Real Estate Dispatch

By Peter G. Miller   

By Peter G. Miller

Have you ever looked at the paperwork you get when financing or refinancing a home?

Really. No kidding. Have you ever read the stuff people want you to sign?

By Jim Saccacio, RealtyTrac Chief Executive Officer

If you feel like the escalating costs of real estate have priced you out of the market, think again. It may be time to investigate the vast opportunities available in the foreclosures market.

The FFIEC allows you to find population, housing and income data for an address in the U.S based on Census Tract Information

The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University offers residential building permit activity for all states and MSAs (metropolitan statistical areas) in the U.S. The data is available from 1980 through present. Historical nonresidential building permit data are also available from 1980 through 1995.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Research offers useful real estate trends and statistics including the American Marketing Survey. 

Some interesting REALTOR® Statistics from the  2007 National Association of REALTORS® Member Profile

For some idiotic reason, I decided to do the finish out myself. So, for the last month, I’ve been at the house installing light fixtures, putting up ceiling fans, replacing door and cabinet hardware, putting in new toilets, installing appliances etc. This last stage is crucial. So many times, people do a great job remodeling a place but then skimp on the fixtures and hardware. For the average consumer, this is the first thing they notice. You don’t have to spend a fortune on light fixtures, just be sure and go above apartment grade stuff.