Preparing to Buy a Home

There's lots to think about when you're planning to buy a home. How can you help yourself feel more confident about finding the right home for you? It starts with doing a little homework in advance: make lists of your must-haves for the home and your top neighborhoods or particular criteria, like "good schools" or "15 minute commute to work." Financially, you'll want to save for your down payment and work on your credit score if it's on the low side - most lenders require a minimum score of 620.

This HouseLogic article and video have more ideas for your preparations: 7 Steps To Take Before You Buy A Home.

When you're ready, bring your lists and other homework to your Realtor and start looking! You'll know what you need and what you can afford, and your Realtor will try to find you the closest match. If you're in the Grand Junction area, contact me so I can work with you to get you into your next home.

Multi-generational Homes Are Coming Back

You may have heard of "boomerang" kids, adult children who move back in with their parents after college. According to a Pew Research report, 57 million Americans (18.1% of the population) lived in multi-generational homes in 2012. That's a big increase from the 28 million Americans (12.1% of the population) who lived in multi-generational homes in 1980. However, looking further back this trend toward multi-generational living is actually a trend back to multi-generational living: in 1940, 24.7% of the American population lived in multi-generational homes.

Multi-generational homes don't just help young people facing a recession - they also help retirees spend less of their retirement savings and create homes where young parents may have built-in babysitters or aging relatives have assistance available.

Read more about this trend here The Sensible Resurgence of the Multigenerational Home. Would you share a home with your parents or your adult children? Or, depending on your age, maybe both?