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Author: Monty

  • First-Time Homebuyers: Making Your Price Range Work

    Dear Monty: My daughter has been looking for a house through an agent. Whenever she finds ‘the right house’ for her and her future husband and bids on the house, someone has paid the full price. She is just starting off and cannot compete with people who can pay in full for a house. Do…

  • New Home Nightmare

    New Home Nightmare

    Dear Monty: We just bought a new house. Just before the sale, a heavy rain storm ruined the yard with deep gouges and washed away the new grass and topsoil. We will need to redo the yard with new topsoil and grass. Should it be the builder’s responsibility to bring the yard back?  Monty’s Answer:…

  • Snowbirds’ Tax Break: Keep or Lose?

    Snowbirds’ Tax Break: Keep or Lose?

    Dear Monty: My wife and I own two homes, one in Florida with that house in her name and my house in Ohio in my name. We are residents of Florida. We live in Florida for six months and a couple of weeks each year and live in my Ohio house at other times. I…

  • Sell at a $70K Loss or Become a Landlord?

    Sell at a $70K Loss or Become a Landlord?

    Dear Monty: We need to move to Minnesota, and we live in Texas. It’s a new build; we’ve lived in it for 2 years, got all the upgrades, and it backs up to a hiking trail and gated community outside of Austin. In theory, it should have been appreciated, but it has not. There are…

  • Trading the Open Road for a 55+ Community: What You Need to Know First

    Dear Monty: My wife and I live in our motorhome while traveling the country. Though we enjoy this lifestyle, the constant setup and takedown at RV parks is becoming challenging. We’re considering buying a home in a 55+ Florida community where friends we met during our travels purchased recently. We own a rental property in…

  • How to Conduct a FSBO Open House

    How to Conduct a FSBO Open House Dear Monty: How do we conduct a FSBO open house? We are first-time home sellers. A friend just sold their home FSBO and told us it was not complicated. We want to start the process with an open house, but we want to avoid mistakes. Can you give…

  • Dear Monty Research

    FORWARD Below is a short string of experiments inspired by curiosity. In 1966, at 21 years of age, with a new license to sell real estate and having a broker with integrity, drive, and a trusting personality, it was a super-exciting launch to what I now look back on and reflect was a long and…

  • Recruiting New Agents is Critical for Real Estate Companies

    Dear Monty: I have bought and sold several homes as a relocating employee. I have always been curious about how real estate companies establish commissions for their agents. My experiences have been from poor to good. I wonder if how they are paid has an effect on their production. Can you explain the system?  Monty’s…

  • Search by Home Type for Comparable Sales

    Dear Monty: I am preparing to buy my first home. Depending on whom I speak with or even when I read an article or datasheet, I need clarification about two common words in the real estate vocabulary. They appear to be interchangeable.  The words are “style” and “type.” Monty’s Answer: These two words have different…

  • Could this secret stall real estate evolution?

    Could this secret stall real estate evolution?

    Dear Monty: We have a significant problem with a real estate transaction. We ran across a state agency called a “real estate commission.” When we researched the commission, we discovered the commissioners are all real estate agents. We are reluctant to contact them. It seems like having a fox guarding a chicken coop. Do you…

  • Seven Reasons to be wary of MLS

    Seven Reasons to be wary of MLS

    Be wary when using the MLS.

  • Nine reasons selling a home is easy

    Nine reasons selling a home is easy

    Dear Monty: We are selling our home in 2024. We know of your involvement in PropBox. You state that selling a home with PropBox is easy. A real estate agent has argued that selling our home on our own is complicated and risky without a real estate agent. Having control and saving money sounds good,…

  • A homeowner loses $410k to an insurance company.

    A homeowner loses $410k to an insurance company.

    Dear Monty: Our washing machine hose ruptured and flooded the house. Our house insurance company (let’s call it HIC) forced us to use the restoration contractor they pitched. The contractor we wanted wasn’t available for “2 to 3” months, and HIC couldn’t wait. They said they would only cover our temporary housing if we went…

  • The five-year rule risk for first time homebuyers

    The five-year rule risk for first time homebuyers

    Dear Monty: I am writing to tell you my story. Please share it in your column to warn others. I know how the Five-Year Rule works because I lost my entire down payment. When we bought our home about three years ago, no one we dealt with mentioned the Five-Year Rule. Our real estate agent,…

  • Negotiations are an important key

    Negotiations are an important key

    The best way to negotiate is to create a fair “win-win” agreement between buyer and seller.