There’s no telling how long the current housing situation will drag on. Here’s what you need to know before you start shopping in a rocky market.
Click here for the article from CNN Money
and here are some rules for sellers
Regulators approve rules on disclosing home-sale bonuses
N.C. regulators voted today to approve a new rule that will require real estate agents to provide a written disclosure of bonuses they might receive from sellers before a buyer makes an offer to purchase a home.
The rule, which will help homebuyers know if their agent has an extra financial interest in showing them a home, is scheduled to take effect Oct. 1.
Click here for the article in the Charlotte Observer
Six Secrets of Internet Home Buying
With the worst housing slump in a generation slashing home prices across the country, the dynamics of the market have shifted squarely in favor of buyers.
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Six Secrets of Internet Home Buying
With the worst housing slump in a generation slashing home prices across the country, the dynamics of the market have shifted squarely in favor of buyers. And as the real estate industry grows increasingly Web-savvy, house hunters can now scour through neighborhoods, inspect front porches, and even peek inside bedrooms from the comfort of their desktops. But while this surge of new information can help you find that perfect home, it can also–at times–make the whole process overwhelming. Here are six ways to ensure that your online real estate search is as efficient and effective as possible.
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Optimistic Outlook for Luxury Vacation-Home Market
The outlook for owners of “prime property” – “the most desirable, and normally most expensive, property in a defined location” – notably for vacation homes, is much more optimistic, according to the 2008 Annual Wealth Report by property consultants, Knight Frank, and Citi Private Bank.
“The boom in second home ownership over the past decade will be nothing compared with the growth we will see over the next decade,” the report says.
Here’s the Article from the Wall Street Jounral
It’s Spring. Ready to Buy a Home Yet?
Spring has always been busy for real estate. Even though buyers and sellers remain cautious, now could be a good time to make a move
The spring home-buying season is upon us. In small towns and big cities alike, “Open House” and “For Sale” signs are sprouting like crocuses. But it will take more than pleasant weather to thaw the ice-cold real estate market.
Click here for an article in Business Week
New Website Cracks Closing Costs

If many home buyers have never shopped for their own title insurance, will they use a Web site that not only helps them do that, but also select their own appraiser, home inspector, surveyor, or termite company?
Jeff Lazerson thinks they will, and armed with a $100,000 Ford Foundation grant, he’s building Fairclosingcosts.com, a Web site that he says will allow not only consumers but real estate and mortgage professionals to shop for settlement services.
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Click here to visit FairClosingCosts.com
Second Home Market Remains Bright
In the midst of all the gloom and doom on the housing front, one remarkably-bright statistic has just been announced: Last week the National Association of Realtors reported that 12 percent of all existing home sales last year were not primary residences, they were instead vacation homes.
Click here for the article from Realty Times
Do you know your mortgage ABC’s?
Home purchasers sometimes get into trouble because they are not clued into the sequence of steps involved in financing their purchase. These are qualification, pre-approval, approval, and lock.
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