Finance

The Tri Cities Washington area has been noted as having the lowest cost of living throughout the state of Washington by the Council for Community and Economic Research. The Tri Cities has a composite rating of 90.5 while other cities have ratings higher; Spokane had a rating of 93.0, and Yakima had a rating of 96.4 Some cities like Seattle, with a rating of 123.3, had a very high rating. When determining the cost of living in various areas the council looks at several factors such as price an... Read Full Post

The Washington Post recently reported that the emotional and financial strain of the housing market has become so rough, it’s on par with divorce, and even death. TODAY’s Barbara Corcoran and psychologist Jeff Gardere explains how to lessen the burden and turn your house into a source of revenue: Read Full Post

CNN reports today that "An outraged sheriff in Illinois who refuses to evict "innocent" renters from foreclosed homes criticized mortgage companies Thursday and said the law should protect victims of the mortgage meltdown. Cook County, Illinois, Sheriff Thomas J. Dart says too many renters are being evicted for landlords' problems, and he is suspending foreclosure evictions in Cook County, which includes the city of Chicago. The county had been on track to reach a record number of evictions, ... Read Full Post

Low financing rates have wooed many potential home owners into making the plunge and while that may indeed be a great incentive for those with the finances in good enough shape to do so, letting market fluctuations in either direction, positive or negative, be the deciding factor in your decision to buy a first home is doing yourself a disservice. While market fluctuations are of course important as you go through the decision making process, they pale in comparison to the weight you should p... Read Full Post