10 Mistakes Homebuyers Make (and How to Avoid Them)

10 Mistakes Homebuyers Make (and How to Avoid Them)

Buying a home can feel like a sprint with a finish line called closing day. The problem? Most expensive homebuyer mistakes happen when buyers rush, guess, or skip the “boring” steps.

This guide keeps it simple. Below are 10 common mistakes in the home buying process — plus the practical fix for each one. While many apply to first-time homebuyers, repeat buyers fall into the same traps more often than you’d think.

If you do nothing else, slow down long enough to confirm:

• the numbers

• the condition

• the timelines

That alone will put you ahead of most buyers.

Money mistakes that can wreck your budget before you even move in

Financial stress often starts…

97 Views, 0 Comments

How the 10-year Treasury Guides 30- year Mortgage Rates (A Simple, Practical Guide)

How the 10-year Treasury Guides 30-year Mortgage Rates (A Simple, Practical Guide)

Why do mortgage rates jump after a headline? Because lenders watch the 10-year Treasury yield like a hawk. Most 30-year fixed rates track that yield plus a spread that covers lender costs and risk. The bottom line is simple: when the 10-year rises, mortgage rates usually rise, and when it falls, mortgage rates usually fall.

That spread has been wider than old norms in recent years, thanks to bigger market swings. You will get a clear rule of thumb, real numbers you can test, and quick tips to time a rate lock.

What the 10-year Treasury is and why it guides 30-year mortgage rates

Meet the 10-year Treasury: a simple yardstick for money

A Treasury note is a…

788 Views, 0 Comments

What Is Title Insurance and Why Is It Needed?

Picture this: you’ve just bought your first home, celebrations all around. Then, a few months later, someone shows up claiming they inherited the house years ago. Turns out
there was a missing signature during a transfer long before you moved in. Suddenly, your dream home feels less secure. That’s where title insurance saves the day. It shields
buyers from hidden past mistakes, oversights, or even fraud in a property’s history—protecting your investment from surprises, big and small.

What Title Insurance Actually Is
Title insurance is a policy that protects you and your lender from issues with a property's title that existed before you bought it. It’s different from other types of insurance like
home or car insurance, which cover things that might happen…

261 Views, 0 Comments

Appurtenance Explained - What Remains in a Real Estate Transaction

What is an appurtenance? An Appurtenance is what remains in a real estate traction. Technically, it’s defined as something that belongs to a larger more valuable entity. This item must be a permanent addition using permanent methods and if it's removed it would leave considerable damage to the property

Typically, this is anything attached to the home. What’s included in this can vary from state to state, but generally we’re talking about mirrors, faucets, ceiling fans, things of this nature. 

What about something like a wall mounted TV? In the state of TN, the TV is considered personal property, and the mount is considered an appurtenance. 

Let’s talk kitchen appliances. If they're built in they're included. For example, the range,…

2626 Views, 4 Comments

What is Shadow Inventory?

So what is shadow inventory? 

This sounds scary, but it’s really not. Shadow inventory is a term we use in Real Estate to identify property that's not active on the market but we know it's available. For instance,  say I know that John Smith is going to be transferred next month. He's called me about listing his property, but he's not quite ready- he hasn't got it painted and touched up or done some minor repairs. It’s going to be a few more weeks before the home is technically “market ready.” But, as your agent, I may be able to show you the home anyway, especially if I think it’s perfect for you. 

Just about all agents in the industry have a list of this “shadow inventory,” especially  in a market where supply is so tight. It's important to…

1803 Views, 0 Comments

What is an Escalation Clause?

What is an Escalation Clause?

Today’s market is definitely seller-oriented. That means that oftentimes buyers are finding out that they have to compete when buying a home. On of the ways to be competitive is to write an escalation clause.

An escalation clause  is simply a clause that states that your offer is “x” amount, but you will increase your offer by a certain increment up to a maximum amount. For instance let’s say the property is  listed $250,000. We make a full price offer,  but then put a clause that says “I'll pay a thousand dollars above any other offer up to a maximum of $275,000.” 

Should the seller receive multiple offers, they can take the highest one (they must show you proof of the offer!) and you can purchase the…

1795 Views, 0 Comments

What Is a Back Up Offer?

What is a back up offer? 

So,  what is a backup offer and how do you write one? A back up offer is exactly what it says-it’s an offer that “backs up” a current contract that’s already in place. 

Say you find the PERFECT property but someone else has already made and offer on it, and the seller has already accepted the offer. You may still be able to place a back up offer on the property. This means that if something happens and the first offer falls through, you are next in line. If the original buyer backs out because of an inspection, or if their loan falls through, or any other contingency is not satisfied and that prevents them from following through on the purchase, you get your shot. When working with a back up offer, we negotiate…

1871 Views, 0 Comments

How is Square Footage Calculated?

How is Square Footage Calculated in Real Estate

So, how is square footage calculated? First of all, it’s important to note the difference in “Heated Square Footage” and “Total Square Footage.”  Heated square footage is the total of the living areas. Total square footage is everything under the roof-including garages, covered porches-everything. 

An appraiser is concerned with heated square footage. The part of the house that is heated and cooled-where you LIVE. 

As Realtors, we use this information to pull comps to help us determine the best listing price for your home. We’ll pull sales comps in the area of similar properties and then we just take that average price per square foot for all the recent sold, multiply that by…

3519 Views, 0 Comments

Property Survey?

 Do I Need a Property Survey When Buying a Property? Quick Look at When & When Not…

Let’s talk about surveys! A lot of people are relocating here from other states and they're asking questions about surveys. Are they required in Tennessee? No, they are not! In some states a survey is not an optional item, but here it is. 

With that in mind, let’s talk about when you do and do not need to get a survey. 

If you're buying a property like a large track of land out in the country in a rural setting that may not have transferred ownership in decades, been in a family forever and nobody really knows exactly where the property line is, or is the line is described as “the tree line over here the creek bed over yonder and the ditch line to…

1420 Views, 2 Comments

Your Guide to Virtual Showings

Your Guide to Virtual Showings

Today we’re going to talk about Virtual Showings. 

In Jackson, we have a lot of industry, which leads to a lot of people moving in from other areas. This means that you might not be in town, or be able to quickly come to town, when a great property hits the market. Thanks to technology, you can now see that home virtually! 

Basically, I go to the home and walk you around using Skype or Zoom or FaceTime or something like that. Or, I can make a video of the home and send it for you to watch. 

Either way, you can “walk” the property with out being there. As we go around, you can ask questions about what you see and I can make observations as I see the property in person. 

In a market…

646 Views, 0 Comments