Whether you are looking to buy Northern Virginia real estate, or are refinancing, it is worth it to consider entering a 15 year mortgage over a 30 year one. If you can handle payments, which will be a bit higher, you’ll enjoy the lower interest rate and faster equity accumulation.

Take the example in the table below, which compares $200,000 mortgage numbers for both a 15 year term at 3.875% and a 30 year term at 3.75%. Even though both of the rates are appealing, the 15 year term will end up building you substantially more equity at the end of five or ten years, even if you adjust for the extra $442.94 per month higher payment.

Another benefit of the 15 year term loan is that the extra money you spend on your monthly payment forces a savings situation that on a longer term loan might end up being spent rather than saved or invested. Contact me if you’d like a recommendation of a trusted lender for your next refinance or purchase of Northern Virginia real estate.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. I use these same proven strategies every day.

“Anyone may arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible…for nobody owes any public duty to pay more than the law demands.”
Judge Learned Hand

This quotation by the well-known federal court Judge Hand refers to federal income tax, but the same opinion can be applied to any tax including property tax. Most property tax is based on an assessment, a value placed on the property by a government taxing authority.

Properties are assessed every few years, and as market values rise, property assessments usually do as well. When property values decline, as they have in these recent years, assessment amounts should fall. However, this is not always the case.

If you don’t believe your assessment reflects its true value in your northern Virginia real estate market, it is beneficial if you can provide hard proof to your tax department. Find recent comparable sales in your area, being sure to include other homes of similar size, condition and location. Check your property tax card to be sure that the number of bedrooms and square footage is correct. If your home’s condition has declined, be sure to provide photos to clarify.

As your real estate professional, I can assist you with finding comparables, obtaining filing deadlines and procuring other pertinent information needed to make a challenge. A lower assessment will give you lower property taxes and more money to spend elsewhere. As northern Virgina real estate property values rise again, your assessment and taxes will increase as well, but they will most likely be closer to the true amount that “public duty” demands.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

I am always on the lookout to help owners of northern Virginia real estate benefit as much as possible from their home investment. Did you know that you can rent out part or your entire home and not have to declare that rental income? You as a homeowner can benefit from a little known provision in the tax code that does not require taxpayers to recognize the income derived from renting their home for less than 15 days per year. See Rental of property also used as home on IRS.gov.

You can benefit from a popular local event or nearby college football weekend by renting out your home to visitors for those occasions. According to the above IRS document, if you rent your home for less than 15 days in a tax year for these kinds of purposes, you do not have to pay taxes on any fair market rental income that you charge. Be sure, however, not to go over the 14 day maximum in any given year. Also be aware that the IRS does not consider discounted rents below market value or free housing to relatives in determining days of rental.

The stipulations are very specific and depend on percentages of personal use versus rental use. Short-term rentals of unoccupied northern Virginia homes for sale may not qualify. Be sure to talk to your tax professional for more advice on taking advantage of this tax tip.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

Here is another easy way we can save money as homeowners of northern Virginia real estate: automatic thermostats. With automatic thermostats, it is easier to regulate our home temperatures efficiently, saving time and money without sacrificing our heating and cooling comfort levels. They are especially useful in multi-zoned homes, where you can control temperatures in different parts of the house at different times of day without having to run around and manually make changes.

You can choose from several types of programmable thermostats that can automatically adjust temperatures at certain times of the day or week. If there is a temporary adjustment you want to make, the programming can be overridden without changing the regular schedule. Some will even alert you when it is time to change your filter.

For an even higher-tech edge, you can purchase a Wi-Fi enabled thermostat and remotely adjust the temperature from any internet-connected device, such as a laptop or Smartphone. You can control your thermostat from a different floor, or even a different city! It would be especially nice on a cold winter day, when you can turn up your home thermostat from your car on your way home from work, and walk in the door to a cozy temperature.

Automatic thermostats are reasonably priced at under $100, an amount you should quickly recoup with lower utility bills. You can install fairly easily if you are a do-it-yourselfer, or you can have a heating and cooling professional install it for you.

Buyers, keep your eyes open for this little extra comfort as you visit homes for sale in northern Virginia.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

In this age of technology and the prevalence of personal computers, everyone has either experienced or knows of someone who has lost their data from a crashed hard drive, an accident or a burglary. For those who had created a backup, this data loss was more inconvenient than critical. We all know of the importance of backing up important information.

Owners of northern Virginia real estate, how about the personal belongings in your home? Do you have a “backup” for them? I don’t mean an actual duplicate of each item, but a detailed documentation with their descriptions and approximate values. That physical journal or electronic file is your “backup” in case you need to make an insurance claim.

If your home or other building sustains a total loss, your insurance company usually pays the face value of the policy. Since personal property may comprise as much as 40% to 50% of the total value of your policy, the insurance company will require a detailed accounting of your belongings, with receipts and the most recent inventory.

The better your inventory, the more smoothly your claim will be processed. You can easily document your items with a digital camera or video recorder. These visual files, along with detailed descriptions and/or receipts will serve as proof of your belongings and make valuation easier.

It is best to store your inventory off site of where your belongings reside for safe keeping. If you have a hard copy, the safest place is a bank safety deposit box. Online storage of an electronic copy in the “cloud” might be the best place to insure you’ll always know where it is. Contact me for a free Home Inventory form; it’s my way of assisting owners of northern Virginia real estate.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

This month’s issue of ‘Healthy Wealthy and Wise’ is now available. My Free Consumer Newsletter is loaded with useful Consumer & Health Tips, Wild Trivia, Funny Jokes, Entertainment, Quotes, and a bit of Money Saving ‘Insider’ advice from my Real Estate Radio Show!

The extra costly weekend call to the repairman to fix an item that really wasn’t “broken”; it has probably happened to most of us owners of northern Virginia real estate. The feelings of relief that it wasn’t a serious problem are overshadowed by the frustration that we have to pay for the service call.

Next time, before you call the repairman, check out some of these easy fixes to common household problems:

• Disposer not working – Check the reset button, which is usually on the bottom of the device. If the disposer is making a humming sound, check to see if the blades are stuck. Try using a wooden broom handle to gently loosen the blades while the device is turned off.
• Air conditioner not working – Check your electric breaker box. If the breaker for your air conditioner has been thrown, try flipping the breaker all the way off, and then on again.
• Electrical outlets not working – Many times electrical plugs in bathrooms or outside are connected to a ground fault interrupter (GFI). The GFI will be a wall outlet and it may be located in the garage. Locate the outlet and reset the button that may have tripped.
• Clogged drain – An easy way to remedy a slow or clogged drain is to use the water pressure from a garden hose. This is a two-person job; you at the drain holding the hose, and a helper turning on and off the water. A full-blast flow from the hose may clean out any blockage.

Realtors^® know reputable, reasonable and reliable service contractors. Whether you are preparing a home to put on the northern Virginia real estate market or arranging repairs required by a sale, we’re here to share our contacts with you to help make home ownership better.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

Registering a new product makes it easier for manufacturers to contact us regarding recalls on defects or other safety issues. However, it is still possible to miss a recall notice on a product, and it could put you or your family’s life in jeopardy.

The U.S. government now offers a subscription service that will notify you when recalls are made on vehicles, tires and child restraints. This free notification service is offered through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at SaferCar.gov.

On the website, you can choose the make and model year of the vehicle(s) you are interested in monitoring, and also choose to be notified about recalls on all models of tires and child restraints since 2002. You will be notified via email of all recalls that match your specifications. To unsubscribe or change your account settings by logging into the “Manage Your Notifications” section of the website.

I’m committed to helping you, as an owner of northern Virginia real estate, discover ways to protect your home’s value, improve maintenance and reduce expenses. I am also dedicated to providing valuable time-saving information that will give you more opportunities to enjoy your home.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

Many owners of northern Virginia real estate have felt the impact of foreclosures and short sales in their neighborhoods.  If you have been affected with a foreclosure or short sale, have you taken advantage of the Mortgage Forgiveness Relief Act of 2007?

Congress passed this law to avert undue financial hardship on homeowners who found themselves in a foreclosure or short sale situation, and then faced with additional income taxes on the forgiven amount. The lender provides the homeowner a 1099C form showing their forgiven mortgage amount as income, and the homeowner must file a Form 982 with their tax return.

The law allows forgiveness from paying taxes on this income if the property is the owner’s primary residence, and only debt used to build, purchase or improve this residence will be forgiven. Any additional refinancing amounts not used for improvements on the property will still be taxable.

If you are considering or in the process of a short sale, be aware that this law and its tax benefits will expire on December 31, 2012. To ensure that their forgiven debt is not taxable, homeowners need to complete the sale process by the end of the year. It is best to consult with a tax professional to find out how the law will affect your individual situation and your northern Virginia real estate property.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.

The Housing Affordability Index is a tool that provides homebuyers with information about the best time to buy a home for the least relative expense. The index includes the northern Virginia real estate market as well as the rest of the country. The index is also broken down into four regions of the country to include local market variables.

The National Association of Realtors’ economic department has recently released figures showing that the 2011 calculation is the highest in the index’s thirty-year history. The most recent month released, December 2011, was 194.9.

The two key factors measured in the index are home prices and mortgage interest rates. Both of these components are at their lowest since 2006, causing a measurable increase in the index, and a better sign of home affordability. An index score of 100 or above is considered beneficial to the buyer, with median priced homes being affordable to median income families.

What does the Housing Affordability Index really mean to consumers as they consider homes for sale in northern Virginia? It is yet another indicator that this is a good time to buy a home; maybe the best opportunity we will ever see. If you have good credit and a down payment, consider taking advantage of the market conditions now.

If you are thinking of selling, learn how the nation’s Top Realtors sell their personal family homes for more money than their neighbors. Get my Free CD, or Free Report of the 10 Best ‘Insider’ Home Selling Strategies that I extracted from over 8 years on my Real Estate Radio Show interviewing the Industry’s Top Experts.

If you are thinking of buying, find out how the Industry ‘Insiders’ Save $25,000 – $50,000 on their personal home purchases, and how you can too. Get my Free CD or Free Report Top 10 Insider Home Buying Secrets of the Wealthy. We use these same proven strategies every day.