Local Real Estate News

• Property value notices mailed to Douglas County residents contain error - 03/01/2010
  The 2010 change of value notices mailed Friday to Douglas County property owners contain an error, county appraiser Steve Miles said.
• Foreclosures down in January - 02/11/2010
  The number of U.S. households facing foreclosure in January increased 15 percent from the same month last year, and a surge in cash-strapped homeowners who’ve fallen behind on mortgages could be on the way.
• Buyers often face pro-rated property taxes - 01/29/2010
  Q: I signed an agreement to purchase my first home in November, and the deal closed a few days ago. Although the seller had paid this year’s property taxes in full, the closing statement shows that I had to pay $971 for part of the bill through my closing expenses. Did the closing agent screw up or, worse, try to rip me off?
• Buyers should scrutinize home inspectors - 01/22/2010
  Q: We are buying our first home. You recently wrote that all buyers should make their purchase offer contingent on getting a satisfactory report from a professional home inspector, but how can we be sure that we hire a good one?
• Home resale profit can remain tax-free - 01/08/2010
  Q: My wife and I have lived in the same house for the past 21 years, but now we are planning to sell it and then rent a home in a retirement community. Can we still keep up to $500,000 in our resale profit tax-free, or is this tax break only available to people who buy another house instead of renting one?
• Interest rates should remain steady - 01/01/2010
  We are thinking about refinancing our mortgage. Would it be better to do it now, or to wait and see if interest rates will drop even farther?
• Local home sales post increase in November - 12/25/2009
  The end of 2009 brought holiday cheer for Lawrence-area real estate agents as they look to 2010.
• 3 North Poles, but only 1 is for tourists - 12/25/2009
  Q: Is there a real city called “North Pole,” or is it just a bunch of icebergs floating around at the top of the Earth?
• Smart tax moves now can save thousands later - 12/18/2009
  Q: Our monthly mortgage payment is due at the start of each month. If we made our payment that is due on Jan. 1 now, would we be able to deduct the mortgage-interest portion of the payment on our 2009 income-tax return?
• Sellers shouldn’t appear at open houses - 12/11/2009
  Q: We hired an agent two weeks ago to sell our home, and our first open house is scheduled for next weekend. We were planning to stay for the event and help show visitors around, but our agent says it would be better if we spent the afternoon somewhere else because being present for the event might hurt our chances of making a quick sale. What do you think?