Congratulations to Greenville/Spartanburg Area
ExpansionManagement.com released its
Top 40 Real Estate Markets and the Greenville / Spartanburg area is listed as Number 9 in the country. That is great!
Also, the area is number 46 in the list of the
Top 50 Hottest Cities. This really should not come as a surprise. That area includes a number of corporate headquarters, BMW and it equal distance from Atlanta and Charlotte, arguably the biggest metro areas in the south.
I have been to Greenville numerous times and the downtown area is WONDERFUL. IN fact, my wife and I went there overnight for a wedding anniversary and had a great time. They have many shops and dining within walking distance and a great park right downtown. They are a model for cities looking to revitalize their downtown areas.
Congratulations!
Labels: General Real Estate News, Upstate
Save a few dollars
Refinances are not at the level that they were a few years ago. Back in 2003 and 2004, many people took advantage of the 40-year low rates and did a new loan. However, even when refinances slow down, they never completely go away. This is because there are still the "cause-driven" refinances. Those are done because of the need to get equity to fund some event (college, vacation, etc) or to get out of an adjustable rate that is about to reset to a much higher rate.
If you are considering refinancing, a good way to save a few dollars is to use the same title company or attorney you used for the last loan. Title insurance is one of the largest single line items that the attorney or title company charges. However, if they are simply redoing a loan from a few years ago, they only need to update the information. You can get what is called a "re-issue" rate on the title insurance. This rate can save as much as 50% of the full title insurance charge. In addition, many attorneys or title companies will reduce the search fee and closing fee. They are feeling the pinch of slower business right now, just like everyone else, and will likely reduce their fees a little just to get some business.
I hope this helps.
The power of using your home.
A mortgage is simply a tool. Nothing else. Too many people fear the "big, bad mortgage debt" for reasons that they may not even understand.
Something that comes up in almost every closing that I do is "so what would it take to pay this thing off early?" This is socializing at work. We are taught that we must pay this mortgage off as fast as we can.
While a debt free life is enviable, for must of us, it is not realistic, at least not for people like me in their 30's. Therefore, the question becomes, how do we approach this?
I think that instead of throwing extra money at the mortgage lender, set that money to the side. I will expand more on this as time moves on, but the power of this very evident. Setting it to the side gives you liquidity, safety and a rate of return
. Dave Savage shows that even the Chicago Fed believes in this strategy.
