Laura Silvestri's Blog

Posted on 02/18/2025

Photo by Bryan Clayton via Pixabay If you buy a townhouse or condo, you’ll find that you’re more than likely a member of a Homeowners Association, or HOA. What that means, in a nutshell, is that you, along with everyone else in your community, own the exterior of the buildings and the common areas. If your roof fails,...

HOA

Posted on 02/04/2025

Signs Your Roof is in Need of Repair

Photo by Joel Dunn via Pixabay Your roof is an important part of your home, and for something of its size, it is surprisingly delicate. Even minor problems can have a lasting impact on the integrity of your home. Learning how to spot some of the most common problems allows you to seek out help when you need...

Home Maintenence

Roof

+ 4 more

Posted on 01/28/2025

Avoid a Complicated Home Selling Experience

Selling a house sometimes can be complicated. But if you understand the home selling journey, you may be better equipped than other sellers to avoid potential pitfalls. Now, let's take a look at three tips to help you simplify the home selling journey. 1. Analyze the Local Housing Market The age and condition of your home may have far-flung...

Selling Your Home

Tips On Selling

+ 3 more

Posted on 01/21/2025

Will Applying for a Mortgage Hurt My Credit Score?

Preparing to buy a home is a long and stressful process for many. You’ve spent months, or even years, saving for a down payment, planning your future, and building your credit to ensure you get the best possible interest rate on your loan. Then you find out, when getting preapproved for a mortgage, that your credit score dropped by...

Credit Score

Mortgage

+ 4 more

Posted on 01/09/2025

Home improvement return on investment guide

Even if you're not planning to sell your home in the near future, it's helpful to know about the best options for home improvement return on investment. You put time and money into upgrading your house, why wouldn't you want to enjoy the benefits down the road? To help you get the best ROI, here are some home...

Home Impovements

Home Projects

Posted on 01/02/2025

Mortgage basics for homebuyers: Online preapproval & more

When preparing to buy a home, many potential buyers turn to online preapproval to jumpstart their loan process. While it’s a good idea to compare multiple lenders to find the best down payment option and interest rate, getting mortgage preapproval online can have its advantages. What is mortgage prequalification? Prequalification for a mortgage is based on a basic...

Mortgage Preapproval

Mortgage

+ 3 more

Posted on 01/01/2025

Pre- Approval is a More Involved Process Than Pre-Qualification

Photo by Tayeb Mezahdia via Pixabay When you start looking for your dream home, you need to know how much mortgage you will qualify for. Your real estate agent might ask you to get a pre-qualification letter. However, just because you are pre-qualified doesn’t mean that you will get the loan. You need a pre-approval for that, and...

Buying A Home

Pre Approved

+ 1 more

Posted on 12/24/2024

Should You Request a Home Showing?

Requesting a home showing usually is a great idea if you find a residence you may want to buy. In addition, there are many things you can do to get the most out of any house showing, at any time. Now, let's take a look at three tips to help you attend a home showing and determine if...

Posted on 12/17/2024

Native Gardening: Why the Trend Is Flourishing

Photo by Larisa Koshkina via Pixabay Restoring native habitat to our surroundings is like pressing the "refresh" button on biodiversity. Homeowners who embrace native gardening are making big contributions to healthy landscapes, which is great for maintaining the native ecosystems. Making a Difference—Beautifully Native plants are the greenery that would grow in certain areas with or without human...

Gardening

Landscapes

+ 5 more

Posted on 12/10/2024

Reaching Down-Payment Goals

Saving enough funds for the down payment on your home can be an obstacle for everyone. With general living costs and accumulated debt (Student Loans!), many young couples and professionals don't believe they'll ever save enough to move from being renters to buyers. There are steps you can take to put aside the funds you need for your...

Home Buying Help

Down Payment

+ 3 more

Posted on 12/03/2024

Key Issues to Address Before You Sell a Home

If you're planning to sell your house soon, you should prepare for the property selling journey. This can mean identifying potential home selling obstacles so that you can address these issues right away. Now, let's take a look at three issues that house sellers commonly face, along with tips to address these problems. 1. Exorbitant Initial Asking Price You...

Tips On Selling

Selling Your Home

+ 2 more

Posted on 11/26/2024

6 Hidden Costs of Owning a Home

Photo by Gabby K from Pexels The cost of owning a home is much more than just your mortgage. There is a sizable list of additional costs prospective homeowners should plan for when thinking about buying a home. Here we will go over the primary additional costs of home ownership you might not have thought of. Property Taxes...

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