http://www.realestatesblog.com Real estate blog Sun, 22 Jul 2007 04:00:00 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en We generally build fences for two reasons: to keep something in, or to keep something out -- even if sometimes all we want to keep out are the prying eyes. "More people are spending more time in their back yards, and they don't want the whole neighborhood watching their cookout," said ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=591 OCEAN PINES, Md. -- A few years after his parents paid $4,500 for a wooded lot here in 1968, Bill Russell began visiting the summer retreat regularly with his wife, Gemma, and their infant daughter, Kim, making the 2½ -hour trip from their Philadelphia home to the Worcester County community ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=584 Q: DEAR TIM: The air conditioning in my home has never seemed to work well. My recent promotion and transfer has me moving to home that is in the early stages of construction. What can I do to ensure that the new home has a central air-conditioning system that keeps all ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=585 With an important exception, lenders price mortgage loans on the assumption that borrowers will include taxes and insurance premiums in their monthly payments. These payments are placed in an escrow account under the lender's control. When a payment is due, it is made by the lender. The escrow requirement protects the ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=586 Credit scores have become increasingly important for American consumers. A survey released this week shows that more people seem to have realized this and have figured out their scores. Yet most Americans do not understand what those scores mean or how they affect their ability to get mortgages, according to the ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=587 Q: Our principal residence is in the District, and we have a second home in Delaware. I know that when we sell our principal residence, we will be eligible for the exclusion of tax on up to $500,000 of the gain. I also know that we can deduct our main ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=588 For the first time in its history, the American Institute of Architects bestowed one of its top national awards, the Firm Award, to a female-owned partnership, Leers Weinzapfel Associates. The Boston firm, founded in 1982 by Andrea Leers and Jane Weinzapfel, was cited for its record of consistently outstanding architectural ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=589 Q: DEAR BOB: My wife and I are considering selling our home. We have noticed that the median sales price of houses where we live has declined about 3 percent in the past 12 months. However, before that, home prices were going up 5 to 11 percent annually. We would ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=590 Federal Reserve policymakers expect the slumping housing market to restrain U.S. economic growth this year and next, as more Americans fall behind in their mortgage payments and lose their homes to foreclosure, Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told Congress yesterday. Home sales are likely "to remain sluggish for a time" while declining ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=571 As Montgomery County faces more foreclosures, officials are launching a campaign to help homeowners understand, avoid and resolve mortgage problems. Officials last night had a public information forum on the issue and said more will be scheduled. The county's Office of Consumer Protection also is taking steps to increase its visibility.Source ... http://www.realestatesblog.com/?p=572