Thursday, May 10, 2007

Intending to Buy a home with hopes to upgrade someday to a Bigger one - Think Again

Buying a home has been known as the American Dream. But once you've bought it, how long should you hold onto it becomes the big question. Well the truth is, most of the time its not your decision to make anyways.

Or at least the decision is so painful you hesitate indefinetly to make the next move. Fluctuating interest rates and home values, job changes or layoffs, a growing comfortablity with the location, realization of new Real Estate fees and closing costs, etc. inevitably effect your decision to make that new home transition.

Most new home buyers say they will stay in the home for a few years then upgrade to a bigger one with all the equity they gain. Others say they will move to a bigger home once they have kids or when their salaries increase. All of these reasons sound reasonable, however much of the time they are not reality.

In regards to home equity, the unfortunately reality is that home values in the same location rise proportionaly to each other. As a result whatever equity you have gained in your starter home, by itself does not increase your purchasing power to buy a larger home. Yes, it may give you the opportunity to fiance a larger home, but in the end you also have a much bigger monthly mortgage payment. The next question is, can you afford the new mortage payments.

Before making the decision to upgrade to a new home, you next have to figure out what your net proceeds will be from the sale of you existing home and what your future mortgage will be and whether or not you can afford it. Too frequently we forget that a good portion of our home equity is lost to the real estate commisions and the closing and moving costs to transistion to the new home. Only after the net proceeds are calculated from the sale of an existing home can we understand how much additional funds we can put towards a deposit on another home. The key point to remember; it costs to move and it usually costs big.

Unfortunately home prices have far outpaced salary increases. Quite frankly that chasm seems to continue to grow. As a result, waiting for growth in your salary to buy the next bigger home is sometimes a poor reason to hold off from buying the bigger home in the first place, particularly if interest rates are low.

Once the kids arrive the decision to upgrade to a new home can become even more complex. Particularly when the kids get older and even if you are planning to live in the same general community.

The bottom line: You will probably be in a home much longer than you originally plan. Consequently, it is sometimes wiser to buy more home on your first home purchase rather than less. This is particularly true if interest rates are un-naturally low. So before you buy that first home think longer term and buy what you could be happy living in for 20 yearsArticle Submission, because you just might!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Over the past 20+ years Mark Donovan has been involved with building homes and additions to homes and is a licensed real estate agent. His projects have included: building a vacation home, building additions and garages on to existing homes, and finishing unfinished homes. For more home improvement information visit http://www.homeadditionplus.com and http://www.homeaddition.blogspot.com.

Best Rated Home Based Business

Dream of operating your own business out of your home but want to make sure you are in a best rated home based business? While some articles may tell you that you have to come up with an original idea, there is something to be said for going with a best rated home based business that is not only hot right now, but also has the potential for future growth. Here are some of the new concepts that are quickly becoming great home based business ideas:

Best Rated Home Based Business #1: Online Auction Seller
Do you make a product? Are you interested in sales, but not in the market for a typical “sales” job? Then you may want to consider becoming a professional seller on eBay, Amazon, or Yahoo. These companies allow you to market and sell your product online. You can purchase wholesale products like jewelry, DVDs, CDs, and more to resell. You can even make your own items and sell them on the sites.

Best Rated Home Based Business #2: Tutor
If you have a degree or expertise in a specific area you could consider becoming a tutor. Many students have problems putting together ideas for their papers or have trouble understanding long division. If you have patience and an aptitude for explaining concepts, then tutoring can be a rewarding experience.

Best Rated Home Based Business #3: Life Coach
Why is this on the list as a best rated home based business? A life coach helps people put parts of their life together. Some life coaches help people date while others help people learn to organize their lives. It is an easy business to run out of your home while you help people get their lives together.

Best Rated Home Based Business #4: Personal Concierge
In today’s busy world, having a personal concierge can be a benefit to a number of people. You would spend your day running errands, shopping, even picking up children or pets. Some personal concierges have specific roles like doing the grocery shopping, while others perform a variety of tasks.

Best Rated Home Based Business #5: Money Manager
If you have a way with numbers and finances, then this could be a great option for you. You would help people manage their budgets and make sure they are able to stay on top of their finances. Sometimes people do not have time to balance the checkbook or pay the bills, and you would do that for them. Other times, older individuals have problems completing these tasksComputer Technology Articles, and you would be doing them a great service by allowing them to still live independently.

Read the rest of the article here - Best Rated Home Based Business.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Six-Figure Income Earner Charles Fuchs Shows How to Explode your Income and Make Huge Amounts of Money, even with no experience. Visit our Home Based Business Blog and receive the Best MLM Leads online, valuable tips, strategies, and techniques designed to grow a very successful Home Based Business.

Cheap Home Insurance Basics

Gradual increase of natural perils and environmental pollution in today's world have taken a toll on the longivity of houses and buildings. Under such circumstances the home insurance policy has got a lot of priority. However what is being noticed by the homeowner is the gradual price hike in buying house insurance policy. A need has been felt for cheap house insurance policy. Cheaper insurance offers discounted insurances and low premium of insurances. Just like other insurance policies shopping is necessary before buying the policy.

Shopping for cheap home insurance quote is easy. One can check different rates from the website. You only need to fill up a simple form and thus get connected to a number of homeowners' insurance quotes. Due to discounts offeredFree Web Content, the policies are cheaper. One benefits a discount of 30% to 45% while buying insurance online. Some insurance companies provide a discount if you buy home and contents insurance together. Instead of buying online you can contact the agent. Insuring the car and the home can reduce the house insurance rate. Buying both auto and home insurance from same company can lead to discount. Getting at least three quotes is necessary to compare the terms. One should be aware of replacement values of items. No need to calculate the amount of buying or prevailing market value rather get replacement value insurance. You should be aware of the fact whether you can afford to replace all that you have lost with new items and policy ensures them as replacement value. Be well aware of the claims of process. You should also enquire whether floods or earthquakes are covered. In a state like California one can get earthquake insurance through The California Earthquake Authority.

Inflation rate should be kept in mind when home insurance policy is due for renewal.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Find more about Home Insurance on http://www.LeanderNet.com/Home_insurance/Homeowners_insurance.php . More useful content on LeanderNet - http://www.LeanderNet.com