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How Do I Refinance my Home?

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How Do I Refinance my Home?

This seems to be a common question among homeowners as interest rates are at an all-time low. Many Americans are currently scrambling to try and figure out exactly what they need to do in order to refinance and lock in a better rate than the one they may currently have. Luckily refinancing your home is a lot easier than you may think. Try following these steps to ensure you have a successful and stress-free refi!

Related: What is Earnest Money and How Much do I Need?

Step 1: Refinancing Options

There are a few different options when it comes to refinancing. Rates, terms, and cash-out options should all be discussed with your lender to ensure you are getting the option that suits your personal needs.

Related: Can a cash-out refinance help reduce debt?

Step 2: Finalize Your Rate

You will want to lock in your rate as soon as possible so that you don’t have to worry about a last-minute change taking place. Rates can change daily pending on the current market, which is why it is vital to lock your rate in immediately. Even with a locked rate, rest assured you can still make changes to your applications or change the structure of your loan if needed.

Related: How to Be a Mortgage Lender’s Favorite Client

Step 3: Documentation

The type of documents you may be required to submit will vary from lender to lender, however, the general documents you can expect to be asked for include, but are not limited to, tax returns, W2s, bank statements, as well as any child support or alimony payments.

Step 4: Underwriting

During this step your documents will be reviewed and any additional needed documents will be requested. You may also be required to disclose and explain any revolving debt such as credit cards that weren’t recently provided in your statements, or were recently opened. This is the time to ask any and all questions if you have them.

Related: 5 Hidden Costs When Buying a Home

Step 5: Approval

Your approval to refinance takes place once all of your documents have been reviewed, generally speaking this only takes a few business days, however, with more complicated loan terms you may be waiting up to two weeks. At this time, you will be contacted with your approval notification and will then work to set a closing date for the new loan start date. 

Step 6: Closing

Now that your loan has been approved and documents have been submitted it is time for you to review and sign your disclosures. Viola! Now that you’ve signed the disclosures you have officially completed your refinance.

The time it takes to refinance a home varies pending on each lender, however, if you are hoping to refinance your home as soon as possible make sure that you stay on top of the requests sent to you for documentation, questions, or signatures to help the refinancing process move both smoother and faster.

For more information on selling, purchasing, or refinancing real estate, please feel free to contact our office at any time.

 

 

Accent Walls that Add Value

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Accent Walls that Add Value

As a homeowner one of the things that brings the most pleasure is adding value to your home. This can be done in a million different ways, but the ways that seem to be the most enjoyable are when you can visually see the difference in the upgrade. 2020 has brought many challenges, however, it has given homeowners more time to be at home which has resulted in lots of DIY and home improvement projects. Accent walls seem to be a statement piece that aren’t going to be going anywhere anytime soon, and if done correctly, can add value and visual appeal to your home.

Related: Making your Home the Best on the BlockAccent Walls that Add Value

There are hundreds of different styles and ideas when it comes to adding an accent wall to your home, however there are three that are currently the most coveted, and most value boosting within today’s markets.

Reclaimed wood has been a highlight for the last decade, however, the lighter wood finishes have only become more popular within the last few years. Instead of a dark stained wood, try a light finish, or even white washed wood to create a full reclaimed wood accent wall. This statement piece is sure to be jaw dropping and command attention from everyone who sees it. In addition to its beauty, by using a lighter or white washed wood you are also brightening the room allowing it to feel airy and whimsical. This is the perfect addition to any beach home and you can even create driftwood shelving units to play on the wall and add to the wood/beach theme.

External: 4 Important Upgrades Sellers Should Make Before Listing

If reclaimed wood isn’t your cup of tea, exposed brick is becoming more and more popular. Much like with the wood, lighter is better. While some more metropolitan towns are in love with the classic red bricks, beachy and small towns have fallen in love with painted brick walls. Try light neutral tones to not only brighten up the space, but add a one of a kind brick accent wall. This will give your home a rustic chic look that will be coveted by all. Try getting a brick drill and add in some floating glass shelves to give the wall an extra pop.

Related: This One Thing Might Decrease your Home’s Value

As with any home improvement, you should always plan out your ideas prior to execution, so be sure to think through the project before starting to ensure you have all the material needed to complete the accent wall of your dreams.

For more information on boosting your home’s value, to browse current homes for sale, or for any real estate needs, please contact my office at any time. 

External Related: Top Renovations for 2020

 

10 Spring Cleaning Tasks to Complete While Staying at Home

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10 Spring Cleaning Tasks to Complete While Staying at Home

This is a weird time right now and we all are in it together, which is a little bit comforting, but you might be starting to go stir crazy and if so, now is the time to roll up your sleeves and do a little spring cleaning. Here are 10 spring cleaning tasks to complete while staying at home.

Wipe down or spray all electronic devices, remote controls, handles, stairwell rails, windowsills, refrigerator handles, cabinet handles, and pretty much any other thing your hands touch on a regular basis. Don’t forget the underneath side.

Sweep or vacuum under all couches and chairs. This is often the place that gets forgotten a lot.

Clean out the garage and throw away or organize a lot of the clutter that fills up your garage during the winter.

Put all of your reusable grocery bags in the washing machine.

Disinfect, clean, or put your shower curtains in the washing machine.

Clean all of your cutting boards by rubbing a cut lemon all over them and sprinkle with salt or baking soda for a stronger clean, better scent, and to combat stains.

Clean out your refrigerator. Wipe down the interior and all the shelving with white vinegar.

Clean out and organize your junk drawers.

Vacuum your furniture and underneath the cushions.

Wipe down blinds and ceiling fan blades.

Reorganize bookshelves.

Wash, spray, and clean kids toys and if they are safe, put them in the dishwasher without the heated dry option.

Clean out your dishwasher and the washing machine.

More: 10 Tricks to Get the Most Out of a Small Closet

If we try to keep busy, who knows, at the end of all this will have sparkling clean homes to impress our friends… That is, when we’re allowed to see the big kid. Stay safe out there and stay home!

Related: 14 Spring Cleaning Tasks Not to Miss

10 Ways to Make a Small Space Seem Larger

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Staging a small room or home can be a bit challenging and while you don’t want to deceive buyers, you can do a few tricks of the trade to make space seem or feel larger than it actually is. No one likes to feel cramped or crowded so if you’re staging your home for sale or just want to expand your own space a little more, use these simple tips to make a small space appear larger.  

10 Ways to Make a Small Space Seem Larger

Paint or wallpaper the ceiling to make the room look taller.

You want your eyes to draw up boards, which in turn, will make the room feel larger.

Stick to light tones and colors on the wall and the floor.

Darker colors can make a room seem smaller and more closed in.

Pull furniture away from the wall.

Keeping the furniture right up against the wall can make things look and feel cramped. By pulling things away from the wall it shows that there is additional space and may give you extra room to hide things.

Read More: Home improvements that quickly add value

Make furniture work double duty.

Make use of hidden storage and double duty items by using Ottomans and coffee tables as additional storage.

Remember the rule of three.

Keep decorations and knickknacks in sets of three and keep things larger than a cantaloupe. Small knickknacks and items may actually crowd a room.

Use stripes and rugs.10 Ways to Make a Small Space Seem Larger

A striped rug can make a room appear longer as long as you orient the stripes the length of the room for optimal effect.

Use furniture with exposed legs.

Furniture that does all the way to the floor makes it look bulky and crowded.

Read More: Staging has decreased time on market

Use mirrors and glass.

You can strategically placed mirrors to create the illusion of more space and subsequently, glass items will make it feel like there is more room as well.

Use lighting to your advantage.

You can say floor space by hanging smaller lighting from the ceilings or create a sense of more space by doing away with overhead lighting altogether.

Use a larger art piece rather than a bunch of small pieces.

Always go up and out when you can to give the illusion of a larger space.

Whether you are selling your small house or condominium or just looking to make the room feel larger, these 10 tips will certainly help get you started.

What’s Your Home Worth Today?

Getting Ready to Buy? Do This First

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If 2017 is going to be your year to buy a house, whether it’s your first home or you are a repeat buyer, you can start to get your finances in order now so that when it does come time to buy you ready to go.Getting Ready to Buy? Do This First

We want all of our buyers to be comfortable when they purchase their home. Being stressed, over budget, and nervous about finances is not a good way to enter homeownership. There are three main things that potential homebuyers need to concern themselves with if they’re planning on buying this year.

#1. Understanding and getting a good grasp on their credit history and report.

Order a copy of your credit history and report from one of the three major credit reporting agencies, Experian, Trans Union, or Equifax. You can also get a copy through your local bank. Any of these reports will be very similar so you want to look for errors, mistakes, outstanding balances, collection notices, or anything that looks out of the ordinary. Clean up your credit history and report the best you can, which could take a month or two depending on the errors or issues therein. Try to increase your credit score to at least 680 by paying your bills on time, paying off debt but leaving available credit on credit card so that it shows you have additional credit available, and paying down as much debt as possible.

Read more:  5 Important Things to Know About Buying Near Water

#2. Save a little bit of money.

You will need an earnest money deposit and a down payment as well as inspection costs when purchasing a house. If you are a repeat buyer you might be able to use the equity when you sell your existing home and turn around and put it as the down payment to your new house but if this is your first time buying you’ll need a substantial down payment. FHA loans require 3.5% down and conventional loans need at least 10%. Talk to your lender about the different options when it comes to loans. An earnest money deposit is typically 1% to 3% of the purchase price of the house so you want this in liquid cash in order to hold the offer on the house. You also need money for the home inspection, which can range anywhere from $300-$800 depending on the type of inspection and the inspection agency.

Read more: A Buyer’s Agent Can Save You Thousands

#3. Try to stay calm and patient.

Finding the best house for your needs and your budget may have been in a day or it might happen over the next six months. By preparing now you’ll be ready to jump on the right house when it hits the market. Make sure you know what you want in a house, have your debt to income ratio below 43% and try to stay unemotional during the negotiation process.

Read more: How Long Does it Really Take to Buy a House?

Again, we want your home buying experience to be as stress-free and easy as possible, so by doing just these simple things you could be light years ahead of your competition. Call us today to get started or browse listings on our website for free.

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