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Home Value News Archive
RISMEDIA, July 31, 2010—Homeowners who are looking to remodel their kitchen should keep the following factors—that can significantly affect the price of their remodel—in mind as they begin to make plans to upgrade their kitchen.
RISMEDIA, July 30, 2010—(MCT)—Government cash didn't help John Foley and Cindy Case sell their Minneapolis house before the federal home buyer's tax credit expired at the end of April, so the couple decided to take matters into their own hands.
RISMEDIA, July 29, 2010—After getting the keys to their new homes, many first-time home buyers are excited about finally having the opportunity to personalize and furnish their new house. From coffee tables to lamps to lawnmowers, many previous renters leap
RISMEDIA, July 28, 2010—Coming off an historic low in May, sales of newly built, single-family homes rose 23.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 330,000 units in June 2010, according to U.S. Commerce Department data.
RISMEDIA, July 27, 2010—Despite slowdowns in home sales across the country, California is still the nation’s hottest spot for home buying activity, with homes fetching multiple offers and selling above list price, according to the Q2 2010 Home Hunter report
RISMEDIA, August 2, 2010-(MCT)-For some people, now is precisely the right time to build the house they want. ...
RISMEDIA, July 26, 2010—(MCT)—David Kosowski has a full-time job, a sky-high credit score, a solid debt-to-income ratio and enough cash stashed away to put a 20% down payment on the three-bedroom, two-bath home he's had his eye on since spring.
RISMEDIA, July 24, 2010—(MCT)—The outdoor kitchen is rapidly becoming the social hub of the home, much as the indoor kitchen is the favorite gathering place for family and friends. The trend is especially strong in areas where the climate favors outdoor living almost year-round.
"It's a hot item," said Scott Redmon, owner of Alfresco Living in Maitland, Fla. "And the outdoor kitchen is becoming a lot more than a grill and a sink in the corner of the porch. It's a whole entertainment system.
RISMEDIA, July 23, 2010—(MCT)—With a broad smile and the stroke of a pen, President Barack Obama capped a contentious 18-month struggle and signed into law the broadest revamp of financial regulation since the Great Depression.
"Passing this bill was no easy task. To get there, we had to overcome the furious lobbying of an array of powerful interest groups and a partisan minority determined to block change," Obama said in a pre-signing speech, surrounded by cheering congressional leaders and administration members.
RISMEDIA, July 22, 2010—The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury recently released the second edition of the Administration’s Housing Scorecard showing that, thanks in part to interest rates
RISMEDIA, July 21, 2010—(MCT)—The Lake County, Fla., home Paul Fallman shares with his wife and two daughters has 4,000 square feet of living space. Yet his electric bills have averaged just $180 a month so far this year, despite record-low winter temperatures and close-to-record summer highs.
His natural-gas bill for two tankless water heaters and a fireplace averages $25 a month.
RISMEDIA, July 20, 2010—(MCT)—The new catch phrase among homeowners is "aging in place." Instead of selling their homes and moving into retirement villages or assisted-living quarters, a growing number of older Americans are modifying their homes to make them more user-friendly as they age.
The concept has caught on so successfully, it even has its own National Aging in Place Week, which falls on Oct. 11-16 this year.
RISMEDIA, July 19, 2010—“Homeowners and buyers who are sitting on the sidelines should get moving today, unless they want to get blindsided by the impact of a new law,” said Gibran Nicholas, Chairman of the CMPS Institute, an organization that trains and certifies mortgage bankers and brokers. “The massive financial reform law that just passed Congress has two main components that could very negatively impact homeowners and home buyers in the future.”
RISMEDIA, July 17, 2010—(MCT)—With final Senate passage of the broadest overhaul of financial regulation since the Great Depression, the hard work really starts. Regulators must fill in the blanks in the legislation, and a new agency to protect consumers must be erected from scratch. The landmark legislation will bring lots of changes. Here are some answers to common questions about the changes that will come about under the overhaul of financial regulation, and how it will address some root causes of the deep financial crisis.