According to the Community Associations Institute, more than 56 million Americans’ homes were governed by a homeowners’ association last year.

If you’ve never lived with a HOA before, an “association” can be a strange and even scary concept.

An association is a legal entity that takes care of what you and your neighbors [...]

Online home information is becoming a competitive business.

In addition to Zillow, HouseValues, realestateabc.com and a host of others, cyberhomes.com is now live. Each site attempts to provide information about home values across the country.

Thought they try, none of the automated valuation services can be 100% accurate. This [...]

Home warranties are increasingly popular with both buyers and sellers of real estate. Buyers get some peace of mind, knowing that home defects are insured even if the inspection doesn’t reveal it.

For the seller, a home warranty is an extra “add-on” to offer to buyers and to help a home stand out from [...]

“Curb appeal” can make all the difference when selling a home in a tough market.

Just like the people that live in them, homes never get a second chance to make a first impression. When a person looks at your home from the street, the hope is that they “feel good” about it.

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The appraisal of a home can be a bit frightening. After buyer and seller have agreed on a price and signed a contract, a mortgage lender will send an independent professional to verify that the price is “reasonable” and fair.

The appraisal process begins with a licensed appraiser making a thorough inspection of the home, [...]

There aren’t many better ways to declutter a home than with a garage sale.

This goes hand in hand with the real estate selling season, so if you are planning to sell your home any time within the next year you might want to clean it out now.

To get started, ask your neighbors [...]

The US Government Accountability Office has issued a report recommending changes to the way title insurance is sold.

These include informing consumers of their options because of two things:

The complicated relationships between title companies and real estate companies Title costs are often overlooked by home buyers

The report says that consumers find [...]

Looking for a special “fixer-upper”?

Many home buyers whose energy exceeds their checking accounts are doing just that. Buying homes in need of some TLC is a great way to get a lot of house for a relatively small amount of money.

“Sweat equity” isn't for everyone, but if you know you [...]

Pets are an important part of any home. Sometimes, the “fur children” are treated just like any other child.

No matter how important they are as a member of the family, though, their presence may not be appreciated when it comes time to sell your house.

The problem is that pets leave fur and [...]

The Mortgage Bankers Association reports that while mortgage refinance applications are declining, the applications for purchasing homes are increasing.

Overall, the applications for mortgages fell slightly. They are up over 10% from the same period last year, however. This is attributed to the increasing strength of the real estate market.

More than half of [...]