Retirees may want to head to Lancaster, Pa. The town earned the top spot in U.S. News & World Report’s list of 2019 Best Places to Retire in the U.S. Lancaster’s housing affordability and its residents' high rank for their happiness, helped it to bump Sarasota, Fla., from the number one position this year.U.S. News & World Report evaluated the country’s 100 largest metro areas to see how well they met retirees’ expectations, suc
Coliving has become a growing trend in real estate, as more renters and homeowners look for roommates to help better afford their home.In coliving buildings, tenants often lease a tiny room within a larger apartment and then share common spaces, like living rooms and kitchens, with strangers.“Coliving’s institutional moment is now upon us,” Chris Bledsoe, co-founder and chief executive of Ollie, a developer of coliving spaces.Developers are
Don’t discount the entryway with staging, even if it’s tight on space. It’s the first area that potential buyers see as they walk in the front door. It’s your chance to make them feel welcome and fall in love with the home instantly. The entryway is also a high-traffic area, so it needs to be functional, too—a ready place for muddy boots, wet umbrellas, and shoes.“Entryways set a tone for the rest of the home,” Aimee Lagos, who co-f
Some buyers and sellers may get the jitters during their last-minute actions—or inactions—that could cause a deal to fall through. As a real estate professional, how can you tell that one of your clients may be getting cold feet?“There are so many layers involved with mortgage lending and real estate,” Ayesha Kleinjan, co-owner of San Diego Real Estate Properties, told U.S. News & World Report. “The simplest things can make a deal
The average residential lawn in America is about a quarter of an acre (or 10,871 square feet), but the number can vary greatly depending on where you live.For example, Vermont homeowners tend to enjoy the largest lots at 73,979 square feet—seven times the national average. Homeowners in Montana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, and Maine also tend to boast some of the largest lot sizes in the country, too.Vermont’s large lot sizes average nea
In the hottest housing markets—Kentwood, Mich., being the most active ZIP code in the country—high-income millennials are a driving force behind the real estate boom, according to new research from realtor.com®. “As the millennial generation continues to age, they are looking for affordable suburbs with strong school systems while still being relatively close to a downtown center,” according to realtor.com® researchers. Millennials also
A high debt-to-income ratio has superseded poor credit history as the number one obstacle for mortgage applicants, according to real estate data firm CoreLogic. Though the number of borrowers who have been denied a mortgage has steadily declined over the last few years, nearly one in 10 were turned away in 2017, CoreLogic says. About 30 percent of those denials were attributed to debt-to-income ratio.There has been a gradual increase in the avera
Underdeveloped midsized markets are poised to be investment hot spots next year, offering more affordable housing and attracting a younger workforce, according to the Urban Land Institute’s Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2019 report. “The keyword for real estate’s future performance is ‘transformation’—in technology, in generational choices, and in a reconfiguration of preferences related to geography and property types,” ULI Glob
After an inspector has finished a home report, buyers may feel overwhelmed by any flaws that might have been found. That’s why it’s important they take the opportunity to learn more so that they can move forward confidently in the transaction.A recent article at realtor.com® recommends home buyers ask their inspector clarifying questions like: “I don’t understand this; what does it mean?” or “Is this a major or minor problem?” and
Housing costs have soared higher than what teachers can comfortably afford on their salary alone in San Jose, Calif. So California’s San Jose Unified School District identified nine district-owned properties that it wants to transform into affordable housing units for teachers and other school staff. But their plan is drawing criticism from parents and neighborhood residents, the Mercury News reports.The plan calls for closing several of the di
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