Real estate news

Local attorney attends estate planning seminar

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Lawrence attorney Bob Ramsdell attended the “Estate Planning in Depth” seminar presented by the American Law Institute and the American Bar Association, June 14-19 at the University of Wisconsin Law School in Madison. The seminar featured a faculty of planners drawn nationwide and was designed to address advanced estate planning issues. Read story.

Financial advice for real-life problems

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Over the years, I’ve found that people end up in financial trouble not just because they don’t have enough money. It’s because of poor decision-making. Read story.

Bounced check no harm to credit

Friday, June 26, 2009

Q: I am planning to refinance my mortgage. I am self-employed, and a $4,000 check that one of my clients wrote for some work I did was sent back to me because he didn’t have enough money in the bank to cover the $4,000. Read story.

Homeowning not seen as wealth strategy

Friday, June 26, 2009

Nearly half of American adults who participated in a recent survey said they no longer believe that homeownership is a realistic way to build wealth, the National Foundation for Credit Counseling reported this week. Read story.

Midwest home sales post decline

Wichita, K.C. among cities with bigger drops

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

First-time homebuyers continued to help buoy sales of previously occupied homes in the Midwest last month but not enough to offset continued concern over the unstable economy, according to two reports released Tuesday. Read story.

Tell insurer about remodeling to get full coverage

Friday, June 19, 2009

We did a fairly small ($6,000) remodeling job on our house in 2007. Now we are planning a bigger job that will involve lots of construction, including the addition of two new bedrooms and bathrooms. Are we required to report this information to our insurance company? Read story.

Co-owning can be dicey if 1 wants out

Friday, June 12, 2009

My twin brother and I inherited our parents’ home after they died in the 1990s, and we have been renting it to tenants for the past several years. The mortgage was paid off in 2001. I would now like to sell the place and use my share of the proceeds to start a business, but my brother wants to hold on to it and keep renting it out. We hold title to the property as joint tenants, so I cannot simply sell my half-interest to someone else. What can I do? Read story.

May real estate numbers looking up locally, but market still trending downward

Market still a long way from a positive trend, outgoing appraiser says

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Douglas County’s May real estate numbers looked somewhat better than they did in April, but the market was still far from showing a positive trend, County Appraiser Marion Johnson said Wednesday. Read story.

Unpaid property-tax bill could spur foreclosure

Friday, June 5, 2009

Although our mortgage loan payments are up-to-date, we did not have the cash to pay the final installment on our property-tax bill due in April. Our lender has threatened to begin foreclosure proceedings if the tax bill is not paid immediately. Can the bank do this, even though our loan payments have been made on time? Read story.

Home sale could help save credit rating

Friday, May 29, 2009

Q: I lost my job last year and have been unable to find a new one, and I can no longer make my monthly mortgage payments. Read story.

Foreclosure woes spread to borrowers with good credit

Friday, May 29, 2009

The mortgage crisis is spreading and hitting new heights: Borrowers with good credit now make up the largest share of foreclosures as job losses and pay cuts exact their toll. Read story.

Plan suggests raising suburban residents’ taxes

Friday, May 22, 2009

A plan that would require people who live in the suburbs to pay a larger share of the cost of fixing our nation’s crumbling infrastructure is gathering support in some real estate circles. Is it true that Congress is considering a bill that would raise taxes on people who live in the suburbs in order to pay for new roads and improvements, public-transportation projects and the like? Read story.

Home repairs that shouldn't be ignored

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

You might be tempted to put off fixing your home until the economy rebounds. Rebuild the patio? Sure, right after your 401(k) rallies. Read story.

Housing bottom in sight

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Single-family home construction posted a modest rebound in April, raising hopes that the three-year slide in housing is leveling off. But a bulging supply of unsold homes, record levels of foreclosures and still-falling home prices suggest a sustained recovery isn’t likely until next spring at the earliest. Read story.

Tax credits pondered for lawn equipment

Friday, May 15, 2009

Is it true that Congress is considering a bill that would provide tax credits to people who buy so-called green lawn mowers, grass trimmers and other types of garden equipment? Yes. In late April, three Vermont legislators introduced a measure that would provide a 25 percent tax credit of up to $1,000 to taxpayers who purchase a variety of power garden tools — from mowers to tillers — that use “little or no fossil fuel.” Read story.

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