Eric Bramlett's Blog: All Categories

Your home loan is almost as important as the home you choose.  Small changes on paper – ½% here, ½% there – can mean BIG changes to your monthly payment, and thousands of dollars over the lifetime of your loan.  Today, it seems as though there are thousands of mortgage brokers & lenders in every market – and there are!  Unless your brother, sister, Dad, or best friend are a mortgage broker (and sometimes even when they are) your lender might not always be the most competent, or have your best interests in mind.  Here are 7 easy steps to take when looking for a home loan.

1) It Pays to Shop!

There are thousands of mortgage brokers in any market, and hundreds of loan programs that each broker will usually have access to.  Each loan program fills a niche…

Everyone loves to update their homes, and if you live in an older home in an appreciating neighborhood, it can be a fantastic investment.  There are some pitfalls to avoid, which can cost a homeowner quite a bit of money because of no return on investment.  However, it’s better to focus on what TO do and stay the course.

1)      Raise the Roof!!!

Not literally, but gut the attic, and raise the ceiling in, at least, the living room.  Older homes typically have 8 foot ceilings, and it’s one of the first characteristics that buyers notice.  It’s relatively inexpensive, when you compare your return on investment, to demolish the ceilings of your older home and sheetrock over your new, vaulted ceiling.  It’s amazing how much larger and lighter your home…

Everywhere you look, there are advertisements for Real Estate, and for Real Estate Agents.  We’re everywhere!  The reason is pretty simple:  It’s not extremely difficult to get your real estate license, a college degree is not required, and the income potential is pretty high.  Unfortunately, this means that there are a lot of BAD Real Estate Agents out there.  The BEST way to find a good professional – in any industry – is to ask for a referral from a trusted friend or colleague.  This does not, however, mean that any person referred to you is a quality professional – everyone has a brother, sister, aunt, uncle, or cousin who is in the business, after all – but it will increase your odds.  There are a few questions that you should ask ANY Real Agent…