Whether you’re thinking about putting your house on the market or you plan to live in it for the long haul, every owner wants their home to be appealing. What is it, exactly, that makes a home attractive and welcoming? It’s usually a combination of qualities, many of which are fairly simple to attain. Consider these easy ways to add instant appeal to your home.
http://bit.ly/AddAppeal
Prosperity Home Mortgage, LLC (Prosperity), has recently launched a new down payment assistance (DPA) program known as Home Advantage. Home Advantage offers eligible home buyers a financing option that requires no money down, and the program is now available in markets across the country!
While pest threats can vary according to your region of the country and your type of home, there are some basic steps that you can take to help prevent pests from making themselves at home.
http://bit.ly/TipsforPests
Introducing Home Advantage, a Nationwide Zero Down FHA Mortgage1
Prosperity Home Mortgage, LLC (Prosperity), has recently launched a new down payment assistance (DPA) program known as Home Advantage. Home Advantage offers eligible home buyers a financing option that requires no money down, and the program is now available in markets across the country!
In a housing market with tight inventory, Home Advantage may create an opportunity for not only first-time buyers, but also sellers who are planning to purchase their next home, as well.
“As a mortgage company, we’re committed to offering new loan programs designed to serve a wider range of home buyers,” said Tim Wilson, president and CEO of Prosperity. “We understand that the combination of a down payment and closing costs can be a big financial obstacle to many would-be home buyers. These programs are designed to help diminish or eliminate that obstacle, so our clients can focus on other matters related to buying a home, such as planning their move.”
Used in combination with a FHA first mortgage, Home Advantage offers down payment assistance as a second mortgage up to 5 percent of a home’s purchase price, which helps buyers cover the down payment and closing costs to purchase a home.
Home Advantage features:
“We have built a reputation for providing the highest quality of service and support to our customers,” said Wilson. “We take pride in offering some of the most competitive loan products in the market, and we look forward to serving even more customers with Home Advantage.”
Spending more time at home can have many advantages, but one of the drawbacks can be the additional clutter that often accumulates. HSA℠ shares six ways to decrease clutter and increase the enjoyment of your home.
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Turning the page on a new calendar year means a fresh start for you and your home. In addition to setting personal and professional goals for the New Year, why not set some for your house, too? HSA℠ shares five ways to usher in 2021.
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Three of the projects they outlined cost less than $1,500 but have returns on investment of 73 to 129 percent.
Here are the short project descriptions and cost breakouts.
Whether you use your attic as a storage space or are thinking of repurposing it as a living area, it’s critical that the area is insulated. By sealing off your attic with fiberglass insulation, you’ll spend an average of $1,300 and you could recoup $1,470 upon resale. That’s right, you should theoretically make money by insulating your attic. Additionally, you should see a drop in your heating and cooling bills once your attic is insulated. When it comes to your return on investment, attic insulation is one of the top-returning home improvement projects you can take on.
Whether your garage door has had an unfortunate run-in with your mini-van or it’s simply dingy after too many Central Kentucky winters, the time has likely come for it to be replaced. With a cost of just $1,650 on average and a 73 percent return on investment, you won’t lose much money on this project whether you sell this spring or in a few years.
There’s a reason front doors are often used on homeowner magazines, movie posters and book covers — they’re eye-catching and draw in attention. This is especially true when it comes to buying a new home. Most staging and home seller tips recommend that sellers purchase a new front door or paint their current front door so it’s bright and inviting. Whether a buyer is looking online or driving by in person, a bright front door will capture their interest.
The Cost vs. Value Report verifies that this isn’t just a great trick for drawing buyer attention, it can also pay off at closing. Across our area, this project should cost $1,380 and could recoup $1,775 — a return on investment of 129 percent!
Homeownership has many benefits — and some of the primary financial benefits come at tax time! Here are some key points you need to know about homeownership and taxes:
As a homeowner, you are required to pay an annual property tax on your home (if you are a renter, you’re already paying your landlord’s property taxes; it’s just included in your monthly rental payment). This annual tax can provide a nice deduction on your tax return!
The amount of property tax you pay is based on the area in which you live (how much money the local government requires) and the value of your home. In Kentucky, the local tax assessor determines the value of your home via periodic appraisals. If you believe that the assessor’s value is incorrect, you can challenge it, sometimes by simply calling or visiting the assessor
Income tax benefits of homeownership also include the ability to deduct mortgage interest payments on your tax return. Plus, if you paid “mortgage points” when you purchased the home in order to reduce your interest rate, those costs may be deductible as well.
Almost every item you own, including your car and television, is a capital asset. But your home is one of the few capital assets that actually might increase in value over time — which is great in that it helps build equity. As a general rule, when you sell a capital asset that has increased in value, you need to pay what are called capital gains taxes.
When it comes to selling a home, however, most homeowners qualify for an exclusion of up to $250,000 of the gain. If you’re filing jointly, this exclusion rises to $500,000. This means that if your home rises in value, you can — up to a substantial point — reap benefits without being penalized at tax time.
Please note that these insights are not intended to provide specific tax or legal advice – be sure to see your CPA for the best advice concerning your own, unique situation.
For guests interested in learning the history of Keeneland and an overview of operations for both racing and sales, guided walking tours are available. This outside walking tour with an experienced Tour Guide takes guests through the Keeneland Paddock and Grandstand, grounds, and when available, to the world-renowned Sales Pavilion. Following the track side tour, fans are invited to visit the Keeneland Library, one of the world’s largest repositories of information related to the Thoroughbred. Tickets may be purchased in advance online or at the Keeneland Welcome Center for $15 per person; children 12 and under are free. Tours will be limited to 25 people, so visitors are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance. The tour lasts for one hour and largely takes place outside – rain or shine. For your comfort, we ask that you dress for the weather and wear appropriate shoes for walking/standing/climbing stairs.
Artists’ sketchbooks can be visual diaries of foreign trips or a detailed accounting of domestic bird sightings, accompanied by detailed notes on plumage. All of these and more can be found in the sketchbooks and loose sketches of the artists Willard Metcalf and Thomas Satterwhite Noble.
The parade and festival are part of an all-day celebration that begins at 8 a.m. with the Shamrock Shuffle to benefit Lexington Habitat for Humanity. At 10:45 a.m., the “Blessing of the Keg” at the Alltech tents at Robert F. Stephens Courthouse kicks off the free festival. The parade begins at 1 p.m., rain or shine.
A home is a major financial investment for most people. In addition to building equity, many people aim to increase the property’s value with the goal of reaping a profit at resale time. HSA℠ Home Warranty provides some creative ways to enhance your home without necessarily spending a lot of money or time.
For more info: http://www.onlinehsa.com/mediacenter/19-10-18/Clever_Ways_To_Add_Value_To_Your_Home.aspx