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The strain on every homeowner's pocketbook is showing up in all the usual places.... more

Most homebuyers know that the key to obtaining a lower mortgage rate is a good credit score. But new research has also found a direct link between credit scores and insurance premiums.... more

Large-production homebuilders now account for nearly two-thirds of all new-home sales. But there are signs many of them, and even their smaller brethren, have gotten too far out over their skis.... more

[EDITORS: This is the second column in a two-part series.]... more

The supposedly “earthshaking” legal settlement that was supposed to drive down real estate commissions, saving buyers and sellers thousands of dollars in the process, wasn’t so tumultuous after all.... more

What happens when the person buying your house dies before the closing date? Or when your tenant passes away mid-lease?... more

If you think it costs a bundle to buy a house -- what with a down payment and all -- wait till you learn what it costs to sell one.... more

You’ve finally gotten an offer on your house. The place has been on the market for several months, so you are excited to take a look. But when you do, the wind goes out of your sails. The offer is rid... more

Thousands of federal employees, and the millions of families who rely on government services, are facing financial uncertainty because of the government shutdown. Experts are weighing in on how this a... more

There comes a time in most house sales when the buyer and seller have to decide who will pay for any necessary repairs.... more

To reach out-of-state buyers, Arizona homebuilder Camelot Homes recently ran a "Fly and Buy" incentive that covered traveling expenses. In Texas, meanwhile, Highland Homes offered buyers a free genera... more

Homeowners eager for mortgage rates to dip so they can refinance their places may have to wait quite a bit longer.... more

One of the most difficult parts of beginning a home improvement project is comparing bids from various contractors. It’s almost impossible.... more

The fact that Sen. Adam Schiff and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook have been accused by the Trump administration of lying on their mortgage applications should serve as a warning and a reminder to ... more

Real estate may be the basis of all wealth, but a growing number of millionaires are forsaking homeownership and renting their residences instead.... more

House hunters who visit homes that look like they belong in Architectural Digest need to take a closer look. Those places have been staged to accent their positives -- and hide their flaws.... more

The beginning of hurricane season should serve as a reminder to homeowners in affected areas -- all roughly 33 million of them, according to data from Cotality -- to make sure their homeowners insuran... more

Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of condominium apartments are languishing on the market these days, and not just because high interest rates and high prices are combining to keep woul... more

Thefts from the houses of sports stars Ketel Marte, Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes and Rob Gronkowski should raise the hackles of every homeowner -- celebrity or not.... more

The complaints about contractors hired to do work around people's homes are legion. They go something like this:... more

There comes a time in practically every homeowner's life when they consider using the equity they've built up in their house for one purpose or another.... more

Practically no one doubts the necessity of health insurance, what with the long list of maladies that can befall a person. But apparently lots of people question the need for insurance to protect thei... more

The federal write-off for state and local taxes has become a major stumbling block to congressional passage of the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill.”... more

Now might not be the best time to buy a house. Interest rates are kicking up near the 7% level, and prices are rising -- maybe not as quickly as they had been, but rising nonetheless.... more

Selling your house doesn’t need to cost as much as most agents charge. How does 1% of the selling price grab you? Or a flat fee of around $500?... more

In a billion-dollar Homes.com ad campaign, Dan Levy and Heidi Gardner travel around the country collecting local data for the listing portal, with the catch line “We’ve done your home work.”... more

A few years ago, Nicole Doty of Zion Realty in Gilbert, Arizona, thought she had a client's house rented at full price. The tenant had sent in his deposit, enrolled his kids in the neighborhood school... more

[EDITORS: Lew Sichelman is away this week. This column was first published in 2023.]... more