Real Estate Wire

The Mortgage Professor: Cash-out loans can cost a pretty penny

Borrowers who withdraw cash when they refinance are viewed as riskier than those who don't, because the cash withdrawal indicates possible financial distress - and that perception can raise a borrower's costs.

Once-reviled flippers could help heal some housing markets

Home flippers got a bad name during the housing boom. They sold properties for big profits in days or weeks, and the rapid price appreciation created a frenzy that led to the eventual bust.

Real estate Q&A: With retirement in full view, try to avoid refinancing

QUESTION: I have five years left until I pay off my 30-year mortgage. I received an offer to refinance, which certainly is tempting, but I'm getting pretty close to retirement. Should I lighten my burden now or try to hold on for five more years?

Assisted living industry rolls out welcome mat as boomers age

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The economy is slowly recovering, home values are rising again, and baby boomers are turning 65 at a rate of nearly 10,000 a day.

The Mortgage Professor: Borrowers should try to limit risk factors

Why did Jones pay more for her mortgage than Smith? One possible reason is that her mortgage had features that increase risk to the lender, which charged a higher price to compensate. I call these "risk factors." Potential borrowers ought to know what they are, how much of a rate penalty they will be charged when the risk factor is present, and whether or not there is any way to eliminate or reduce the penalty.

Sandy damage forces some homeowners to sell 'as is'

BEACH HAVEN WEST, N.J. - The full consequences of Hurricane Sandy will be played out in a thousand personal decisions, and for families like the Wosceks, owners of a tiny yellow bungalow on a lagoon, that meant one thing:

Builders struggle to find enough construction workers

The real estate bust idled hundreds of thousands of construction workers. Now, with housing on the mend, builders are hiring again.

80 trips to find the perfect house

Eighty houses.

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