You've searched for and found the perfect place to call home  congratulations!  Few things are more exciting than becoming a homeowner, but it is also one of the largest financial investments you'll ever make, which is why it's important to start off on the right foot. Here are my go-to tips for those first few weeks in your new home that can save you time, money, and effort later down the road.

Get to know your neighbors.
Meeting your neighbors is one of the most important things you can do once you move in. After all, you never know when youll need a good neighbor to grab the mail or water the plants when youre out of town (or when you may need a few eggs for the brownies you're making at 8:30 pm).

Paint first!
Theres nothing more inconvenient than having to paint a home while youre living in it. Schedule the movers a few days after closing occurs so that you have time to give your new home a deep clean and paint the main living areas.

Change the locks before ...

Selling a home is incredibly exciting, but can also be very emotional. By avoiding common selling mistakes, you can increase your chances that your home selling experience is relatively stress-free, and most importantly, successful.

Here are 5 common mistakes sellers make, and how to avoid them:
1. Pricing too high.
The key to getting the best price and terms for your property is to price accurately. With all of the home valuation tools available these days, buyers are savvy and know when a home is overpriced. When looking at the recent comparable homes that have sold, make sure you evaluate the list price versus the sold price. Chances are they were priced lower, and bid up. You wont get that scenario if you start too high. Overpricing your house in the belief that you can reduce the price back later is a strategy that can backfire badly. For instance, if prices are lowered, buyers may wonder if theres something wrong with the property that kept other buyers away.
2. not preparis ...

So you've decided you're going to sell your home. Congratulations! Your first task should be preparing your home for the market.
Every seller wants their home to sell quickly, and for top dollar, but it takes more than luck to make this happen. As you welcome potential buyers into your home, you want to leave a lasting impression, and you can do this by planning ahead and getting your home ready to sell.
Here are a few things that you can do to prepare your home for the market (that won't break the bank! ):
1. Clean, declutter, repeat.
There is nothing worse than walking through a dirty home. Deep clean everything (or have a professional come in), and declutter your home before you even have the listing photos taken. This is what i call "the first move". Go through everything and decide what you want to keep, trash, or donate, and get a storage space if necessary.
2. Make minor repairs.
In a seller's market, you can sell a home in "lived-in" condition without much complaint, hos ...

Have you been considering buying or selling this year? Sometimes people think they can only work with me if they're ready to buy or sell right now, and i want to set the record straight... That is not the case!
Here are a few ways that i can help, even if you're 6 months to a year out on being ready to make a move:
 equity analysis.
Wondering how much your home may be worth in today's market? Not only can i give you a market analysis of your home, i can also provide an estimate of how much equity you have in your home, to give you an idea of how much money you can make if you were to decide to sell. You can also use the equity in your home to purchase a vacation home, complete a home renovation, or pay off high-yield debt.
 Property prep.
If you're thinking of selling, it's important to prepare your home to appeal to the most amount of buyers in the market. Doing so will help you sell your home faster when you decide the time is right. This could be something as minimar ...

Let's talk about closing costs.


When purchasing a home, everyone knows you need a down payment, but many people dont realize that in addition to your down payment, more funds are needed to cover your closing costs. Closing costs can include title insurance, tax and utility reimbursements, transfer tax, conveyancing fees, and miscellaneous smaller fees for services like notaries and wire transfers. If you are getting a mortgage, your lender could also require funds to be held in escrow for taxes and insurance, and charge underwriting and application fees.
So how much should you budget for closing costs? I typically tell my buyers to budget anywhere from3-4% of the cost of the home. Here is a quick breakdown of what you may need to factor into your total out of pocket when buying a home:

appraisal fee: $400-500
underwriting and application fees: $1000-$2000
title insurance: 0.5-1% of the purchase price
transfer tax: 1-2.5% of the loan (this is sometimes split between buyer an! ...