Co-Owning a Home

/in

Purchasing a home is an exciting adventure and can be a big financial and legal investment. This can be a big step if you are single but you can always share the responsibilities with someone else to ease the financial obligations of home ownership.

Co-ownership is a great way to do this, but you want to make sure you are purchasing a home with the right person. Make sure this is a person that you can see yourself co-owning with. YOu do not want to depend on a co-owner who will miss mortgage payments.

When you are choosing a co-owner, ask about their credit score, this can have an impact on getting a home loan. Also, discuss any debt they owe because you want to have a good debt-to-income ratio. Make sure your partner has savings to help cover upfront costs.

Before taking this step, make sure you look at the advantages and disadvantages of co-owning a home. Some advantages include pooled resources, more money for a down payment and companionship. Some disadvantages are financial risk and unequal responsibilities.

When you do decide to buy a home with someone else, you will want to choose the best type of homeownership for your situation. Tenants in common means that each buyer will have an equal share of the same property. As the buyers, you can determine what each share is. For example, you can split the shares 50/50 or unequal shares like 70/30. You can sell even if your partner does not want to sell in a TIC.

Another option is Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship. In a JTWROS deed each owner has an equal interest: 50/50 for two owners or one-third interest for three owners. This means that if one of the joint tenants passes away, their share will go equally to the remaining owners. This is usually the best option when close family members are purchasing a property together.

Tenants by the Entirety TBE means there is joint tenancy with the right of survivorship. This means that each owner owns one percent of the property. This is usually what is used by married couples.

When you do figure out which deed you will use, then you can also get a co-ownership agreement that will lay out the rights and responsibilities of each owner. This will help manage any conflict. You will want to include:
-Expectations regarding the use of the property
-Expectations of other owners
-Expenses (include property taxes)
-Division of household duties
-Overnight guests
-Pets
-Furniture

Homeownership is a great live event, but you need to make sure you do it the right way. Before making a commitment to this significant investment, contact a local real estate attorney who can help you with the process.

Click Here For the Source of the Information.

Covington’s Tammany Gras

/in

Mardi Gras 2024 in Covington will now follow a Lundi Gras tradition from over a hundred years ago. This year a new krewe will be added which is named Krewe of Bogue Falaya. The theme will be “School Daze in a Mardia Gras Haze” with a reception at the Covington Trailhead.

“It perfectly embodies Covington’s Mardi Gras traditions and its rich historical background,” said Kellie Osbon, a member of the Covington Business Association and krewe member who attended the announcement. There will be three parades that will be followed up with the Tammany Gras celebration. This will be located at the Covington Trailhead on New Hampshire Street.

Krewe of Bogue Falaya which includes 600 members will have 20 traditional floats. There will also be marching bands, horse groups, Saints Superfans, dancing groups and other marching organizations.

The first grand marshal will be Grayhawk Perkins who is from Mandeville. He is a tribal storyteller, performer, musiciana nd educator. He has been a staple to the northshore for over 25 years. There is a new logo for the group and the floats will include art history, shop class, mythology and music.

Click Here For the Source of the Information.

What To Know About Beneficiary Planning

/in

When it comes to assets, who would get them if you were to die? This is handled by assigning a beneficiary.  A beneficiary is a person or entity you choose to receive anything that’s left in your retirement account when you pass away. This means if you name a beneficiary, then you make sure your funds and assets go to them if you are no longer living.

There are different types of beneficiaries. A primary beneficiary can be a person, a charitable organization, a trust or an estate. There can be more than one primary beneficiary. The allocations just have to total 100%. Contingent beneficiaries are those who receive your assets if all of your primary beneficiaries are not living. Then there are “per stirpes” designations which are added to the primary beneficiaries. An example of this is if you have an IRA and you have two kids and they are equal beneficiaries per stirpes. If you pass away and one of your kids has three children and passes, then their kids would get their half.

Naming a beneficiary is very important. If you need help, you can always contact professionals in the industry who can direct you in the right path.

Clikc Here For the Source of the Information.

Selling An Inherited House

/in

When siblings inherit a home, it can become an intense affair. This means it is always a good idea to put the right safeguards in place.

There can be disagreements on selling and if there is an agreement on selling, then there can be a disagreement on the price. Here is an example of a sibling disagreement. Kathy Richard, and Allen have just inherited their parents home. Kathy lives in the home but all three siblings now own it. Allen and Richard have an offer to sell the home and present it to Kathy. Kathy did not want to leave the home, so she did not accept the offer.

This issue can be resolved through court, but it would divide the family. If they chose to do this way they would have to file an inheritance partition. An inheritance partition  is when the court divides a concurrent estate into separate portions representing the proportionate interests of the heirs. When siblings exhaust all roads to an amicable agreement and are in a standoff, it creates a worst-case scenario.

So the court will force the sale of the property and then divide the assets between the siblings. This means it could sell for less money if it is auctioned off at the courthouse. The siblings will then have to cover the legal fees.

Another path they can take is to sell the home to one sibling. If Kathy would like to stay in the home, her brothers can sell their share to her. Remember family is more important than money or possessions.

Click Here For the Source of the Information.

An Improvement in Single-Family Production in March

/in

This March showed a positive turn when it comes to single-family production due to stabilizing mortgage rates and low inventory. April saw a positive reflection in builder sentiment. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau reported a downward turn of 0.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.42 million units. The 1.42 million units represent the number of housing units that have started.

Single-family starts rose 2.7% to an 861,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate. The three month moving average went down to 841,000 starts which is basically the gauge that is used to give the recent volatility. On a year-over-year basis they were down from March 2022 by 27.7%.

Multifamily also had a decline to 5.9% to an annualized 559,000 pace for 2+ unit construction in March. The multifamily starts includes for-rent apartment buildings and condos. ***The three-month moving average for multifamily construction has been a solid 555,000-unit annual rate which is a year-over-year basis up 6.5%.

As for regional both single-family and multifamily starts combined were 8.3% lower in the Northeast, 34.5% lower in the Midwest, 11.5% lower in the South and 28.2% lower in the West. Permits on a year-to-date basis were also down in the Northeast 24.5%, in the Midwest 25.3%, in the South 15.7% and in the West 28.1%

Click Here For the Source of the Information.