Housing & Real Estate
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18 Pros and Cons of Home Equity Loans
Home equity loans are back nearly a decade after the subprime mortgage crisis. Today homeowners have more equity to draw from, fewer are underwater, and banks are lending more responsibly to borrowers who are likely educated about smart ways to…
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25 Prime Locations for a Vacation Home
Owning a vacation home is a luxury some people can only dream about, given the high cost of real estate in many parts of the country. But not all markets are priced out of reach. In quite a few vacation…
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21 Tips for Moving to a Big City on a Small Budget
Moving to a booming big city is a common goal for many new graduates, suburbanites, and small-town residents across the nation. But relocating can bring all sorts of costs and complications that become overwhelming. Here are 21 ways to save…
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13 Ways to Lower Your Rent
Rental prices aren’t set in stone, even in highly competitive markets, so elbow grease and negotiation skills can yield hefty savings. Just ask Davis Nguyen, an associate at the management consulting firm Bain & Co. in San Francisco, one of…
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11 Steps to Buying Your Dream Home
Home prices are rising across the country, and the real estate market is as competitive ever, even as home construction booms in many places. If you want to improve your chances of snagging your dream home, you’ll first have to…
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40 Essential Tips for Selling, Buying, and Owning a Home
Buying or selling a home is one of life’s most important financial decisions. While it’s often intensely personal, some essential advice often applies no matter what the circumstances. These 40 tips can help homebuyers and sellers get the most out…
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16 Pros and Cons to Weigh Before Selling a Home by Owner
Selling a home is a major deal. It’s the single largest asset many people have, and a sale usually involves a real estate agent. But some sellers go it alone…
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10 Things to Do Before Buying Home Insurance
Shopping for a home insurance policy is a balancing act. Consumers don’t want to pay for coverage they might not need, but they want sufficient protection — just in case.…
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Home Seller’s Checklist: 15 Tips for Selling a Home Now
Spring is often cited as the time to sell a home, but many prospective homebuyers are willing to work through the heat and make a move in summer. We spoke…
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12 Tips for Building a Tiny Home You’ll Love
Downsizing is growing among people seeking to decrease their environmental footprint and declutter their lives. Enter tiny houses. Beyond simplifying lifestyles, the tiny house movement seeks to curb overcrowding, overconsumption,…
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18 Money-Saving Tips for Experienced Homebuyers
In the complicated process of finding and buying a home, the uninformed shopper can get caught up in costly missteps along the way. From establishing a budget to closing the…
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Brooklyn vs. Manhattan: Is the Outer Borough Still Cheaper?
BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS The cost of living in Manhattan tops that of Queens, Staten Island, Brooklyn, and the Bronx — or so goes the traditional rap about New York…
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10 Cheap Ways to Prep Your Home for a Winter Sale
Winter is the hardest time of the year to sell a home in most U.S. locales. “The spring housing market is considered busier than the winter market, but sometimes sellers…
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13 Cities Where It Pays to Get in the Vacation Rental Game
Generating passive income by renting out a house or apartment is a dream for many. Even people who can’t afford a rental property or vacation home are putting their places…
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Spending Diary: Home Maintenance Is Eating My Renovation Budget
Our house in the country is under renovation just about all the time. It’s not particularly old, just particularly quirky. Much of it was built by the previous owners. Some…
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10 Money-Saving Questions to Ask a Real Estate Agent
When perusing the listings of homes for sale, it may seem easiest to just contact the first real estate agent who pops up or whose name appears in the mailer…
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12 Ways to Insure Your Home for Less
The wealth of many families is tied to the value of their home, and it makes sense to protect that investment with an insurance policy — something that’s probably required…
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Your First House: 13 Tips for Saving and Buying
The advantages of home ownership are many: building equity; tax deductions; the promise of appreciating value; and having a place that belongs to you. With mortgage rates at historic lows,…
