may be of the opinion that you don’t need a real estate agent and that using one will add to the cost of buying your new home.
The fact is that a real estate agent’s fees are typically paid by the seller of the home. So, as a buyer, you...
New Decor for a New year
January is a time for setting goals and making plans for the
year ahead. The typical resolutions of losing weight or saving
money could be made a little easier when you feel proud of where
you live. You deserve a beautiful home. There are four...
Renting Out Your Basement
Some homeowners consider their basement a wasted space. It's used for storage, they say, and maybe during tornado watches, but for the most part, it can be a vast unused area just dying for some renovation. With property values on the rise, many...
Wyoming Real Estate – Wide Open Spaces
If you’re tired of living in close quarters, Wyoming may be the answer for you. Wyoming real estate is also appreciating at a nice pace.
Wyoming
Wyoming is the least populated state in the United States, but also one of the most beautiful if...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hiring Home Contractors
Have you ever had a problem with a home contractor? You're not
alone. A friend of mine paid over seven thousand dollars to have
his roof repaired, only to have it leak the next time it rained.
The contractor made excuses, but never did a thing about it -
and my friend was an attorney! To make situations like this less
likely, avoid the following mistakes when hiring a contractor.
1. Not being clear about what you want. When you don't know
what you want, you might not like what you get. If you change
your mind and change the job halfway through, the contract - and
price - will change. Hint: it won't get cheaper. Be clear on
what you want done.
2. Not getting it in writing. Hearing "I didn't say I was going
to include the gutters," could be a problem, or you could point
to the contract.
3. No dates in the contract. Do you want the job finished this
year? Be sure you have it in the contract.
4. Too much money up front. Deposits are a reasonable request
when contracts are signed. The home contractor may need money
for materials prior to the start date. But never pay in full
before the job is finished.
5. Unlicensed contractors. This can be okay, if you know what
you are doing (and he does). A license doesn't mean you get
expertise, but it does mean you get leverage. Contractors will
right their wrongs to avoid losing that license. 6. Hiring the
first in the phone book. Talk to friends who had work done,
or
to the owner of a hardware store. Get a recommendation based on
a similar job to yours.
7. Assuming there will be no problems. Delays due to weather,
employees quitting, and more will happen. A few problems is
okay, but it's not okay if the contractor can't work out the
issues to your satisfaction.
8. Expecting neatness. Guess what? It is sometimes more
efficient to leave things laying where they'll next be used.
There will be messes, so prepare accordingly. Cover up things if
it will be a dusty job, for example. Also be clear in the
contract that the jobsite will be cleaned up at the end of the
job.
9. No penalties in the contract. It's one thing for a contract
to say "Work to be completed by May 2nd." That helps, but it's
better to add, "$100 per day to be deducted from the contract
price for each day the job is unfinished beyond May 2nd. It's
what I call a motivational clause.
10. Thinking contracts eliminate problems. Contracts help, but
unreasonable people on either side of a contract can ignore
them, or even use "literal readings" to make things worse. Find
a home contractor you can work with, and keep your eyes open.
About the author:
Steve Gillman has invested in real estate for years. To learn
more, and to see a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife
bought for $17,500, visit http://www.HousesU
nderFiftyThousand.com
|
|
|
|
|
| Real Estate, Property, Land and Homes for Sale, lease and rent ... |
| Comprehensive real estate and property listings. Includes information on buying and selling, tips on building, an auction timetable and other helpful ... |
| www.realestate.com.au |
|
| Real Estate | Homes for Sale | Houses for Sale | MLS Listings ... |
| RealEstate.com provides home listings , homes for sale , REALTORS , house listings , apartment locating services. We have Florida real estate , Texas ... |
| www.realestate.com |
|
| REALTOR.com: Real estate listings & homes for sale |
| Search for a new home or find mortgage rates, real estate agents, and relocation services throughout the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico. |
| www.realtor.com |
|
| Real Estate on Yahoo! Real Estate - Homes, Mortgage Rates, School ... |
| Yahoo! Real Estate is the most comprehensive place for real estate, housing market information, school reports, local mortgage rates and more! |
| realestate.yahoo.com |
|
| Find Your Home Value, House Values and Prices on Yahoo! Real Estate |
| Yahoo! Real Estate - Free instant home values and comparable home valuations for millions of houses. Check your home's price or any house value. |
| realestate.yahoo.com |
|
| Real Estate, Houses for Sale, Rentals, Commercial and Businesses ... |
| Real Estate, Houses for Sale, Rentals, Commercial and Businesses for sale at Realestate.co.nz. |
| www.realestate.co.nz |
|
| Real Estate - Buy, Sell or Rent a Home - New York Times |
| Online real estate listings for properties in New York and nationwide. |
| www.nytimes.com |
|
| Century 21 Real Estate Agents and Brokers |
| Agency with franchised offices throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia. Find local offices and agents, ... |
| century21.com |
|
| Zillow - Your Edge in Real Estate |
| Zillow provides a free Home Valuation Tool for Real Estate enthusiasts. Whether you're an agent, broker, buyer of investment property or first time ... |
| www.zillow.com |
|
| STLtoday - Homes |
| Real estate agent revels in the boom in downtown St. Louis living ... [more real estate news as seen in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch] ... |
| www.stltoday.com |
|
| Real estate - Boston.com |
| Boston Real Estate - Search the Boston Globe and Boston.com for Massachusetts Real Estate, Boston Condos, Land for sale, Vacation Rentals and more. |
| www.boston.com |
|
| ABCs of Real Estate |
| Real Estate ABCs consumer tips, hints, and resources for home buyers, sellers, and mortgage borrowers. |
| www.realestateabc.com |
|
| washingtonpost.com - Washington DC real estate, Maryland real ... |
| Washington, DC, Virginia and Maryland homes, real estate news and headlines. [Registration required] |
| www.washingtonpost.com |
|
| Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation |
| Real Estate from Coldwell Banker ®. Buying a home, selling a home, or finding a real estate agent is easy with Coldwell Banker. Find a home, sales associate ... |
| www.coldwellbanker.com |
|
| Detroit News Online | Real-Estate |
| Sellers around the state have been frustrated with the slow sales patterns of Michigan real estate over the past year or two. But buyers have been enjoying ... |
| www.detnews.com |
|
| Newsday.com - Long Island Real Estate for Nassau County and ... |
| In a real estate market increasingly defined by niches, ... Real Estate Resources. Search by school district for recent home sales in Nassau and Suffolk ... |
| www.newsday.com |
|
| Real Estate for Sale, Rent and Share @ Domain.com.au |
| Real Estate for Sale, Rent and Share @ Domain.com.au. Houses and apartments for sale or rent all over Australia. Thousands of properties in Sydney, ... |
| www.domain.com.au |
|
| Luxury real estate news and features - Forbes.com |
| Luxury real estate news and features at Forbes.com. Core topics include real estate, mansions, condos, co ops, oceanfront realty, second homes, ... |
| www.forbes.com |
|
| Real Estate News - Prices, Mortgages, and Calculators from CNNMoney |
| Latest on mortgages, refinancing, & home tips from CNNMoney.com. Calculators for refinancing, mortgage payments and more. |
| money.cnn.com |
|
| Los Angeles, California, national and world news, jobs, real ... |
| Los Angeles' leading online source for local, state, national, world, entertainment, and sports news. Plus jobs, real estate, cars and shopping information ... |
| www.latimes.com |
|
|