Residential for Sale in Columbus!
MSL Remarks "This beautifully maintained home features newer kitchen with all stainless steel appliances that stay! Cozy family room features ceiling fans and wood burning fire place. Great lot with mature trees in a quiet neighborhood, convenient to I-270."

Residential for Sale in Westerville!
MSL Remarks "Beautiful 2 BR ranch fee simple with 2-car attached garage. Spacious living area includes kitchen w/eat-in area, 1st floor laundry, large Master BR (19' x 13'6'), large living room w/WBFP, dining room & more! 2nd BR has access to Florida room. Close to clubhouse w/indoor pool & workout area. Hurry!"

Conventional wisdom says, "Don't pay off your mortgage early." So are you foolish to consider an early payoff? Absolutely not. By adding just $50 to $100 to your mortgage payment every month, you can save thousands of dollars in interest, pay off your loan quicker, and eliminate a major monthly expense.

The argument usually given against paying a mortgage early is that you can make investments with your extra cash which pay higher returns, such as mutual funds or stocks and bonds. This approach enables you to take the mortgage interest deduction and have easy access to your money, in case you need it. These are all definite pluses, but are not guaranteed savings results.

Any extra income which an investment might generate, over your home equity appreciation, can be offset by a bad year in the investment market. Investment earnings can virtually eliminate the income tax advantage of your mortgage interest deduction, since stocks and bonds are likely to generate a fair amount of dividends, interest income and capital gains.

It isn't as simple as conventional wisdom--consult a financial expert.

When you make an offer on a house, it is accompanied by an earnest money check. Earnest money is intended to demonstrate that you are "in earnest" about purchasing the property. The earnest money check is made out to the listing company. The selling brokerage holds the check unless it is negotiated in the contract that the listing brokerage holds it.

What happens to this check?

The party holding the check acts as an escrow agent until you go into closing. Earnest money is returned at closing to the buyer, and it is the buyers choice if they want to take the check and deposit it in their personal account, or use it toward the amount they have to take to closing. Real estate brokers are required by law to keep escrow funds in a special account. These funds cannot be used to pay office expenses, for example. If you don't complete the transaction, the purchase contract determines the disposition of your earnest money funds. Be sure to review this part of your contract with the Realtor.

If you are in default on your agreement, the funds may go to the sellers, so be sure that you understand the deadlines in order to avoid breach of contract and forfeiture of your deposit. If you have any questions, be sure to ask!

A traditional Ranch Style house is only one story, but a split level, "Raised Ranch" house has room to grow. A finished basement with large windows creates extra living space below, while a raised roof leaves room for bedrooms above. Critics may say that a Raised Ranch house lacks personality, but there's no question that this practical style fills a need for space and flexibility.
Raised Ranch Style
(Split Level)
c. 1932 - present

Raised Ranch style houses have many of these features:

Two stories
Attached garage
Partially submerged basement with living quarters
Low pitched gable roof
Asymmetrical
Large windows: double-hung, sliding, and picture
Sliding glass doors leading out to patio
Lack decorative detailing, aside from decorative shutters and porch-roof supports

About the Raised Ranch Style

A popular variation of the Ranch house style, a Raised Ranch home has several levels. A split-entry Raised Ranch may have a main floor and a partially submerged basement. A split-level Raised Ranch has at least three levels. The front door leads to a entranceway between the other levels, with stairs leading up and down. The main living areas and bedrooms tend to be located on the main floor, while the garage and a large room are in the basement. Thanks to the placement of large windows in the lower level, the basement can be a pleasant living space.
Description and photo courtesy About.com

You have to have a reasonably good financial foundation before a lender will approve you for a mortgage loan. They look for a good credit rating, enough money in the bank to make the initial down payment and pay the closing costs, and a stable employment situation. People who have just qualified for a mortgage loan are usually in better-than-average financial shape. If you have just bought a new house, don't be surprised if you receive a lot of offers from retail stores and other credit card companies offering you pre-approved revolving credit.
Be careful about accepting too many of these offers! New home owners have often wiped out most of their savings to buy their home, and they need everything from linens to furniture to get settled into it. With all of the immediate credit available, it may be very tempting to just say "charge it." If you're not careful, you could be "up to your ears" in debt very quickly. It takes discipline to reach the goal of home ownership--and it takes that same kind of discipline to maintain financial health after you leave the closing table.

Time to check your house for seasonal safety.
Taking a few simple --but smart-- measures can greatly increase your home security:
* Keep your doors locked and make sure all doors have deadbolt locks of at least 1" to 1 1/2".
* Have "pry-proof" locks on your windows.
* Keep shrubbery trimmed so that neighbors can see your windows and entrances and they don't serve as hiding places for intruders.
* Keep all entrances well-lighted at night. There are a variety of inexpensive spotlight systems with motion sensors which will turn on the lights when any movement takes place within a certain range.

When you own your own home there are many happy and exciting moments. Unfortunately, dealing with a homes plumbing isn’t usually on the list of these happy moments.
If you have a leaky faucet that is drip-drip-drip keeping you awake, take a piece of dental floss and tie it around the faucet head, Position the floss so the water will run down it into the sink without any sound!
Then go back to sleep and sweet dreams!
Be sure to get that faucet looked at in the morning, or as soon as possible, a steady drip can run up that water bill and cause unsightly stains in your sink.

I'm excited to work with you to find your dream home!

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Home for Sale: 1268 Spring Brook Ct
Westerville, Ohio
MLS#2806903