Fall Home Maintenance Tips – Keeping Warm/Doors & Windows
We will be passing on a series of tips to help you transition your home and yard to the fall season. We will cover the following in a series of blog posts: ~ Home Exterior ~ Keeping Warm/Doors and Windows ~ ~ Gardens ~ Lawn Care ~ Attic Pest Control ~ ~ Carbon Monoxide and Smoke Detectors ~ In our last article, we covered “Your Home’s Exterior” in our last post. Now let’s talk about how to keep warm this fall in your home. Keeping Warm Have your wood-burning fireplace inspected, cleaned and repaired to prevent chimney fires and carbon monoxide poisoning. Wrap water pipes that run along exterior walls with heating tape. It will save energy and prevent them from freezing. Clean and replace...
Read MoreBuying a Home? Here are some Mistakes to Avoid:
Exciting and overwhelming These are two emotions often experienced when buying a home. Even more so if you are a first time home buyer. If you’ve already started the search process, make sure you’re not making some common mistakes. Your upcoming investment could end up being a bad decision if you overlook some important facts about home ownership and sign that contract before you’re really ready. Here are some key and common mistakes first time home buyers need to avoid: Mistake #1 – Searching for the dream home before getting pre-qualified for a loan Save yourself the disappointment of not being able to afford the home of your dreams by getting pre-qualified for your loan before you start house hunting. Instead of...
Read MoreLittle to No Money Down Mortgages Are Still Available!
There is so much talk these days concerning the added income, assets and higher credit score it takes to qualify for a mortgage. Perhaps one of the most misunderstood conceptions out there today suggests home buyers will need at least 20 percent down to qualify for a mortgage. That could not be further from the truth. The truth is, home loans are still available with little to no money down. There are several ways to get a little to no money down home loan. USDA Rural Housing programs, VA loans for veterans, and FHA mortgages are some of these programs Here is a rundown of the USDA program and what is required. USDA Rural Development Home Loans USDA loans are 100 percent zero-down mortgages designed to make it easier for people to buy homes in rural areas of the...
Read MoreHow Do I Know if a Home is Located in USDA Financing Territory?
The USDA provides an interactive map where you can either type in a specific address or view an eligibility map for a general area. You will find that most of Indiana is eligible for USDA financing! The interactive map below is a little more user friendly the maps of days gone by! We hope you’ll find the following helpful… Here’s how to use the map: Click here to be directed to the USDA eligibility map. Click “Single Family Housing” (under “Property Eligibility”) “Accept” the terms Type in the address of the property you want to check OR Zoom in on the map to the general area you are wanting to research Feel free to contact us should you have more questions regarding USDA...
Read MoreSpring Cleaning Tips for Your Home
Spring has sprung! Most people deep clean their homes this time of year. After months of winter weather conditions and your home being sealed tight, spring is a welcome reprieve! It brings fresh air, warmer temps and new grass and flowers to our yards! If you are like many others, you are probably gearing up for your annual spring cleaning of your home or apartment. Following are some tips to help make the process a bit smoother: Before you start the cleaning: Set aside at least a week for a thorough spring cleaning. Work from one end of your house to the other. No need to cram the whole thing into one weekend. That’s enough to stress anyone out! Plan on one room a day. Plan some easy meals for the days you will spend cleaning. Consider using your slow...
Read MoreDo Zero-Down Mortgages Still Exist?
It’s just not like it used to be! That applies to many situations… include mortgages. There is so much talk these days concerning income, assets and higher credit score it takes to qualify for a mortgage. Perhaps one of the most misunderstood conceptions out there today suggests homebuyers will always need at least 20 percent down to qualify for a mortgage. That could not be further from the truth. The truth is, home loans are still available with no money down. There are several ways to get a zero-down home loan. USDA Rural Housing programs, VA loans for veterans, and FHA mortgages combined with down payment assistance all achieve the zero-down objective. Here is a rundown of the USDA program and what is required. USDA Rural Development Home...
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