So you're ready to buy a house. How exciting! Naturally, the first thing you do is throw yourself into a full-scale house hunt. You spend hours browsing listing after listing on all the popular sites, falling in love with one house after another, and rejecting a few along the way. You may even stop by a few open-house events if they're close enough, just to see what a favorite of yours looks like in person.

When you finally find a house you think will work for you, you contact the real estate agent listed on the ad and set up a time to meet to view the house. When you fall in love with it - with pre-approved financing, of course - you decide you're ready to make an offer. But who is going to be your agent?

Contrary to the belief of some, the…

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When it comes to financing your new home, one of the most important (and often sleep-ruining) decisions you will have to make is whether you should go with a 15-year or a 30-year mortgage. What makes the decision so agonizing is knowing that both forms of mortgage come with significant pros and significant cons. And while only you can make the ultimate decision that makes you comfortable, it pays to know these pros and cons well before you decide. And, hopefully, get some good sleep.

Advantages of a 15-year Mortgage

The most obvious advantage to a 15-year mortgage is that you will pay it off in half the time. And there’s nothing like outright owning the place you live. Another distinct advantage, if you qualify for a 15-year plan, is that interest…

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Admit it, picking a real estate agent makes you nervous. Why wouldn't it? Your home is going to be one of your largest investments throughout your lifetime, and you want to find a quality Realtor who will make the most of your money for you. With all of the hype, marketing, friend referrals, client reviews, Internet searches, etc., it can be a daunting task to sift through the massive amounts of available information to find the agent that fits your needs. Where do you even begin? Here are 5 tips for picking the perfect Realtor:

1. Verify the license.

Each state licenses and disciplines real estate agents via a specific board. In Texas, that board is the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC). You can easily determine if a prospective agent or…

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Just because the dog likes sticking his head out the car window on the highway, don’t assume that moving is going to be as easy or fun for him. The truth is, pets can sense moving stress and can become confused quickly by a move. In fact, as many as a third of all moved pets get lost at least once because they become confused or disoriented. More than that, the physical transportation of pets can be hard on them, or even dangerous if you’re not prepared. Take a few tips from the American Humane Society to protect your pets during a move.

Get New Tags Before You Move

Remember what we just said about a third of pets getting lost? Well, many of those end up at animal shelters, unidentified and anonymous, and never find their families again. Dogs,…

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The Best Steakhouse in San Antonio 

Located just north of San Antonio in the tiny town of Bulverde sits one of the best steakhouses in Texas; The Tejas Steakhouse & Saloon. The saloon itself is practically a western art gallery expertly decorated in authentic western pieces, paintings, and memorabilia. Atmosphere aside, if you take one bite into their famous “KC Steak”, a few nibbles of their “Green Pepper Mac & Cheese”, or a sip of just about any drink you could imagine from their bar selection, it’s easy to see how they were named Best Steakhouse in San Antonio by both SA Magazine and USA Today. 

   As if the award-winning steakhouse wasn’t enough to make you want to drop what you’re doing, jam the family in the car, and head off into the…

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Buying a home with cash is not just for developers who want to buy, fix, and flip a home for profit. In fact, there are several good reasons to buy a home outright with cash if you can. Cash deals benefit you and the buyer by streamlining the process and lowering the risks of financing.

Less Expensive in the Long Run

Cash deals carry far fewer and much lower costs than mortgage financing, which carry interest with payments. If, for example, you took out a mortgage for $100,000, you could by the end of the loan's life wind up paying out $250,000. Cash deals, of course, carry no interest. You write the check, you get the keys, and your house is yours.

A Streamlined Process

Getting a mortgage can be a tricky matter. Some buyers, for example, have…

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In the United States, asphalt shingles are the preferred way to protect a home's roof. They're durable, water-resistant, and easy to replace if one goes awry. But metal roofs are an increasingly popular option for those looking to combine strength with energy savings, particularly in hot climes like North Texas.


Wait, Metal Roofs Make it Cooler?

While it may sound backwards ‒‒ especially to anyone who's ever been unlucky enough to put bare skin on a piece of metal that's been sitting out in the sun ‒‒ a properly built, properly installed metal roof could actually save you significant money on your cooling bills. Asphalt shingles soak up and hold onto a lot of heat. Soon enough, this heat migrates throughout the structure and the temperature…

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Almost all people in the past would have unanimously agreed that buying a house is a much better alternative than renting. However, the subprime crisis and economic downturn of the past decade have shaken this wisdom to the very foundation. Now, again the real estate market seems to be reviving and showing a lot of promise. Here are some points that are worth considering in the present scenario, when you want to decide between buying and renting a house.

Is Buying a House a Marvelous Investment

Housing normally shows decent appreciation (besides the housing crisis in 2008), especially since 1975, and the average appreciation has been about four percent per year. Housing is normally a sound investment during robust economies, since it is leveraged…

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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two government-backed mortgage lenders that were part of the major housing market implosion that occurred just a few, short years ago, are now part of a debate about whether these agencies are becoming obsolete.

President Obama recently said that it may be time to “wind down” these two agencies, and Republicans in the House say that mortgages should be funded primarily by private investors. However, the Senate recently proposed a bill that would still keep the government involved in the mortgage industry, thereby allowing individuals easier access to mortgages.

What is agreed is that, if the two government agencies of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were eliminated, it would likely cost the consumer more to obtain a…

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Not every remodel is a good one, as is evident by the many Americans who have made remodeling mistakes that cost them big. But getting a remodel right – the first time – can make your home more comfortable, stylish, functional—and more valuable. Here are the most common remodeling blunders and how you can avoid becoming a victim of one (or more) of them:

Not Taking Care of Architectural Issues

No one wants to deal with the large stuff when tackling the remodeling job, but ignoring the large flaws in a project will make your remodel look shabby and half-completed. For example, if you are taking on a kitchen remodel, and the windows in the room simply aren’t large enough to let in the natural light for which the kitchen requires, moving forward with…

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