Tips for Tax-Savvy Homeowners

By Anya Martin October 7th, 2015 With nearly three months left in 2015, jumbo-mortgage borrowers can make tweaks to cut their tax bill in April Illustration: Chris Gash Autumn chores: raking leaves, weatherproofing, storing the patio furniture and preparing for next year’s tax returns. With nearly three months left in the year, jumbo-mortgage borrowers still

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Love It and Lease It: Rent-to-Own Luxury Homes

By: Anya Martin September 9, 2015 Signing a lease option helps jumbo-mortgage borrowers save for a higher down payment, get their credit history in order and lock in on their dream-home purchase Illustration: Chris Gash A rent-to-own luxury home may help potential homeowners buy some time before it’s buying time. For potential jumbo-mortgage borrowers, a

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How Much Home Can You Buy With Your Income?

Miller Samuel President and CEO Jonathan Miller discusses the U.S. housing market. Bloomberg Intelligence’s Carl Riccadonna also speaks on “Bloomberg Surveillance.” (Source: Bloomberg)    

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Rent-to-Own vs. Credit Cards: Which Costs Less?

By Allie Johnson “Renting to own furniture, appliances or even car hubcaps —  that’s the newest  thing — is a bad idea,” says Ed Mierzwinski, federal  consumer program director  for the nonprofit advocacy organization U.S. Public  Interest Research Group.  Rent-to-own is a type of predatory lending, he says.  “The business model is to  promise ownership,

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Before Becoming a Landlord, Add Up Costs

ANYA MARTIN One of life’s luxuries is being able to afford a vacation home. But don’t underestimate its true cost—especially if you plan to rent it out… Doug Lebda, chief executive of Lending Tree, made a bigger down payment and pays higher interest rates because he plans to rent out the $960,000 beach condo he

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Q & A: The Inquiring Mind- Renting Only to People with Paying Jobs, New York Housing Journal

I want to adopt a policy of renting only to people who have paying jobs. Is this considered a violation of any fair housing laws?

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A Guide to When to Pay Rent, or Not, After Hurricane Sandy

By Adam Leitman Bailey One of the most frequently asked questions about life in a Sandy-affected building has been this: do tenants of buildings in Zone A need to pay their rent for the time they’ve been evacuated? We offered some preliminary advice on this over the weekend, and we’ve since reached out to real

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Difficult to Believe Which Is Cheaper: Housing Markets: Renting Vs. Owning

  by  Russell Legato, Residential Property Analyst Situations in the housing markets: renting vs. owning is more expensive in some parts of the country, but, cheaper in others. Seattle is one such place. In fact, the monthly rent is an average of $377 lower than it would cost to live in the same house and

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Rejection From A Co-Op Board Can Sometimes Be Reversed

Jill Urban Rejection From A Co-Op Board Can Sometimes Be Reversed Article http://www.ny1.com Let’s say you find the perfect apartment in a co-op, submit a board package, go on the interview and are promptly turned down. Most people lick their wounds and move on, but many do not realize they still may have a chance.

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Condo Nation: Why So Few Americans Are Buying Homes

John Melloy Condo Nation: Why So Few Americans Are Buying Homes Article http://www.cnbc.com/ “People are moving out of Mom and Dad’s basement finally, but they are renting or buying apartments rather than homes,” said Jeffrey Greenberg, an economist with Nomura Securities International. “You have to assume another three to five years before the whole housing

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