Buyer Guides
Closing Costs for Harrisonburg, VA Homebuyers: A 2026 Guide
A line-by-line look at what Harrisonburg and Rockingham County buyers actually pay at closing in 2026, with real numbers, state taxes, and ways to low...
Buyer Guides
39 articles in Buyer Guides
Buyer Guides
USDA Loans in Rockingham County: Your 2026 Guide to Zero-Down Home Buying in the Shenandoah Valley
A 2026 buyer's guide to USDA Rural Development loans in Rockingham County, VA. Zero down, 2026 income limits, eligible towns, fees, and how to qualify...
Buyer Guides
How to Write a Competitive Offer on Homes for Sale in Harrisonburg, VA
Writing a winning offer on homes for sale in Harrisonburg, VA takes more than top dollar. Here is how to structure a competitive offer in the Valley.
Buyer Guides
How to Choose the Right Real Estate Agent in Harrisonburg
Looking for real estate agents in Harrisonburg, VA? Here's how to vet local agents, the questions to ask, and red flags to watch for in the Valley.
Buyer Guides
What to Expect During a Home Inspection in Harrisonburg VA
Buying a home in the Shenandoah Valley? Here's your complete guide to the home inspection process in Harrisonburg VA — what inspectors look for, how m...
Buyer Guides
First-Time Homebuyer Guide for Harrisonburg, Virginia 2026
A comprehensive guide for first-time homebuyers in Harrisonburg, VA. Learn about the current market, financing options, local programs, and step-by-st...
Buyer Guides
What Buyers Want In A House
If you are considering putting your house on the market in the near future, you may be wondering what prospective homebuyers are looking for before…
Buyer Guides
Update- Mortgage Loan Relief in Light of COVID-19
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae both announced on March 25th, 2020 that a two month deferral option is available for some borrowers who are facing a short...
Buyer Guides
Types Of Mortgage Loans
A huge aspect of purchasing a home is finding the right mortgage loan for you. There are several different types of mortgages that each have their own...
Buyer Guides
What Will Your Money Buy You?
In our last post we discussed how to figure out how much home you can afford. The next question to answer is, what will your money buy you? That all d...
Buyer Guides
Loan Commitment Letter: The Second Financing Checkpoint
One of the main hurdles in a contract is financing. This is why their are two points at which sellers ask for verification from the buyers that things...
Buyer Guides
Buyer's Checklist Before Purchasing Land
McGaheysville Thinking of buying a plot of land to build your dream home on? Be sure that you are fully informed on the parcel of land. Don’t purchase...
Buyer Guides
How To Prepare For a Home Inspection
A home inspection is one aspect of selling a home that many first time sellers often overlook. Caught up in the excitement of change, potential for...
Buyer Guides
How to Get a Lower Down Payment on a House
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac support mortgages with as little as 3% down. This is a significant drop from their previously supported 5% minimum down pay...
Buyer Guides
What is Title Insurance and Should You Buy It?
If you haven't bought a home, or you haven't in a while, you may not have heard of titile insurance. There are two parts to it and it is usually only…
Buyer Guides
Do Buyers' Agents Want You To Spend More?
There are a lot of stereotypes and assumptions when it comes to REALTORS and rightfully so! I believe that there have been a lot of cutthroat and sale...
Buyer Guides
What Information You Will Need to Apply for a Mortgage
If you are looking to buy a house you will most likely need to apply for a mortgage. To do so, you will need to go through the application process. Th...
Buyer Guides
Do You Pay Closing Costs When Buying a House in Cash?
Although they say cash is king, the unfortunate answer is yes, you will still pay closing costs on a cash deal. Let's look at why you still pay closin...
Buyer Guides
One of The Best Loan Programs for First Time Home Buyers Just got Cheaper!
If you are thinking about buying your first home and are worried about the recent rise in interest rates, there is some relief. The Federal Housing…
Buyer Guides
What You Can Do if You Can't Pay Your Mortgage this Month
There are many reasons people are put in a position of not being able to pay their mortgage including a loss of income and unexpected expenses. The wo...
Buyer Guides
Mortgage Rates Are Still Very Low
As you can see, rates have been hovering for the past few months. One of the clear advantages of today's market is being able to borrow at rates this...
Buyer Guides
A Significant Tax Advantage to Home Ownership: Mortgage Credit Certificate
If you are a first time homeowner, or not owned a home as your primary residence for the past 3 years, you could be able to benefit significantly from...
Buyer Guides
How Much Money Do You Need to Buy a House?
Are you considering buying your first house? You are probably wondering how much money you will need to bring to the table. While, each mortgage pr...
Buyer Guides
How Much Are Student Loans Affecting First Time Home Buyers?
Graph from NAR Research The fact that student loans affect first time home buyers is not surprising. However, the amount of impact may take you by sur...
Buyer Guides
Schools Out For Summer and So Are Buyers?
You often hear that summer is the busiest time for real estate. It makes sense. Teachers are out of school and able to devote time to buying/selling t...
Buyer Guides
Should you Consider an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM)?
No. Most financial advisers do not suggest using ARMs so don't even consider it. To help better explain why they're bad ideas, I will debunk some reas...
Buyer Guides
Mortgage Rates Are Still Low
Mortgage rates have been historically low for some time now. If you've been paying attention to mortgage rates, this may seem underwhelming to you bec...
Buyer Guides
How Much Money Will You Need to Buy A House?
Are you considering buying your first house? You are probably wondering how much money you will need to invest in your first home. While, each mortgag...
Buyer Guides
How to Buy a House
...No Matter Where You Are. If you are looking to buy a house in Rockingham County, I will be happy meet with you and go over the process in as much d...
Buyer Guides
Repeat Home Buyers in 2014
Earlier, I gave some insight to what first time home buyers looked like in 2014. Click here for this blog entry. We are now going to explore what the…
Buyer Guides
First-Time Home Buyers in 2014
- First time home owners made up 33% of national home sales in 2014. This is slightly less than the historical norm of 40%. - The typical age of a…
Buyer Guides
Know Your Rights as a Mortgage Borrower
If you are looking into obtaining a mortgage, you should know your rights. Obtaining a mortgage is one of the biggest loans you will ever get and you...
Buyer Guides
How the Mortgage Company Decides Your Max Loan Amount
The first thing lenders will look at is your debt-to-income ratio. The less debt you have and the more income the better. The debt-to-income ratio com...
Buyer Guides
First-Time Homebuyer Savings Plans
A First-time Homebuyer Savings Plan allows any Virginian to set aside up to $50,000 toward the costs of closing on a new home. The earnings on those f...
Buyer Guides
What is Private Mortgage Insurance, or PMI?
If you've been dreaming of buying a home and are looking into various mortgage possibilities that don't require a full down payment, you've probably c...
Buyer Guides
Mortgage Points Explained
If you've done some research on Mortgages, you probably have stumbled upon the term points. You may be wondering about the purpose of points. Do you w...
Buyer Guides
How to Begin the Process of Buying Your First Home
Are you ready to buy your first home? It's a wise and important decision. If you didn't see my previous post, here are a few great questions to ask yo...
Buyer Guides
How to Know if You're Ready to Buy a Home.
Are you tired of throwing your money away with renting? Have you been considering investing in a home? How do you know if you are ready for this seemi...
Buyer Guides
Mortgage Pre-Approval
When looking for a house, what's the first step? Often people think it's contacting a Realtor, searching Zillow, or going to an open house. These are...