Building Green is Building Momentum
By ARA

(ARA) - David Winkler is green. He drives a hybrid car and is mindful of his global responsibility. So when it came to working on his Solana Beach, Calif., home, he decided to keep the basic structure of the house rather than tearing it down and building new. He also wanted a project that would be environmentally friendly and use green building practices.

Building Your Dream Home?  Don’t Forget to Look Behind the Walls
By ARA

(ARA) - Imagine the excitement and anticipation of building a new home. You spend months choosing all the right details: the color of the paint and carpets, the style of the light fixtures, even the landscaping to welcome you and your guests. After a long wait and hundreds of thousands of dollars, the day arrives when you unlock the door and step inside. As you walk in, the floor creaks and feels bouncy. Everything else seems perfect, but a squeaky floor makes you wonder about the quality of the home. You can avoid this and similar disappointments by taking time up front to ask your builder some simple, yet critical, questions about the home’s structural framing

Destination Clubs: A New Trend in Luxury Vacationing
By ARA

(ARA) – When dreaming of traveling, everyone has something different in mind. And when investing in a vacation or second home, you want to make sure you get what you want. For many, destination clubs are the answer because they provide the best of many worlds.

If you’ve heard of a destination club, but never really understood what it meant, you’re not alone. It's a new concept in upscale vacationing that combines the spaciousness and splendor of a private home with five-star service and amenities. A destination club offers its members access to a portfolio of luxurious private homes in a variety of locations. People tend to like belonging to a destination club because it has the benefits of second-home ownership, but with more flexibility and choice as to where you travel.

Green Landscaping Adds Green Value
By ARA

(ARA) - Thinking of selling your home? Sprucing up your yard will help get buyers attention and can add up to 15 percent to its value. It may even be the difference between a potential buyer and a drive-away. Want to hear more?

Michelle Dawson, realtytimes.com, notes Mark S. Henry of the Department of Agriculture and Applied Economics at Clemson University found that excellent landscaping added 4 to 5 percent to the value of a good home. In addition, homes with poor landscaping in the same neighborhoods as those with excellent landscaping sold for 8 to 10 percent less.

How to buy land for your new home
By: Ajay pats

You've found the perfect house, but the land it sits on isn't quite what you have in mind. Or maybe you've seen a great piece of land, but the house doesn't fit your needs. If nothing really says home to you, it might be time to consider building.

Personal Finance: Selling Your Home in a Buyer’s Market
By ARA

(ARA) - Selling a home can be a daunting task for any homeowner, and in a “buyer’s market” the process can feel overwhelming. While many sellers think that homebuyers have the upper hand, with a little patience and a few helpful tips from GMAC Real Estate, you can successfully sell your home.

* The Price Is Right
The number one factor in the sale of your home and one of the most critical elements of the sales process is setting the asking price. While you want to get the most appreciation from the sale of your home, you also want to be realistic when setting your price.

“Sellers need to work with an experienced real estate professional who can help them establish a realistic value and price for their home”, said Lane Barnett, president and CEO of GMAC Real Estate Franchise Operations.

Products For Your Home: Choice Words for Choosy Buyers
By ARA

(ARA) - Anyone who thinks choice is a good thing has never been to a home show. I decided to drop in on one recently to check out the goods. Who knew there were so many things to put in, on, and around your home? If you want to increase the value of your home by adding a few bells and whistles here and there, don’t go into it blindly. To choose products that give the most bang for your buck, think in this order: health, wealth and happiness.

Health

As the old saying goes, “if you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything.” And this definitely applies to making home purchases. Before you invest in that beautiful arbor to go around your pond, select the products that will improve the health of your home.

Set the Stage for a Quick Home Resale
By ARA

(ARA) - In this buyer’s market, how do you make your home stand out in a sea of “For Sale” signs? According to the International Association of Home Stagers, investing in small improvements that make your home look more inviting and appealing to prospective buyers can increase its ultimate sale price by 7 percent and make it move up to 100 days faster.

Experts say that it’s the little touches -- like a fresh coat of paint, updated window coverings or a new floor -- that make all the difference. And since the decision to purchase a home often is made within eight seconds of walking in the front door, it’s crucial that spaces where the eye automatically rests (such as walls, windows and floors) are impeccable.

Follow these quick and simple tips from the experts to increase your home’s chances of selling sooner rather than later:

Tips for Buying a New Home
By: Matt McWilliams

Buying a new home can be a daunting task, even for someone who has owned several homes. If you recently purchased your first home, you probably found that is hard to find good advice that is truly useful. You had to learn a lot on our own, but at least now you probably feel comfortable and knowledgeable about the whole process.

My wife and I recently purchased a new home in Tennessee. Here are some helpful hints we picked up along the way:

1. Use all of the online resources available. Almost every state
and local government has a website where you can research real estate information. The data on home sales, taxes, and neighborhoods is invaluable when you are shopping for a home.

Tips for first time home buyers.
By: Ajay pats

There's good news for renters! Recent dramatic changes in the mortgage finance industry have placed home ownership within easy reach of a greater number of people. A common obstacle today in purchasing a home is the outdated notion that obtaining a mortgage is an awesome task. Often, it is a lack of simple information, rather than a lack of money, that keeps people from even considering filling out a loan application. In fact, many can afford a new home for the same or slightly more than they are paying in rent now. The following tips can help potential home buyers

Trying to Sell Your Home? Give it Scentmosphere!
By ARA

(ARA) - Looking to sell your home? All you hear these days in the news and from friends is how bad the housing market is, and for good reason. There are too many existing houses on the market, builders have had to get more aggressive in selling new homes, interest rates and gas prices are up … these are not ideal conditions.

Why You Should Upgrade Instead of Move
By ARA

(ARA) - If you’ve been thinking about selling your home in the near future, you may want to reconsider. The latest figures from the National Association of Realtors do not look good.

Sales of existing homes are down significantly. They plunged more than eight percent in March 2007, the nation’s worst one-month decline in 18 years.

The news has dashed hopes that the housing market was finally beginning to mount a recovery after last year's big slump; but bad news for one industry is a boom for another. According to Remodeling Magazine, people are responding by staying put and sinking big bucks into upgrades.