Posts with tag home inspections

John and Jessie Bates thought they were living the American dream when they bought their first home in Suquamish, Wash., in March 2007. That was until they and their 7-year-old son, Tyler, began getting sick shortly after moving in. Over the course of a year-and-a-half, strange smells began to fill the home, Tyler... Continue Reading »

Unless you've been living in a cave for the past five years, word surely must have reached you that home values have been declining for a while. Yet 42 percent of the people polled by Zillow recently said they thought home values appreciate by 7 percent a year. Really, people? Even in a normal market, typical appreciation... Continue Reading »

Selling your home can make you feel like you're living in a fishbowl, with potential buyers and real estate agents evaluating, judging and otherwise picking apart the place you've called home for years. Just before the actual sale comes the most intense scrutiny of all: the home inspection. A pre-sale home inspection is... Continue Reading »

With the spring homebuying season rapidly approaching, home inspections are a must -- for the seller. "If you have maintained your home while living there it will be a smoother [buyer's] inspection," says Bryan Felder, a broker with The Virginia Realty Group in Chantilly, Va. It's not a bad idea to do a home inspection... Continue Reading »

Suni and Ashwin Raghu are under contract on a four-bedroom, 2.5-bath home in Long Hill, N.J.. The expectant parents, who looked at close to 70 homes in the course of their search over the past three months, were a bit surprised to find themselves at this juncture. Six months ago, says Ashwin, they didn't think they were... Continue Reading »

A thorough home inspection is a critical step in the home-buying process, which is one reason that it's typically thought of as something the buyer has to do. There are, however, a few things that a seller can do to make the process smoother and ensure that a property... Continue Reading »

San Francisco resident Mike S. thought he had a handle on the costs associated with home buying. Down payment -- check. Mortgage -- check. HOA dues -- huh? "The dreaded homeowner association dues," as he calls them, would add hundreds of dollars to his monthly nut, an outlay he hadn't figured when he calculated his home... Continue Reading »

A portable thermal imaging device that uses an infrared camera to spot temperature differentials around a house is being touted in some real estate circles as the hottest trend in home purchases. But HousingWatch spoke to a variety of real estate professionals who say the devices are costly and not likely to replace... Continue Reading »