Courtney French Realtor

08/26/2024

Happy Women’s Equality Day

10/20/2022

Rent Modestly | Buy Modestly

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Via ♻️The housing market has been rough over the last year. In many areas rent prices are way up. Interest rates are also screaming upwards. A year ago, it was common to see a loan secured at under 3%. Today, rates can be closer to 7%! That jump in rates means that for the same monthly payment, you can afford way less house. A $2,000 mortgage payment at 3% can buy $475K worth of house. But at 7% that number drops to $300K! That reduced buying power has put downward pressure on home prices, but sellers are slow to accept that they can't get what they could have eight months ago.

So what do you do? High rent prices, high interest rates. Do you rent or buy? Well, that's the wrong question. You can't magically solve your housing issues by looking at macroeconomic trends and then deciding to rent or buy. WHATEVER rates and home prices are doing, you still need to focus on lowering YOUR cost of housing. Renting a cheap apartment will always beat out buying a fancy house over time. That's because houses are expensive! In addition to mortgage interest, you have to pay property tax, property insurance, maintenance, utilities, landscaping, realtor fees, and opportunity cost of not investing that big down payment! And ALL that stuff gets more expensive as the house gets bigger and fancier.

But the reverse is true too! Buying a modest home will beat out renting a fancy apartment. If rent is crazy high, but you can buy lower cost modest home, you'll likely be better off buying! So the answer today, as with any day, is to focus on your situation and keep your costs as low as possible. You want to avoid being "house poor", so you've got extra money for emergency funds, investments, etc!

As always, reminding you to build wealth by following the two PFC rules: 1.) Live below your means and 2.) Invest early and often.

-Jeremy

10/13/2022

Simple Real Estate Math.

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Via

10/05/2020

Being with the ones you love is what makes a house a home. Who helps make up your home? Text 'em to tell them!

10/05/2020

Mortgage and property tax payments are often deductible from federal and some state taxes. I can help you understand all the benefits of owning a home, send me a message with your questions!

09/15/2020

https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/find-bank-refinance-investment-property

If your plan is to buy and hold real estate, it is absolutely essential to find a bank (or more likely, banks) willing to offer you long-term financing at good rates.

09/10/2020

Congratulations ⚡️🍾 to my good good girl friend for becoming a first time HOMEOWNER! She was sooo patient in this current housing market. We met and became friends at our Alma Mater Norfolk State University where she was the Coolest Residential Assistant in the Freshman Dorms (The Towers)! I can't THANK you enough 💎 for entrusting me with the honor to help you get the KEYs to your beautiful new place!

Massive Thanks to JD Teitelman 💎 for closing the deal in less than 3 weeks (19 days 🤩) With this competitive market it is always a great to have a lender who is ready and able to not only WIN offers, but close in record time. Lastly special thanks to closing the deal with style & finesse 🍾! . ✔

08/18/2020

Read this article about 6 Home Trends Buyer's love!

In general.... "Open floor plans, smart homes, and outdoor areas are among the features in top demand for home shoppers this year. " - Yuka Kato

My personal favorite in this artilce...."A home with both effective insulation and a tight building envelope will provide the best value to a buyer who desires lower energy bills and minimal heating requirements." - Yuka Kato

Learn some of the key areas of design to highlight when marketing your listings.

09/08/2019

How about them apples 🍎 to apples 🍊?

09/07/2019

The key to owning a home is throughly accessing yourself to see if good are ready to BUY.

You have to live somewhere, right? You will either pay yourself, or you’ll pay your landlord. When you pay yourself year after year for 30 years, you build equity. Not only that, your home appreciates over 30 years simply because of the economic forces of inflation.

If all the factors (below) are present for you to buy vs. rent, it only makes financial sense. The Factors include:

🔷Stable employment
🔷You plan to stay for a minimum of 5 years
🔷A lender views you as creditworthy
🔷You have enough for a downpayment
🔷other qualifying factors may apply, depending on your financing

07/31/2019

If was announced today that the Federal Reserve interest rate is being lowered. Here are two (2) things that could benefit you as a new home buyer or current home owner.

1. As rent continues to rise across the country these lower interest rates could help buyers be in a better value proposition than renting.

2. The other big impact that lower interest rates could have is for homeowners who are currently looking to refinance their existing mortgage. You can potentially get a lower interest rate than your current one.

07/18/2019

Have you ever considered buying a home with friends? If so would you split one mortgage for 15-30 years or pay in cash? Tell me why below.