A Glimmer of Hope? Mortgage Payments Improving

Fannie Mae says serious delinquencies on home mortgages fell this summer for the fifth month in a row.

Read the Wall Street Journal article here.

Five Flooring Choices to Make a Home Seem Larger

Thanks to Scott Levit for this excellent post, which we've copied below.

Debbie Gartner of Floor Coverings International in Westchester/Western Fairfield wrote a concise post recently on how choosing the right flooring can improve the apparent size of a seller's home. This piece is adapted from Garner's post...

Here are 5 subtle tips for your sellers that will help stretch smaller spaces.

1. Use lighter colors. Lighter makes the space look larger. The same goes for walls.

2. Use wider planks. Wider makes the space look larger. The same goes for tile; larger tiles make the space look larger. (Conversely, parquet hardwood makes the space look smaller, so stay away from this and from small tiles).

3. De-clutter. The more open space readily visible (be it floor or walls), the larger, cleaner, and neater the space will look. Remove some of the knickknacks and maybe even a piece of furniture that's not necessary.

4. Use same flooring material and color across rooms. Whenever possible, continue that same surface across rooms. By continuing the same surface, you connect the space and it just looks larger. Be it hardwood, tile, or the wall color cafe au lait, try to be consistent and make the rooms appear seamless.

5. Lay your floor on a diagonal. Whether you have tile or hardwood, this will make you space look larger as it carries your eye along the longest length (In trigonometry -- remember that? - the hypotenuse is the longest side of the triangle). It will also make your space look more visually intriguing. Note that occasionally when the space/room is very rectangular, a straight lay across the longest length is a better option, but most often, a diagonal is the better choice.

Pay off Your Mortgage in Half the Time?

You could!

According to this Wall Street Journal article,"a growing number of homeowners are choosing to pay down their mortgages at a faster rate--even if it means a substantial jump in their monthly payments."

It represents a "shift" in borrower thinking from even just a few years ago.

The articles lists some lifestyle recommendations for those who might consider the increased payments.

"Mr. Walters [chief economist at online lender Quicken Loans] says you shouldn't take on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage unless you have substantial savings, including at least a year's worth of living expenses in liquid accounts.

Also, he recommends having a debt-to-income ratio below 35%. So if you have a gross salary of $5,700 per month, for instance, your monthly debt--including any mortgage payments, taxes, insurance, homeowners-association dues as well as auto and student loans and credit-card debt--would have to be a max of $1,995 to get a 35% ratio.

Link here.

Comprehensive Short Sale Help from a Spokane Short Sale Expert

Well, we did it.

We built a simple, easy-to-use but still useful short sale site. Introducing SpokanesBestShortSales.com.

Included in the site is a simple explanation of a short sale; approval letters from short sale transactions we've successfully closed; expectations and a timeline for sellers listing a short sale; the short sale offer process; FAQs for real estate agents...

...and much more.