Roof Repairs – Cont. I just finished driving around the West suburbs for the first time in about 10 days (I’d been traveling), and noticed that roofing company signs had sprouted like dandelions. Almost every block had at least one, and many had several signs up (the politicians are going to be hard-pressed to find...Read More
Hail Damage “Heads Up” In the wake of a major hail storm at the end of May, many area homeowners have been inundated with roofing contractors offering their services. Some times the overture is as direct as a knock on the door; in other cases the sales pitch arrives in the mail box in the...Read More
Gas Prices Hit Home Yesterday’s Star Tribune ran a nice story by Jim Buchta called, “Latest Must-have Home Feature: A Short Commute.” (see also my April 28 post titled, “Centripetal Force”). Here’s the link to Buchta’s story: http://www.startribune.com/business/20629604.html?location_refer=$urlTrackSectionName The comments that follow — 31 and counting — are as interesting as the story. Suffice to...Read More
One-Car Garage Comeback? Just as some fashions — think, wide lapels and narrow ties — can come back into vogue if you wait long enough, home features forrmerly thought of as out-of-fashion (if not obsolete) may be ripe for a revival. Topping the list? One-car garages, at least in city neighborhoods. Up until now, of...Read More
Monetary Policy for Dummies Because homes are overwhelmingly purchased with borrowed money (more than 90%, to be exact), to understand the housing market’s prospects, you have to have a clue about how credit works. In turn, that requires at least a passing acquaintance with the credit market’s overseer and regulator, the Federal Reserve (still reading?...Read More
Long-Term Rates Jump The most significant recent development affecting real estate is a fairly sudden surge in long-term interest rates. In just the last three weeks, the cost of a 30-year, fixed rate mortgage has climbed from around 5.8% to almost 6.5% — in lenders’ parlance, a rise of 70 basis points. This change is...Read More
