The time to apply for a home equity loan is when you don't need it and rates are low.

Home owners often lament, "I've got a lot of equity but it's not in my pocket." One way to put that equity into your pocket is to sell. Another is to refinance your existing loan with a new, larger loan. The third option, which many people forget to consider, is to take out a home equity loan.

Home equity loans are junior, second to and subordinate to the existing first mortgage. Because they are smaller loans, typically home owners will pay smaller fees, if any, to tap that equity . . . read more about a home equity loan.

More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub:

• Where to Get a Mortgage
  
• Questions to Ask Your Mortgage Lender
  
• Repairs Before Resale

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When you have a home to sell before you can buy another, it can be scary to receive notice of first right of refusal.

Sellers generally don’t advertise that a contingent offer is acceptable. In fact, some won’t even consider a contingent offer — meaning the buyer needs to sell an existing home before the buyer can fulfill the terms of the contract to purchase — because they don’t understand how first right of refusal works.

In most cases, it’s no skin off the seller’s nose to accept a contingent offer. Sometimes it’s the motivation needed for another buyer to submit an offer to purchase. Why? Because the desirability of a home seems to go up when somebody else wants it.

Some types of contingent contracts allow the seller to give the buyer first right of refusal when another offer is received or the seller may be free to sell to the second buyer . . . read more about First Right of Refusal.

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If you have an urge to launch a few DIY projects, you've come to the right place.

I caught the DIY home improvement bug right after I bought my first home. At first, I was terrified. I wondered what I would do if I turned on a light switch and it didn't work. But then I figured it wasn't rocket science. So, I bought a book about simple electrical repairs and read it.

Sure enough, the day arrived when a light switch didn't work. The bulb wasn't burned out. It was the switch. So, I marched down to the hardware store and bought a new switch for about $1.19. Turned off the electricity to the house. Removed the old switch, hooked up the new switch and my problem was solved.

Do you have any idea how empowering that is to be able to fix your own stuff? Next thing I knew, I was up on the roof cutting holes to install skylights . . . read more about DIY Projects.

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My neighbor across the street told me I did not need to send her MLS listings because she could access them online.

For a moment, I wondered if maybe she was a licensed as a real estate agent or maybe as an appraiser. But no, turns out she thought she could find online listings through the Sacramento Bee.

She doesn't get every new listing the minute it goes live on MLS. Moreover, she doesn’t receive all the information, and the part that she does receive isn’t the whole story.

And that’s the problem with many listings that buyers find online. Sometimes they are outdated; sometimes the homes are already sold, and sometimes those homes were never for sale at all.

Home buyers who want up-to-date information need to get it from a MLS member — generally a real estate agent — who can set up the buyer on automated searches directly from MLS. Real-time information is what propels the world today. Don’t settle for yesterday’s news. Buying a home is hard enough. You need accurate data . . . read more about MLS.

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When interest rates are historically low, like they are now, a fixed-rate mortgage can be the best thing going.

I’ll admit that I have used adjustable-rate mortgages in the past. But that was because I knew I would not be living in those homes for very long — at least not long enough to take the hit when the loan adjustment period rolled around. It was also a good option for keeping payments low while I fixed up the place to sell it.

Not to mention the spread between fixed-rate mortgages and adjustables back then were about two points in rate.

Nowadays, adjustable-rate mortgages don’t make a lot of sense to use. The spread difference is too thin, sometimes only 1/4 of a point. Hardly worth the risk. Because most home buyers prefer fixed-rate mortgages. They always have and probably always will.

Plus, when rates are low, it often makes sense to refinance into an even lower rate when it becomes available. I feel fortunate to have snagged a fixed-rate mortgage below 5% five years ago, and I’ve never regretted refinancing. I made up the closing cost difference within 18 months and have been riding the gravy train ever since. In fact, it’s one of the reasons I’m not keen on moving any time soon. But don’t tell my please-don’t-make-me-move-again husband. I like to keep him on his toes . . . read more about a fixed-rate mortgage.

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I went to the pros to get advice on how to stage a short sale.

Ryan Brown is a principal of Brown Design, a Los-Angeles-based interior design and residential firm. But fans of Bravo TV will know him from the show, Flipping Out, which sports a colorful cast of characters who are turning over million-dollar renovations in southern California.

I asked Ryan Brown for his advice on staging a short sale, primarily because many short sale sellers can't afford or don't want to pay for a professional home stager. Besides, many home sellers want to know how to stage a home on a budget, even that home isn't a short sale. I figured that Ryan might be willing to disclose insider secrets, and I was right. Ryan has a keen eye for design and shared some great money-saving tips . . . read more about how to stage a short sale.

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With so many real estate agents vying for your business, it's tough to evaluate agent interview answers if you don't know what they mean.

Knowing which questions to ask a real estate agent during an interview is one thing. But figuring out how to evaluate the answers you receive is an entirely different matter. For example, say a listing agent you are interviewing tells you that her 2009 statistics show a 99.7% sales-to-list price ratio. What does that mean, and why do you care?

If you’re a seller, you care deeply because it says the agent prices her properties right and she’s aggressive at demanding her sellers get full price without concessions. Besides, last year was a slow market in many parts of the country, and many homes weren’t selling at all; so 99.7% is a fabulous ratio for last year as a listing agent.

However, if you are a buyer, it gets trickier. Because in some buyer's markets like Sacramento, for example, prices have been increasing in certain price ranges due to heavy demand. Multiple offers are the norm, and listing agents are pricing homes low. So a buyer's agent might have a ratio of 110%, but it's not a poor reflection on that agent. The better question might be how many buyers have closed escrow this year with that agent? Because some buyers are losing out on every deal they write on . . . read more about Agent Interview Answers.

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Sellers who decide to sell as a For Sale By Owner, that is as a FSBO, without representation, often start out with the best intentions; however, most for sale by owners end up listing with a real estate agent.

Why is it so difficult for a for sale by owner to find a buyer? Especially if inventory is tight, buyers should be flocking to for sale by owner homes. The three biggest reasons a for sale by owner is unsuccessful is pricing, condition and marketing.

Moreover, some buyers are afraid to approach a for sale by owner seller. They may wonder what’s wrong with the house because it’s not listed in MLS or they may figure the seller isn’t really serious about selling. A buyer might feel a fierce loyalty to their own agent and prefer to look at homes the agent recommends.

Here are for sale by owner tips that will help you overcome those hurdles and objections. From pricing your home right, to preparing it for sale and marketing it like a pro, this advice is how a real estate agent would sell your home . . . read more about For Sale By Owner.

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The dreaded words being bantered about in real estate right now are the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC).

I don't know of a single real estate agent nor mortgage broker who likes the new HVCC rules for appraisals. It's turned our entire industry inside out in Sacramento and across the nation as well. The Home Valuation Code of Conduct is causing headaches for home sellers and home buyers alike.

The HVCC was intended to help but it's created a monstrosity. The new appraisal process hinders transactions, puts appraisers out of business, costs home buyers more money and, simply put, it's a disaster . . . read more about Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC).

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If you're not getting any showings for your home, it becomes even more imperative that you do something differently to increase buyer traffic.

Little is more frustrating when you're trying to sell your home than watching agents and buyers stroll into the home for sale across the street and wishing they were looking at yours instead.

You may feel like dashing out into the yard and waving a red flag or sprinting across the lawn to stuff flyers into their hands. To increase traffic to your home, perhaps instead you may want to implement a hard-hitting plan of action that guarantees to generate showings. Especially in a buyer’s market. You can’t wait for buyers to decide whether your home might be worth viewing. You need them inside. Now.

See, the thing is you can't sell your home if you can't show it. And you can't show it if buyers don't come over to see it . . . read more about Increase Buyer Traffic.

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