Home Buying Tips 8 misconceptions about mortgages If you’re in the market for a new home and have done some research into what it takes to get a home loan, you may already know that navigating the world of mortgages without guidance from an expert can be a major headache. It’s like wading through a sea of confusing financial jargon with all […]
Home Buying Tips Is springtime really the best time to buy a home? Everything goes through upheaval in the Spring. That’s an old saying describing farming and gardening, but it holds true for new homebuyers, too. Spring is when the whole world wakes up from a winter nap and people start to feel like they need to put down new roots. Depending on where you live, the home-buying […]
Home Buying Tips The ins and outs of a top-to-bottom home inspection During the height of the pandemic, when people were moving homes fast and furiously, some people bought homes sight unseen – with a virtual walk-through as their only basis for making an offer. This was somewhat common when families relocated some distance away, like to another state or cross country. Others may have gone to […]
Home Buying Tips 6 questions renters should ask when applying for a mortgage We’ve written this blog for you if: you’ve grown out of your apartment you’re tired of paying rent and watching it land in someone else’s pocket rather than your own you have no idea what goes into buying your first home Let’s face it, anyone buying a home for the first time is in unfamiliar […]
Market Update 2023 housing market spurred by mixed bag of economic data Another round of positive economic data let investors breathe a sigh of relief that the Federal Reserve may have reason to significantly slow down its quantitative tightening measures. The latest consumer price index (CPI) showed inflation cooled off slightly with a 0.1% month-over-month decrease. On an annual basis, the price of consumer goods rose by […]
Home Buying Tips 7 upsides to buying a home over the winter Most Americans start househunting in earnest in the spring and move into new homes between May and September. While taking all this on in the dead of winter might not sound appealing, buying a home during the cooler months may have some advantages. Here are seven great reasons to consider buying a home in the […]
Home Buying Tips Assembling your homebuying dream team? Here’s who does what. Considering purchasing a home in 2023? You’ll need to form a team — a real estate agent and a loan officer to help you get into your new home as quickly as possible. But the last thing you want is to waste time duplicating effort — or worse — skipping essential steps in the home […]
Home Buying Tips 4 tips to help you save for a house while you wait out the market Inflation, which we’ve all been feeling the pinch from over the last six months, has a powerful influence on where mortgage rates go. And historically, when inflation eases up a little, so will mortgage rates. That’s the good news, but when you add in the remarkable pandemic-related increase in home prices and that the US […]
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Home Maintenance Tips 9 more end-of-summer chores new homeowners should not ignore! That was quick! We’ve moved from Labor Day picnics to Halloween planning! With summer weather in the rearview mirror (for most of the USA, at least), it might be a good time to bring your home back to tip-top condition so you and your family can comfortably (and proudly) nest in it all winter long.  […]
Home Buying Tips 7 habits to adopt to get ready to buy a home We recently devoured the book Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything by BJ Fogg, Ph.D., who writes, “Take a behavior you want, make it tiny, find where it fits naturally in your life, and nurture its growth.”  Simple enough. Fogg’s book is a grounded guide to building new habits, sustaining them and making positive changes […]
Home Maintenance Tips Late summer means it’s time for our cold-weather outdoor prep checklist Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but summer is going to be winding down soon. Although summer is officially here until  Thursday, September 22, summer temps will linger on for much longer in vast parts of the country. But those of us who live up north a bit are starting to think about […]
Home Buying Tips How much of your salary should go towards a home loan? There are two ways to go about planning to buy your dream house. You can look at your salary and estimate how much house you can afford based on what you earn every month. You can take a look at the type of house you’re dreaming of and estimate how much income you’ll need to […]
Market Update Recession, inflation and normalization It looks like the mortgage industry might finally be on a path to normalization. The latest Freddie Mac 30-year fixed-rate mortgage average came in at 5.3%—that’s a half percent lower over the last two weeks. That drop did little to spur more mortgage activity, which might actually be a good thing. Mortgage demand has slowed […]
Home Buying Tips Managing Moving Costs: Tips for First-Time Homebuyers Many first-time homebuyers are so focused on saving up for a down payment of closing costs that they forget that there are also costs (which can be pretty hefty, by the way) that come with getting your stuff from your old home to your new home. Whether you’re moving down the block, from the city […]
Home Buying Tips Yes, you can buy a home if you have student loans! It costs more to get a college education than any other time in American history. Unfortunately, that’s forcing students to take out multiple loans to cover their expenses. Bigger loans — and more of them — means it takes the average graduate much longer to pay off their student debt. And that, sadly, is causing […]
Home Buying Tips Buying a home? Avoid these 3 home loan hiccups For many people — especially first-time homebuyers — the process of buying a home can seem a little off-putting. To the unaware, it can look as if a huge financial fire-pit will swallow up unsuspecting newbies, especially if they don’t have a guiding hand. While it’s not that dramatic in real life, there is a […]
Godwyn Realty Updates ERA® REAL ESTATE BOLSTERS SOUTHERN LOUISIANA PRESENCE WITH AFFILIATION OF GODWYN REALTY ERA POWERED ERA® REAL ESTATE BOLSTERS SOUTHERN LOUISIANA PRESENCE WITH AFFILIATION OF GODWYN REALTY | ERA POWERED   Popular Television Personality Brittany Picolo-Ramos Joins the ERA Network  MADISON, N.J., March 23, 2022 — ERA® Real Estate, a global franchising leader within the Realogy family of brands, announced today that Godwyn Realty, based in New Orleans, La., has affiliated with the ERA® brand. […]
Home Buying Tips 7 Homebuyer Tips for Coping with Low Inventory in a Seller’s Market Many families have found their savings accounts a little fatter over the last two years, thanks to remote working, less commuting and more cooking at home versus dining out. If that sounds like you, and you’re in the market to buy a new home, you might find that new construction fits — maybe for the […]
Client Success Stories A Match Made in Heaven – First-Time Home Buyers Story!   Moving to New Orleans from out of town, Murray & Whitney were ready to make the jump and buy their first home!  After interviewing two other agents, they found Joel Picolo through Zillow and met up for a Buyer’s Consultation!  Joel asked what their home goals were and what exactly they were looking for […]
Home Buying Tips How rising interest rates affect potential homebuyers Mortgage interest rates are grabbing headlines and rightfully so. There was a significant jump in rates recently with Freddie Mac’s latest 30-year fixed-rate mortgage average hitting 3.45%. As Freddie Mac’s economists note, this was due in large part to actions taken by the Federal Reserve. In a statement, Freddie Mac economists note, “Mortgage rates rose […]