Renovate or Tear Down: When Shouldn?t a House be Saved?
In neighborhoods all across America we are seeing old homes being torn down and replaced by new construction. Ilyce interviews Lane Epstein, an architect and vice president of Baker Construction Group, about how to decide if an older home is appropriate for renovation or tear down.

Real Estate Consultant Raises Red Flags
A home owner in Chicago has been offered to sell her home through a real estate consultant. Ilyce warns the seller that she should get several appraisals and hire a good real estate attorney.

FHA Loans Are Bouncing Back
It used to be that many sellers refused to list their home for sale with FHA terms because few wanted to deal with the persnickety attitudes of FHA appraisers and...

Life Estate on Home Could Lead to Gift Tax
A reader lives in a home that her brother inherited from their parents. They are trying to figure out how to give her "life estate" without having to incur a gift tax. Ilyce and Sam suggest that an estate attorney could figure out several ways to transfer the property without triggering a gift tax.

Questions to Ask About Homeowner Associations
First-time home buyers are being priced out of many real estate markets around the country. Let's face it: lots of cities have experienced 25% appreciation or more per year over...

How to Write Purchase Offers
First-time homebuyers, veteran house hunters, lawyers and plenty of real estate agents make mistakes when writing purchase offers. Mistakes are not only costly, but they can delay offer acceptance...

Working With Contractor? Get Lein Waivers From Subs
A reader had work done on his home and his contractor left town without paying the sub-contractors. Now there is a materialman's lien against the home. Ilyce suggests always getting lein waivers from the sub-contractors before giving the contractor his final payment.