DALLAS — 2023 brought big news in the housing market: I became a licensed Texas real estate agent!
OK, OK. Maybe that wasn’t the "big news" part.
No, it was another wild year for mortgage rates, home prices and the amount (or lack thereof) of home inventory for sale in 2023. And, as I was studying for my real estate license this year, I made a lot of notes about stuff we should all know about real estate.
I've now turned that into a special series of reports that we're calling "Right on the Money: Home Schooling."
For the special, we pulled together some of those reports, as well as a couple of non-housing stories that were among the most watched "Right on the Money" episodes in 2023, and put them together with some fresh interviews for an hour-long ROTM special that can be viewed at the top of this article and on WFAA+.
As always, there is so much we don’t have time to get into in each episode, so I've included extra information and important links with the articles that go with each report.
Below, you will find the links to each report from the special. Click on one of those, and it will take you to the full article for that report, along with the extra info and links.
Homeowner’s insurance: Claims and premiums need-to-knows
If you own a home, you probably experienced a significant spike in your homeowner’s insurance premium in 2023, as many carriers raised their rates. It might have a chilling effect on you when it comes to the need to make a homeowner’s insurance claim -- because you certainly don’t want your premium to rise further.
Make sure your property has a homestead!
In 2023, I was surprised by some of the statistics I received from central appraisal districts in Texas that showed some homeowners may be missing out on a huge benefit that would result in lower property taxes for them. The homestead exemption is even more critical now that new property tax relief legislation has been signed into law in Texas.
How to protest your appraisal (the season starts again pretty soon)
As I have done for years, I also found and reported new information about the property appraisal process. There is a lot to know in this space! This year, I thought it would be valuable to talk about some best practices for being successful with your protest -- and to pass along details about how often protests are successful.
As I said, there is a lot to know in this space. Here is additional information and expert advice on how to protest, and here is some great insight (from an insider!) on protesting.
Shopping for a reputable roofer? The state isn’t very helpful, but there are some good resources...
I went through a North Texas rite of passage in 2023: I needed a new roof because my old one got beaten up by hail. There is nothing fun about that process -- particularly the part where you shop for who will get up there and make the covering over your head all better. The state of Texas doesn’t do much to regulate this critical industry, either.
You might be thinking, "That is great information, but I think I have hail damage from the summer, and now it’s got to be too late to file a claim!" Well, maybe not. I explain here how the window to file that roofing claim may stay open longer than you thought.
The North Texas business selling interesting stuff that was bound for the landfill
This was the kickoff to my "Greener on the Money" series that started in 2023 and will be a much bigger focus for me in 2024. These reports are at the intersection of the environment and the economy. It turns out that, in a lot of ways, efforts to address climate change are contributing to a burgeoning industry where businesses are finding creative and lucrative ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
We might as well call down payments 'up payments' considering how it takes a big pile of cash in this market.
Cobbling together that initial stack of money to buy a home has gotten harder in recent years. As home prices have risen steadily, gathering a percentage of that total price to put down is a real challenge. Because of that, many homeowners in Texas have been paying for private mortgage insurance (PMI).
Home sellers are getting creative by helping buyers to ‘buy down’ their mortgage rate
Mortgage rates in 2023 rose pretty spectacularly. That gave some homebuyers pause, as you might expect. But some home sellers sweetened the pot to entice buyers to make a deal by offering the buyer free money as part of their sale. Those proceeds can then be used to "buy down" the mortgage rate.
Landlord looking to re-up your lease by going WAY UP on the rent?
2023 was a tough year for many renters as well. One reached out to explain how his landlord offered a lease renewal that blew him away. And he says that, when he approached the property manager, they were blown away too! They told him it was a computer algorithm that helped formulate that offer. So, he did some homework and got them to come way down.
Of course, while you don’t have a right to lower rent, you do have a lot of rights as a renter. In this article, I explain some of them.
What affects your credit score the most?
As The Fed has raised interest rates to slow a hot U.S. economy, many of us are finding out how important it is to protect our credit scores. Because of the rate-raising actions they have taken, even with a great credit score, we are paying more to borrow money than in recent years. But those costs really surge if you have less-than-stellar credit. It's no wonder, then, that this was one of the most popular Right on the Money episodes in 2023.
First-time homebuyers: There may be assistance for you that you didn’t know about
Being new to home buying can be daunting and expensive. But there are programs to help first-time homebuyers. And a note here: Not all first-time buyers are actually first-timers. It can include those who haven’t owned a home for several years. I explain that below.