In any given week I can expect to be asked: “So…how’s the market?” about 25 times. Can you guess what the 2nd most popular question is?? “So…Why should I use a REALTOR? Why can’t I just sell my own house (or) go looking at homes on my own? What do REALTORS really do?” (OK… that [...]

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway continues to look for opportunities in the beaten-down real estate sector. Berkshire announced that one of it’s affiliate companies is purchasing Schiller Real Estate, which is described as the leading residential real estate firm in Elmhurst, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. Schiller is being merged with Chicago-based Koenig & Strey Real [...]

Current homeowners who sign a contract to buy a home on or before April 30 get a dollar-for-dollar reduction on their taxes of 10% of the purchase price of the home, up to a maximum of $6,500 (first-time buyers can get up to $8,000). But according to the National Association of Realtors, buyers spend about [...]

The First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit has been EXTENDED to July 1, 2010 and offers current homeowners looking to move a tax credit too! Purchase a home before May 1, 2010 and you may be eligible for a tax credit: $6,500 for current homeowners looking to move $8,000 for first-time homeowners Buyers who have [...]

HOT OFF THE PRESS…. WASHINGTON – Missed out on Cash for Clunkers? Congress has another deal for you: Buy a home before May 1 and collect up to $6,500 from the government. If you’re a first-time homebuyer, get up to $8,000. As part of the government’s efforts to encourage people to spend money to help [...]

Sometimes a little humor is appropriate. With the current state of the Real Estate Market, it is VERY appropriate. Check out this very creative work that is the viral hit of YouTube:

I just read an article from The Associated Press by Dawn Wotapka on the subject of home buyers, credit reports and mortgage loans. There were two points of interest that I want to share, along with my opinion of course… * Home buyers who are under contract and hoping to close before Nov. 30 (when [...]

Disclaimer: I am not a mortgage broker.  I am a real estate broker. That said, it is hard to do what I do for a living without a basic understanding of home mortgage loans.  The information below was gathered from conversations with loan officers and various searches of home mortgage and credit agency web sites [...]

I realize this blog is titled “One Broker’s Opinion” (and that broker is me) but once in a while someone else says what I want to say better that I could have said it. Not often…but occasionally it happens. This is one of those occasions. I have been saying for months that buyers need to [...]

I receive a lot of calls from people who want to look at (and buy) a new home. They are usually very excited about what they have seen on the news and read on web sites — from an over-abundance of inventory…to low interest rates…to tax credits…to bank-owned “rock-bottom” prices…etc. The last thing I want [...]