Do more with your money in half the time.
Houses are selling fast here in North Texas. I hear stories just about every day of houses that are on the market less than seven days. Across the nation, home sales are up from last year, according to the National Association of Realtors. With Spring here, interest rates still low, and all the buzz about [...]
Until about 2005, I never realized there were any mortgage terms other than 30 years. In addition to the fact that I’d never been in the market for a house prior to 2005, there were some excellent reasons for my ignorance. First of all, the 30-year mortgage came into being after the Great Depression—prior to [...]
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Mr. PoP from plantingourpennies.com. He and Mrs. PoP are amateur Real Estate investors living in Florida. Feel free to let them know what you think of their advice in the comments below! Lately we’ve noticed a real increase in friends and family asking us about buying some [...]
This is probably the one and only time I’ll write about home warranties, so I guess I better kill two birds with one stone. I’ll share my disappointing experience with American Home Shield so that you never have to deal with them, and then ask the larger question: are home warranties worth it? A home [...]
Editor’s note: After I posted my recent rental property cash flow analysis, the topic of depreciation came up in the comments. My friend Jason Hull then offered to share his thoughts on the often overlooked topic of depreciation recapture. So here ya go… “Lay up your treasures in heaven where there is no depreciation.” –Unknown [...]
The first couple in my group of friends to venture into home ownership bought a poorly constructed modern house situated right off of a dangerous main street that was in a not-particularly-great school district. You might wonder what they were thinking. At the time, their decision seemed to make sense. They had fallen in love [...]
All has been pretty quiet on the rental front. Our tenant is paying on time and reporting no issues. Be sure to scan the real estate category of this blog to see our history with this rental property. Today I thought I’d share the cash flow analysis of our first six months (ending December 31, [...]
We may call it the American dream, but these days, it may seem as though home ownership is more like the American fantasy for young adults. Members of the so-called Millennial generation—those born between the early 80s and the mid 90s—are facing the possibility of renting long into adulthood, despite low post-bubble mortgage rates and [...]
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Brandon Turner of BiggerPockets.com. These guys know their real estate. Even though it appears there are ways to buy a house without putting 20% down, you guys know I would say it’s wise to put that much down so that you are shielded from market downturns, PMI, [...]
This past weekend I volunteered to help out with a Habitat for Humanity home build. I loved this opportunity. It gave me a chance to work with my hands and contribute more than just money. Not that Habitat doesn’t need monetary donations. But I appreciated the fact that Habitat provides a way for people to [...]
What’s the best way to collect rent from a tenant? When I decided to become a landlord, one of the areas that I gave the least amount of thought to was collecting rent. In hindsight, I should have determined my policy for rent payment and informed the tenant during the vetting process. Because I left [...]
Editor’s note: please join me in welcoming Carrie Smith, new staff writer. Carrie is a successful freelance writer across many sites, including her own, CarefulCents.com. She will be sharing her story with money and her successes in getting rid of debt. I was 23 when bought my first house. I thought I had it all; [...]
Hi, I'm Philip Taylor. I'm a husband, father, blogger, and entrepreneur. I love learning to do more with my money and sharing it all here with you. Join in on the conversation and start improving your financial life today. Read more...
