Selling Your House? Try Staging It

Staging a house can be the difference between its sitting or selling. Here are some findings and simple staging tips to help turn lookers into buyers at your next open house.

Studies have shown that staged homes sell quicker - sometimes up to 40% faster - than non-staged homes. Simply stated, staged homes sell faster for more money than those that aren't staged.

Three basic staging rules:

1. Entice buyers to enter. If people don't like what they see on the outside, they may not come in. Doors are the one exception to the neutral-color rule. Rich colors say "welcome" and "come inside." Some suggestions: red, black, charcoal and chocolate brown.
2. Curb appeal to sell a house. Curb appeal is 360 degrees around a house - and includes the neighbors and the neighborhood. Sellers should focus first on what they can control, especially landscaping outdoor spaces and lighting. Sadly, many sellers skip this obvious step and lose equity - and many prospective buyers - as a direct result.
3. Clobber the clutter. Go room by room and purge. Get rid of anything personal.

Hiring a professional home stager has great benefits to any seller. The seller doesn't have to spend every night and weekend trying to get the house ready for people to see. The seller can continue with their normal routine and have one less thing to worry about.

Consider this simple rule of thumb, the investment in staging your home will always be less than the first price reduction on your home if you don't stage it and it just sits on the market.

Grills Gone Wild

With summertime temperatures hovering around the century mark in many parts of the country, outdoor grilling becomes a big favorite, even if it does seem hot enough to grill right on your sidewalk.

Everyone is looking for the "grill of their dreams"… but it's important to know what you're comparing when shopping for grills. As Money Editor Stacy Johnson explains, "Not all grills are created equal."

This video runs 1:13…. 

Housing Market: Can It Really Get Any Worse?

An even gloomier scenario may be in store for an already ailing U.S. housing market if the overall economy slips into a recession, according to UBS Securities analysts.

Falling home prices, soaring foreclosures at a time of tighter lending and rising unemployment are all weighing heavily on an already troubled housing sector, the analysts said during a conference call recently.

Lack of funding is the biggest problem facing the housing market right now, according to the analysts, with subprime and Alt-A securitized markets shutting down and banks being forced to cut their mortgage lending dramatically due to capital constraints. So-called Alt-A loans are made to borrowers with less than prime credit ratings but who are above subprime.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have also cut back their lending to stressed subprime and Alt-A borrowers with low incomes and high loan-to-value ratios.

Foreclosures, which have been building over recent months as borrowers default on risky subprime home loans, are not expected to peak until late 2008 to mid-2009.

So where do you see the housing market? We'd love to hear your opinion. Use the comment link below to sound off about it. Your email address will not be published here, even though it is required in order to post your comment.

Tips for Homeowners Nearing Foreclosure

Some homeowners who are three months to a year behind on their mortgages have chosen to leave their homes altogether. Anyone can walk away from a house — even a retired baseball great, Jose Canseco, who abandoned his Encino (Calif.) property earlier this year.

But attractive as "just walking away" may seem to a homeowner at the end of his or her financial tether, leaving a property to the mortgage-holder or other interested parties carries a serious credit risk and significant legal responsibility.

We've touched on this topic several times in the past on this blog, but wanted to hit it again to help some who may be thinking in the wrong direction.

It's a good idea to call the person you may least want to talk to: The lender. Cash-strapped homeowners can get forbearance from their lender if they act early. This agreement reduces or suspends the mortgage payment for a limited time, giving homeowners a temporary reprieve.

A forbearance is not the same as loan forgiveness. Ultimately the mortgage payments have to be reinstated, and anywhere from three to six months of missed payments have to be accounted for. The very lucky — and reasonably well-off — can pay off the amount accumulated during forbearance in one lump sum. But for those who still find themselves in short-term financial trouble, most lenders offer specialized payment plans in which the borrower agrees to add a portion of the missed payments to the mortgage until the account is current.

Speaking directly to a lender seems logical enough. But surprisingly, homeowners who struggle and fail to meet their mortgage payments month after month rarely contact their lenders. And the further they fall behind, the less likely they are to reach out for help.

We've said this before, and we say it again now.  Walking away from a mortgage severely damages your credit and is not a good solution. If you're in trouble, TALK TO YOUR LENDER!

There are other ways to solve things and prevent ruining your financial future as opposed to walking away from your mortgage. Talk to us. We'll help you in any way we can with ideas and suggestions you can try.

Finding a Retirement Community

Finding the right spot to retire can mean the difference between golden years and bronze ones. Our Money Editor, Stacy Johnson, looks at the idea of finding the right place to retire now while you're still working. Besides, prices may never be as low again as they are right now, so you could save some money by thinking ahead. The video runs 1:34.
 

Have any comments or suggestions to add about finding the right retirement location? We'd welcome your comment by clicking on the "comment" link below.