Houston Real Estate Blog - Diego Jaramillo, Realtor®

First time home buyers have the opportunity this year to purchase a single family home using several national and state incentives.  These incentives include the $8000 tax credit, MCC credits, gift contributions and low FHA downpayment requirements. One such item I'd like to talk about today is the TDHCA 90-Day Down-Payment Assitance ...

As the old saying goes, “everything is bigger in Texas,” including problems associated with asbestos. With a large petroleum industry based in the state, many problems have occurred as a result of oil companies using asbestos at their facilities. Giants such as Mobil, Shell and Gulf have been stationed in Texas. This industry has been ...

1. Find a Trustworthy Insurance Agenta. Install that person as a key member of your team!b. Find someone you trust and likec. Find an agent that can handle most of the business you refer 2. Use the HECK out of your Insurance Agent:a. Run CLUE reports and Flood Zone Determinationsb. Strategize if there are existing claims on propertiesc. Discuss ...

Managing your credit is a long and sometimes confusing process. It seems everywhere you look, some program or Web site offers credit fixes, offers and deals that make it seem so easy to consolidate debt or, worse, get "easy credit" to buy the things you need. They offer "free credit analysis"-many of which will most likely lead ...

NEW LAW MAKES MORTGAGE INSURANCE UP TO 25% LESS EXPENSIVE FOR BORROWERS Thanks to a new law passed by Congress, mortgage insurance premiums will be tax deductible in 2007 for many home buyers*. That means you can enjoy Private MI’s predictable payments AND deduct the premiums from your income taxes, just like a second mortgage. And unlike a ...

One of the common reasons First Time Homebuyers hesitate to jump on the opportunity to purchase a home is FEAR - fear of the unknown, fear of risk, fear of ownership, etc. One of the common reasons why people do buy property is CONTROL. The only way to attain home ownership is to eliminate your fears and have the desire to take control. ...

Residential AppraisalsAppraisals are an important part of the Home Buying Process.  A real estate appraisal helps to establish a property's market value.  Your lender will require an appraisal because it wants to make sure that the property will sell for at least the amount of money it is lending. An appraiser's report is ...