Home Repairs to Get on Top of Before Summer Hits

Summer is just around the corner, and that means it's time to make sure your home is ready for the season ahead.

With hot weather come higher energy bills and potential maintenance issues. To avoid any unpleasant surprises during the warmer months, take some time now to make necessary repairs and check up on areas of your home that have been neglected so you can enjoy a carefree summer at home! This blog will explore all of the important repairs you should consider taking care of beforehand so that you can maximize enjoying those long days with peace of mind.

Check Your Roof for Damage 
As summer approaches, it’s always important to check your roof for any damage that may have occurred due to the winter weather. Such damage can include loose shingles or holes, which are easy to miss without a thorough inspection. Taking care of any repairs now can help ensure that your home is ready for the coming heat and humidity of summer and will reduce the chances of water leakage or structural damage. Don’t let a small issue become a major problem—take a close look at your roof before summer arrives, and have it repaired if there’s anything wrong.

Exterior Paint and Repair 
Get your home ready for summer with some exterior paint and repair! A fresh coat of paint can give any home a chic, updated look that's sure to impress. Or, if you happen to find any cracks in your brickwork or siding, make sure to tackle the issue head-on before it gets worse. Taking a few moments out of your day to invest in preventative maintenance now will save you plenty of time and money in the long run. Unfortunately, summer is short—so act fast to help get your home in tip-top shape this season!

Seal Windows and Doors 
Before the blazing summer sun arrives, it's important to inspect your windows and doors for any drafts, gaps, and other openings. Be sure to get ahead of the weather and replace or seal up these weak points as soon as possible! Sealing up doorways and windows will not only help keep your home energy efficient, but it will also provide peace of mind that you are well-prepared for the summer heat! Make sure you check your whole house now so that all your windows and doors are truly airtight.

Clean Your Gutters
Before the summer months hit, it's important to take action on the parts of your home that are often neglected - starting with your gutters. Clogged gutters can cause water buildup on your roof and home, creating the potential for lasting damage down the road. Regular upkeep of your gutters is vital for maintaining a safe and healthy home; make sure to clean out your gutters all year round to stay one step ahead of any possible problems. Don't let clogged gutters ruin your summer plans—take care of them now!

Update Your AC Unit 
With the summer months just around the corner, now is the perfect time to make sure your AC unit is up to date. Avoid wasting power and money with an outdated HVAC system by looking into ways you can upgrade or repair it. Sourcing air conditioning repair can help keep your energy bills down while providing much-needed relief during the hot days of summer. Don't wait until the weather is at its hottest - take a look at how you can improve your cooling situation sooner rather than later!

Trim Trees & Shrubs 
As the temperatures start to rise and sunshine blankets our homes, it's time to roll up our sleeves and make sure the exterior of our homes is in excellent condition! One of the primary tasks for springtime is trimming trees & shrubs. Keeping trees away from power lines or any structures on your property is an essential safety measure to keep in mind. Furthermore, trimming back bushes and other shrubbery near walkways and driveways not only enhances curb appeal but also prevents injury when moving around outside of your home. Finally, don't forget to check those grassy areas, as they can often harbor pesky weeds that have been lying dormant during winter months - get rid of these pesky plants before they cause further damage. Properly caring for your outdoor oasis will ensure you enjoy a peaceful, beautiful summer season at home!

With the summer season only a few months away, now is the perfect time to start taking proactive measures and maintaining your home, from inspecting your roof for any damage to ensuring your windows and doors are sealed tight. And don't forget about other essential components like cleaning out your gutters, updating your AC unit, and trimming trees and shrubs. By keeping these simple steps in mind, you can help protect your home against potential damage down the line and enjoy a stress-free summer! So take some time out of your day to prepare for warmer days ahead—it’ll reward you in the long run.

Keep reading.

Related Links

• 7 Factors That Complicate the Home Selling Process (and Why You Need a Real Estate Agent)

• What old sitcoms reveal about America’s rising cost of housing

• With Mortgage Rates in Flux, Is ‘Buy Now, Refinance Later’ Good Advice?

If there is a home that you would like more information about, if you are considering selling a property, or if you have questions about the housing market in your neighborhood, please reach out. We’re here to help.

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7 Factors That Complicate the Home Selling Process (and Why You Need a Real Estate Agent)

Selling a property is never as straightforward as it seems. It can be exciting to see your house on the market, but many people underestimate how complicated the process can be.

Here are seven factors that could complicate your property sale and why you should always enlist the help of a professional property manager.

Negotiating With Buyers 
Negotiation is an essential part of selling a property, but it can often be difficult for sellers to navigate. Having an experienced property manager who understands the local market and knows how to negotiate effectively can make all the difference when it comes to getting you the best price for your home.

Legal Issues 
Most people don’t realize that there are many legal issues involved in selling a property, from contracts to disclosure forms and more. An experienced property manager will know how to handle all of these legal issues and make sure everything is taken care of correctly.

Valuation and Appraisals 
Another complication when selling a house is figuring out the value of the home, which is determined by appraisals and information about nearby sales or current listings in your area. A property manager will know how to accurately assess your home’s value so you get the most out of your sale.

Tax Implications 
Selling a house also has tax implications that need to be considered, such as capital gains taxes or depreciation recapture taxes if applicable. A good property manager should have experience dealing with these types of taxes and can help you understand what you owe before you sign any documents related to your sale.

Inspections and Repairs 
Before closing on a sale, buyers may request inspections or ask for repairs to be made in order for them to proceed with their purchase offer. A knowledgeable property manager will know what types of inspections and repairs are necessary before putting your house on the market so that these steps won’t delay or derail potential deals later on down the line.

Staging and Preparing Your Home 
Staging a home properly can make all the difference when it comes time to sell it, as prospective buyers want to walk into a clean and inviting space that feels like home right away without having any major renovations needed after they move in. A great property manager will understand this step in detail and take care of staging your home so it looks its best when potential buyers come through for showings or open houses.

Working With Real Estate Agents 
Finally, working with real estate agents is another factor that complicates selling properties because agents have different personalities and levels of experience than one another (not all agents are created equal). A decent property management company can help you find agents who fit well with both yours and your potential buyer's needs so everyone involved remains satisfied throughout each transaction!

Whether you’re new to selling properties or already have some experience under your belt, enlisting help from an experienced real estate agent or professional property management company can go a long way towards making sure that things go smoothly during every transaction. They’ll understand each step involved in selling a house better than anyone else, which means no surprises along the way for either yourself or any potential buyers interested in purchasing your home. Best of luck as you embark on this journey!

Get more like this on Keeping Current Matters.

Related Links

• Here’s what the Federal Reserve’s 25 basis point interest rate hike means for your money

• What old sitcoms reveal about America’s rising cost of housing

• With Mortgage Rates in Flux, Is ‘Buy Now, Refinance Later’ Good Advice?

If there is a home that you would like more information about, if you are considering selling a property, or if you have questions about the housing market in your neighborhood, please reach out. We’re here to help.

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With Mortgage Rates in Flux, Is ‘Buy Now, Refinance Later’ Good Advice?

If you’re in the market for a home but are discouraged by the current high mortgage rates, you’ve probably heard the advice “buy now and refinance later”—maybe from your mortgage lender, real estate agent, or a well-meaning friend.

This seemingly simple solution might empower you to stretch your budget now, with the plan to refinance when mortgage rates drop.

But is “buy now, refinance later” the win-win it’s cracked up to be?

Let’s take a look at this homebuying strategy from all angles and explore the ways in which it could help—or hurt—buyers down the line.

Mortgage rates on the rise

Mortgage rates have been climbing amid stubborn inflation, with a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage currently averaging 6.73%, according to recent numbers released by Freddie Mac. Just a year ago, the 30-year fixed-rate was 3.85%.

And where mortgage rates will go next is anyone’s guess.

“Predicting mortgage rates in the coming months can be challenging, especially considering the current economic climate and various factors affecting the market,” says Joy Aumann, a licensed real estate agent and founder of Luxury SoCal Realty in San Diego. “While some experts believe that rates may remain relatively stable or even decrease slightly, others argue that inflationary pressures and monetary policies could push rates higher.”

What does ‘buy now, refinance later’ actually mean?

“Marry the home, date the rate”—we’ve heard this homebuying approach phrased a number of ways, but the goal is to offer buyers the promise of a better, more financially viable tomorrow.

The idea is that buyers who take out a loan now with a company can refinance in the future when rates drop.

Don Chambers, a Georgia-based real estate investor, says some mortgage lenders are even offering buyers a promotion of “one free refinance” (during the life of their loan) once rates have dropped. This would mean the buyer wouldn’t have to pay refinancing fees and other costs. For example, closing costs for a refinance are typically 2% to 5% of the loan principal amount.

The goal, Chambers says, is to get buyers the home they want now, with the hope that their monthly payments will ease up when rates drop.

How much do mortgage rates have to drop?

Nobody has the ability to predict if and when rates will drop. But for a “buy now, refinance later” strategy to make financial sense, rates would need to drop by a certain amount. For some buyers, rates might never go low enough for a refinance to actually save them money.

Typically, a 1% rate drop is enough to warrant a refinance.

But Troy Shaffer, founder of Blu Corporate Housing in Phoenix, points out that a drop of 2% might be needed to truly make a dent in monthly payments.

Ultimately, it all depends on your individual loan scenario.

“On a $100,000 loan, rates are going to have to drop a lot more than on a $1 million loan to make refinancing a viable option,” says Jennifer Beeston, a senior vice president of lending at Guaranteed Rate Mortgage. “The type of loan you are doing may be easy to refinance or not even possible without an equity gain.”

Loans made for military veterans, for example, are the easiest to refinance. This is because they do not require an appraisal, which can garner additional fees, Beeston says.

“A 3% down conventional loan is a different story, because to refinance you are either going to need the house to go up in value or have cash to do the refinance and meet loan-to-value guidelines,” she explains. “The same goes for low-down-payment jumbo loan options. This is why it is imperative to discuss the future with your lender, if you are hoping to refinance.”

Consider refinancing fees and closing costs

When considering a mortgage refinance, you also have to factor the additional fees associated with refinancing. Closing costs, for example, include the appraisal fee, title services, and attorney fee. As mentioned above, buyers can expect to pay 2% to 5% of the loan principal amount in closing costs.

So even if mortgage rates do actually drop 1% to 2%, crunch the numbers and decide if refinancing would even save you enough money to make it worthwhile.

History shows us that buying more house than you can afford is a terrible idea. So if you can only swing a house purchase because you’re banking on refinancing in a few years, take a step back.

“You shouldn’t buy the house if a refi is essential,” Chambers says. “It’s possible that there will be no rate decrease over the life of the loan.”

Today’s buyers should monitor mortgage rates and consult with a mortgage broker to make an informed decision on the loan that’s right for them.

Related Links

• Here’s what the Federal Reserve’s 25 basis point interest rate hike means for your money

• What old sitcoms reveal about America’s rising cost of housing

• 10 Surprising Cities Where New-Home Construction Is Booming

If there is a home that you would like more information about, if you are considering selling a property, or if you have questions about the housing market in your neighborhood, please reach out. We’re here to help.

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What old sitcoms reveal about America’s rising cost of housing

Carrie Bradshaw’s life on “Sex and The City” wasn’t quite as unrealistic as you might think.

There’s no way she could have afforded routine purchases of Manolo Blahnik shoes and designer dresses on her estimated ~$60k-$70k salary as a freelance New York City magazine columnist. But her ability to afford her apartment, a West Village alcove studio, wasn’t so far-fetched in the late 1990s.  

Classified ads from the time showed West Village studios for as low as $1k per month. Even a fancy Lower Manhattan studio with a doorman went for ~$2.2k/month on average.

But as rents have skyrocketed beyond incomes, there’s no way a modern-day Carrie Bradshaw could afford to live alone in the West Village.

• The average rent for a Manhattan studio last month was ~$3.1k, and West Village studios go from ~$3k-$4k+. 

• The median freelance journalist in New York City makes ~$69k annually, according to ZipRecruiter, offering less purchasing power than what Bradshaw made more than two decades ago. 

As millions of Americans stream “Sex and the City” and other old sitcoms, warm nostalgia has been accompanied by a cold dose of skepticism about the characters’ apartments and houses. 

Were they paying far beyond their means, or are we judging with a 2020s perspective? 

The Hustle analyzed the salaries and living situations of several famous sitcom characters over the past few decades as a lens on today’s housing market.

What we found is that not every sitcom was a fantasy. But with many young people priced out of cities, and average families unable to buy homes, it just feels that way today. 

Income vs. housing costs

When sitcoms began populating the airwaves, housing costs — both for homeownership and rent — tended to rise in tandem with income and wages. From 1960 to 1970, US median household income barely lagged growth in median rent and actually exceeded the increase in median home sales prices.     

But the trends began to change after the ’70s. 

• In 1970, the median home sales price in the US was ~$23k ($161k in 2021 values), and the median gross rent was $108 ($756). The median household income back then was ~$9k (~$63k). 

• By 2021, the median home sales price had increased 18x to ~$424k, the median gross rent 11x to ~$1.2k, and the median household income 7.7x to ~$69k.

The increases in recent years have been particularly dramatic. Housing prices climbed steadily in the early 2000s, cooled during the Great Recession, and rose by ~24% in the 2010s, compared to a ~17% rise in income, adjusted for inflation.

And then came the wild pandemic housing market, when the median sales price jumped ~39% from mid-2020 to mid-2022. 

The run-up in housing prices has led more people to rent, but rent increases, too, are crushing — outpacing inflation and income growth since 2001. In 2022, cities like Boston and Miami saw rents rise ~20%-40% YoY. 

Keep reading on The Hustle.

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If there is a home that you would like more information about, if you are considering selling a property, or if you have questions about the housing market in your neighborhood, please reach out. We’re here to help.

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Here’s what the Federal Reserve’s 25 basis point interest rate hike means for your money

The Federal Reserve raised the target federal funds rate by a modest 0.25 percentage points on Wednesday, after nearly two weeks of turmoil in the financial industry.

Still, this marks the ninth consecutive increase in one year since the central bank began the current rate-raising cycle to combat rising prices.  

Over the last 12 months, inflation spiked to a 40-year high and then finally started to ease, but all of that monetary policy tightening has been tied to issues that are causing a banking crisis now.

In the meantime, consumers must pay more to borrow while continuing to grapple with a persistently high cost of living — all while suffering a crisis of confidence when it comes to their savings.

What the federal funds rate means to you

“The bank problems are probably making a lot of people think twice,” said Diana Furchtgott-Roth, an economics professor at George Washington University and former chief economist at the Department of Labor. “People are not as confident,” she said, referring to the wealth effect, or the theory that people spend less when they feel less well-off than they did before.

For its part, the Federal Reserve has been trying to rein in inflation by raising its benchmark rate.

The federal funds rate is the interest rate at which banks borrow and lend to one another overnight. But that also influences consumers’ borrowing costs, either directly or indirectly, including their credit card, mortgage and auto loan rates.  

How higher rates can affect your wallet

1. Credit cards

Since most credit cards have a variable rate, there’s a direct connection to the Fed’s benchmark. As the federal funds rate rises, the prime rate does, as well, and your credit card rate follows suit within one or two billing cycles.

Credit card annual percentage rates are now over 20%, on average, up from 16.3% a year ago, according to Bankrate. At the same time, more cardholders carry debt from month to month as Americans, in general, feel increasingly worse off financially.

A 0% balance transfer credit card is “about the best tool available for those with credit card debt,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree. Otherwise, consumers could consolidate and pay off a high-interest revolving balance with a lower-interest personal loan.

Even if monthly payments remain the same, consolidating $10,000 of credit card debt into a personal loan could save borrowers up to $3,000, LendingTree recently found.

2. Home loans

Although 15-year and 30-year mortgage rates are fixed, and tied to Treasury yields and the economy, anyone shopping for a new home has lost considerable purchasing power, partly because of inflation and the Fed’s policy moves.

The average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage currently sits at 6.66%, up from 4.40% when the Fed started raising rates last March.

Other home loans are more closely tied to the Fed’s actions. Adjustable-rate mortgages, or ARMs, and home equity lines of credit, or HELOCs, are pegged to the prime rate. Most ARMs adjust once a year after an initial fixed-rate period. But a HELOC adjusts right away. Already, the average rate for a HELOC is up to 7.76% from 3.96% a year ago.

Homebuyers can greatly benefit from shopping around for additional rate quotes, according to Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.

“Our research concludes that homebuyers can potentially save $600 to $1,200 annually by taking the time to shop among multiple lenders.”

3. Auto loans

Even though auto loans are fixed, payments are getting bigger because the price for all cars is rising along with the interest rates on new loans, so if you are planning to buy a car, you’ll shell out more in the months ahead.

The average interest rate on a five-year new car loan is now 6.48%, up from 4% one year ago.

The Fed’s latest move could push up the average interest rate even higher, right at a time when borrowers are already struggling to keep up with bigger monthly loan payments.

Experts say consumers with higher credit scores may be able to secure better loan terms or look to some used car models for better deals.

It’s also important to shop around. Car buyers could also save an average of $5,198 by choosing the offer with the lowest APR over the one with the highest, according to another recent report. 

4. Student loans

Federal student loan rates are also fixed, so most borrowers won’t be immediately affected by a rate hike. If you are about to borrow money for college, the interest rate on federal student loans taken out for the 2022-23 academic year already rose to 4.99%, up from 3.73% last year, and any loans disbursed after July 1 will likely be even higher.

If you have a private loan, those loans may be fixed or have a variable rate tied to the Libor, prime or T-bill rates, which means that as the central bank raises rates, borrowers will likely pay more in interest, although how much more will vary by the benchmark.

For now, anyone with existing federal education debt will benefit from rates at 0% until the payment pause ends, which the Education Department expects to happen sometime this year.

Savings accounts and CDs

While the Fed has no direct influence on deposit rates, the rates tend to be correlated to changes in the target federal funds rate. The savings account rates at some of the largest retail banks, which were near rock-bottom for years, are currently up to 0.35%, on average.

Thanks, in part, to lower overhead expenses, top-yielding online savings account rates are as high as 5.02%, much higher than last year’s 0.75% and significantly more than the average rate from a traditional, brick-and-mortar bank, according to Bankrate.

Rates on one-year certificates of deposit at online banks are also now over 5%, according to DepositAccounts.com.

“Returns on savings accounts and CDs are the best in 15 years,”  said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com, but “you have to shop around to get the benefit.”

Although most savers don’t need to worry about the security of their cash at the bank, since no depositor has lost FDIC-insured funds due to a bank failure, any money earning less than the rate of inflation still loses purchasing power over time.

Learn more on CNBC.

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• 10 Surprising Cities Where New-Home Construction Is Booming

If there is a home that you would like more information about, if you are considering selling a property, or if you have questions about the housing market in your neighborhood, please reach out. We’re here to help.

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