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Selling Your Home? 3 Ways You Can Use Your Social Network to Speed up Your Sale

Selling Your Home? 3 Ways You Can Use Your Social Network to Speed up Your Sale There are many traditional ways to sell your home, from the MLS listings to a sign in the front yard. However, the ease of the Internet and the utility of social media can make it easier than ever to find the right buyer. If you’re getting prepared to put your home on the market and are trying to determine a strategy, here are some ways you can use social media to improve your selling odds.

Tweet Out The Details

Twitter accounts may more frequently be linked with a person, but because of the short burst of information involved in a tweet, it’s actually a great way to market your home. Whether you want to shout out a particular detail that’s worthy of recognition or make a more general statement about what it offers to potential homebuyers, this can be a clever means of getting the attention of interested parties. It’s just important to make sure you don’t overdo it, so stick with a few tweets per day.

Create Your Own Website

Most homes will have a page on their real estate agent’s website, but having your own website for your home can be an easy means of drawing people in to its best features. While it doesn’t have to cost money or be too fancy to attract the right people, you’ll want to make sure that you have professional photos and pertinent information so the right buyers will be able to determine if it’s a good option for them.

Post On Facebook

According to Postling, up to 80% of real estate agents use Facebook to market their properties online, and this means that Facebook can be an ideal site for you to find an audience. It might seem surprising, but many people search for homes for sale on Facebook, so having a page set up that provides the right details and has some striking images may just snag you the homebuyer you’re looking for. It’s also a great way to leverage your group of friends and reach even more potential buyers.

It’s beneficial to utilize more traditional methods when it comes to selling your home, but there are plenty of ways that you can use social media to enhance your home’s profile and find unexpected leads.

3 Mortgage Scams to Be Aware of and How to Protect Yourself From Them

3 Mortgage Scams to Be Aware of and How to Protect Yourself From ThemIt’s easy to be enthusiastic and excited about the prospect of home ownership, but it’s important to be aware that there are many ways potential buyers can be taken advantage of. From courses for homeowners to companies trying to make a quick buck, there are many things to avoid. If you’re on the market for a home and are trying to find the mortgage that will best benefit you, here are some of the tricks you may want to be wary of.

Forgetting About The Finances

The amount of home you can afford and will be approved for largely comes down to your debt-to-income ratio and your credit history, so if you’re not getting the tough questions about money, this may be a bad sign. While it’s not the lender’s job to make a budget for you and decide your month-to-month expenses, if they’re embellishing your financial well-being and presuming you can take on more house, you may want to look into another lender.

High Loan Costs

Since a mortgage generally requires the homebuyer to borrow money, there is an associated interest rate on the loan that is a percentage of the total price. While this is the cost of doing business, rates that exceed more than 5% should be questioned to determine what they’re made up of. While there can be a legitimate reason for a higher cost, it’s important to understand your options and costs with a variety of lenders so you can make an informed, financially-wise decision.

Mortgage Offers For Everyone

For those who have a poor credit history and do not have any savings, the idea of home ownership can seem like a pipe dream. Unfortunately, there are lenders that are willing to capitalize on this hope and will feed people – particularly those at high risk – the idea that they have the ability to buy. Instead of relying on a company that may take advantage and charge high interest rates, research the lender you’re dealing with to ensure they’re known on the market and have your best interests in mind.

The ultimate dream for many people is to own a home of their own, but it’s important to be aware of your mortgage options and your financial stability so you can avoid a bad experience. If you’re currently on the market for a home, you may want to contact one of our mortgage professionals for more information.

What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – February 27, 2017

Last week’s readings on new and existing home sales provided further evidence of strengthening housing markets. Both categories of home sales exceeded December’s readings. Consumer sentiment was lower in February than for January and average rates were mixed with fixed rates higher and the rate for 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages lower. Consumer sentiment lower in February.

New and Previouslyowned Home Sales Higher in January

Home sales volume rose in January regardless of obstacles including higher mortgage rates and rising home prices. The National Association of Realtors® reported more sales of pre-owned homes in January. 5.69 million homes were sold on a seasonally-adjusted annual basis in January, which surpassed expectations of 5.57 million sales and December’s reading of 5.51 million sales of previously-owned homes.

New home sales also rose in January. 555,000 new home sales were reported, which fell short of 586,000 new home sales expected. 535,000 new homes were sold in December.

Mortgage Rates Mixed

Mortgage rates have traditionally been tied to the performance of 10-year Treasury notes, but this connection may be weakening due to uncertainty about current economic influences. Freddie Mac reported that the average rate for a 30-year mortgage rose one basis point to 4.16 percent; the average rate for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage rose two basis points to 3.37 percent and the average rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage dropped two basis points 3.16 percent. Discount points averaged 0.50 percent for fixed rate mortgages and 0.40 percent for 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages.

New Jobless claims also rose last week; 244,000 new claims were filed as compared to expectations of 237,000 new claims and the prior week’s revised reading of 238,000 new claims. The weekly reading for new jobless claims remained below the benchmark of 3000 new claims. The less volatile four-week rolling average of new claims filed reached its lowest level since July 1973 and fell by 4,000 new claims to 241,000 new claims filed. Layoffs remain low, so week-to-week variances in new jobless claim filed do not necessarily indicate faltering job markets.

Whats Next

This week’s economic news includes readings on pending home sales, Case-Shiller Housing Market Indices, pending home sales and inflation. Weekly reports on mortgage rates and new jobless claims.