Vlog: FrontDoor Insider Kris Berg offers tips for success in today’s real estate market

In this week’s vlog, we hear from San Diego real estate broker and blogger Kris Berg about her tips for buying and selling a home in today’s market.

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Homebuying and selling resources on FrontDoor:

Buyers Beware: Top 10 Home Buying Mistakes That Can Cost You

credit-application-approvedWith the flood of first-time buyers and bargain hunters in today’s real estate market, your friends at FrontDoor.com want to remind ALL homebuyers out there to do your due diligence.

Don’t get so caught up with finding a steal that you forget the basics!

In this month’s Top 10, we break down the 10 most costly mistakes buyers commonly make and offer some valuable tips.

Check it out:
Top 10 Home Buying Mistakes That Can Cost You
www.frontdoor.com/top10

Buying a home is a big deal, but it should also be a fun experience. By making smart decisions, your buyer’s thrill won’t become buyer’s remorse.

Happy house hunting!

HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan and other key players offer insight on housing recovery efforts

I’m in Washington, D.C., for a conference of the National Association of Real Estate Editors and got to hear from some of the key players in the federal government’s housing recovery efforts, including Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director James Lockhart and some of the congressional representatives on the banking and housing committees. We heard a lot about the Obama administration’s refinance and loan modification programs as well as the massive overhaul of the financial regulatory system.

Some of the notable stats from Thursday’s speakers:

–40% of those displaced by the foreclosure crisis are renters.
–16 mortgage servicers are participating in the federal government’s loan mod program. They handle about 80% of all mortgages.
–So far, 200,000 loan mod offers have been made under the federal program.
–Potential source of real estate growth is the rental market in college towns. That’s because each coming year, we’ll see a record number of high school graduates.
–Another potential demographic shift is the growing population of non-traditional households (“traditional” meaning a married couple with children).

Check out this video of HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan talking about the mission of Obama’s proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a new watchdog agency that would protect consumers from the kind of predatory lending practices that got us into the current mortgage mess and foreclosure crisis. 

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