Home LoanThe holiday décor is down; neighborhood kids are back in school; January’s social calendar looks amazingly clear (compared with the previous two months, anyway)… so, what now? One suggestion I might offer: put some serious thought into acting on those financial New Year’s resolutions – at least the ones dealing with your Rehoboth Beach real estate plans.

Doing so would dovetail nicely with my own New Year’s prediction, one I share with many credible real estate watchers: 2013 is the year buyers and sellers are going to really get serious about real estate.

According to Money Magazine on CNN’s website, the housing market rebound is here. Among other sources, they site the Mortgage Bankers Association forecast that “more and more house hunters will…

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Antique Lewes HomeIf you live in a home built in the early 20th Century (or before), cold winter evenings can send visions of new homes dancing through your head. With floors that creak and windows that barely slow the icy gales of January, even the antique charm of your original wooden banisters can wear thin (most noticeably after your sister’s kid knocks another handrail loose).

But don’t despair. While new homes in Lewes may be a preferred investment for some buyers, duplicating the authenticity of your hand-hewn, turn-of-the-century Victorian is, quite simply, not possible. With the right specialists to help, keeping your original home in top repair might not be as time consuming or costly as some fear.

Original windows, for example (the kind famous for letting…

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There are advantages to buying a home during the winter months, aka "off season" here at the beach.

1. Less Competition. There is less competition from other buyers. Many buyers do not want to brave the icy roads where they live to venture south to the beach areas of Sussex County. This could translate into a good deal for you. 

2. More Time With Your REALTOR®.  Typically your Real Estate Agent is not as busy this time of year which translates into more time for you!

3. Ugly Ducklings. Some houses that are still on the market in January & February may have been on the market for a long time. This long market time could be for a variety of reasons including that the house was priced incorrectly or it could be that the house simply does not show very…

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It may be a fundamental element in nearly two-thirds of every residential real estate transaction, yet when you think about buying or selling a Coastal Delaware home, it’s not likely to be your major focus. Important though it may be, for most people, the appraisal process seems like a mere formality. After all, haven’t the seller and buyer already agreed to the deal? What’s left to do, other than dot the I’s and cross the T’s?

Of course, if you are a cash buyer, you can choose to skip the appraisal altogether. If so, congrats - you are ready to buy as soon as you find the right property! But for the rest of us, if a loan is involved, so too is the lender’s appraisal – or appraisals.  Yet many real estate agents are not a part of this element.

The…

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Help pets adjust to a new homeMoving to a new home can be a difficult transition for everyone in the family, including the furry, four-legged members. Dogs and cats develop a strong bond with their environment so when they are relocated from their territory it can cause them stress.

Here are some tips to ease your pets' transition to a new home:

Keep Your Mood Calm
Pets are very tuned-in to your emotions and will sense your mood. If you are stressed throughout the moving process, your cat or dog will pick up on this and it will make him anxious. Try to remain calm and give your pet plenty of attention and reassurance during the process of moving.

Transporting Your Pet
A few weeks before the move, introduce your pet to his pet carrier so that he becomes familiar with it. It will…

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Home Appraisal RemedyExperienced home sellers in Coastal Delaware know that reaching a sales agreement with a potential buyer can be just the start of the negotiation process. There are often inspection issues to resolve, among other items.

One particular negotiation point which can present difficulties for both buyers and sellers is when a home's appraised value falls short of its contracted sales price. Sometimes, this happens because the home's price was inflated. Other times, it's the result of a faulty appraisal.

As a home seller, there are some common appraisal problems of which you should be aware. Here are some of them, and how to seek remedy so that the home sale process remains smooth.

Inaccurate comparisons
An appraiser will assign your home's value based on…

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job-growth-steady-2013_220The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Non-Farm Payrolls report for December exceeded Wall Street's expectations by 5,000 net new jobs, showing 155,000 positions created in December.

The December tally raised the economy's 12-month total to 1.84 million net new jobs created nationwide. Jobs added in December mark the 27th consecutive month of job growth.

Job sectors showing the strongest growth to close out 2012 included:

  • Health Care
  • Drinking and Eating Establishments
  • Construction
  • Manufacturing

Private-sector hiring is driving the jobs market, too. 168,000 new private sector jobs were added in December. Government jobs fell by thirteen thousand.

Monthly job creation has averaged +153,000 jobs since 12 months ago. It's a fine measure of…

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green-home1_231"Green" homes can be great for the environment and can save you money over time. For environmentally-conscious homeowners wanting to minimize their footprint and their energy bills, there are four areas upon which to focus. 

In-Home Energy-Efficiency
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as of December 2012, buildings account for 68 percent of the nation's total energy consumption. Green homes can reduce this figure via energy-efficient appliances; well-sealed, double-glazed windows; and good insulation. Alternative energy sources such as solar panels can also reduce energy use.

Green Building Materials
Building materials are determined to be "green" based on manufacturing, shipping, and reclamation procedures, and are composed of…

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Mortgage rates in Rehoboth Beach rose during the first week of 2013.

employment1_400The fiscal cliff crisis was resolved prior to the market's opening Wednesday, when legislators voted to approve a deal. While many tax cuts were extended for taxpayers earning less than $450,000 annually, other facets of the fiscal cliff issue are yet to be addressed, including budget cuts for federal government agencies.

Investors were surprised to learn that the Fed may end its third round of quantitative easing (QE3) sometimes in 2013. The FOMC meeting minutes for December 2012 suggested that Fed support for its QE3 program has waned as the economy has improved.

First-time jobless claims increased for the week ending December 29, 2012 to 372,000 from the prior week's 350,000,…

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RetirementYou don’t have to be on the verge of retirement to begin thinking about the nuts and bolts of your future living arrangements. There is more to it than just adjusting your monthly budget. For many people who are winding up their full-time working lives, a governing decision – one that will affect countless others – is whether to buy a home, continue in one you already own, or to rent.

If it has been years since you’ve even thought about the buy a home vs. rent decision, writing up a list of the current tradeoffs isn’t a bad idea. There are many dimensions to consider, but in the financial area, some bullet points on that list:Some retirees view shedding home ownership as a stress-reliever. If they decide to migrate -- whether to a milder climate or to…

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