When considering purchasing a new home, it is important to consider how much you are willing to pay to afford it. It would also be beneficial to find the monthly housing cost including insurance and taxes. Buy a home that you can afford – roughly two and a half times your yearly salary. Your credit score should be clean as well. Make sure your credit card bill is in order several months before you start looking for a house. A good credit score gives you a better chance at getting a competitive mortgage.

One may want to consider how long they are staying. If you aren’t planning on staying for at least five years it doesn’t make much financial sense to buy a house. If you’re thinking of buying an old home, keep in mind the amount of home repair is likely to be much higher. Newer homes are built with energy efficiency in mind, and more be more cost-effective in the long-run. Hiring a house-inspector before purchasing can be pricey, but it could also save you from far more expensive mistakes.

Plan your location wisely – consider all possible social amenities and infrastructure such as electricity, water, roads, and stores. Even if you don’t have kids, better schools often come with better neighborhoods. Take the overall quality of houses in and around your neighborhood into your account. Check your quality of structure, water control facility, paint, roof, circuit breaker, plumbing, heating, cooling, insulation, fireplace etc. Anything you can thing that might cost you in the future – find out before you buy.

When buying a new home, a myriad of details must be taken into consideration. For example, what kind of neighborhood do you want to live in? Does it need to be family friendly or do you want it near the nightlife? Do you want a small neighborhood or a sprawling backyard? After you have decided on your location, you must then choose your house plan. Do you want it out of a magazine or do you want to hire an architectural firm?

Selecting a builder is essential to the construction process. A good builder will be able to answer essentially every question you may have about the house, as well as suggest special modifications to potentially make your life easier. He/she should also suggest design patterns before construction begins. A custom home builder should also increase design flexibility. There is a plethora of builders on the market, you can afford to be choosy. Consider visiting model homes in the area to see what kind of themes you may consider in your new home. Don’t just leave your builder to it after you’ve decided what you want. Keep talking to your builder and see how the house is coming along. It’s your house, make sure it’s done right.

Your options in your house are far wider with a home construction company. Size of bedrooms, number of rooms, number of bathrooms, kitchen placement, and quality of construction, are all effectively dealt with by building your own house. All of your plumbing and wiring should be in perfect condition because it will all be brand new.

Be prepared for delays in the process. Your builder may give you a time-frame, but it is unlikely to be perfect. Weather, supply shortage, and human error are common causes for delay.

If you’re interested in Charleston/Mount Pleasant area real estate access the digital version of the print magazine from this link. www.ReadMountPleasantMagazine.com . For more information of order your New Home Kit click here: www.charlestonbuilders.com/charlestons-new-home-kit/

The average 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage is at the lowest level in almost nine months as mortgage rates dropped for the fifth consecutive week straight, according to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
The 30-yr, FRM averaged 4.12% for the week ended May 29, 2014, down from last week’s 4.14%, but up from 3.81% a year ago. The 15-yr, FRM hit 3.21%, declining from 3.25%, and slightly up from 2.98% last year. What does this mean to you. Your mortgage new mortgage is still very affordable. Today you can get more home for you money. But next week that may change.  For Carolina new home information visit www.SouthCarolinaBuilders.com/Network/ to access the largest number of builder blogs and websites in the Carolina’s. From any of these sites or blogs you can read interviews with regional builders, take tours of neighborhoods and meet the Realtors who market new homes. If you have any questions about new homes in the Carolina contact Publisher@CharlestonBuilders.com

Buying a first home or a new home is one of those moments that go down in a person’s life as memorable. But with the excitement and joy of purchasing, moving into and decorating comes plenty of responsibility, and one of these is properly insuring the home for the safety of your family and your property. According to Sass Schirmer, principle agent and owner of Schirmer Insurance Group, LLC, neglecting home insurance will jeopardize your investment.

Learn More, Read More …

 

The road to building high-end residential homes does not typically begin in a doctor’s office, unless you are Dan Buffington. Ironically, that was precisely the route Buffington took on his way to a construction career in South Carolina. For the first twenty years of his professional life, Buffington followed his family tradition and practiced medicine. As he explained, “Medicine is simply what my family does; my dad first, then I followed and finally, my two brothers, who are still in practice today.”

ABC News 4’s Stefanie Bainum interviews the publisher of Mount Pleasant Magazine about the Isle of Palm’s History in the video below.

Even as new members of Vacation Inspirations in Charleston, the Montagnes received a rebate check following their vacation, in addition to initial lower rates.

“We did save money,” Carolyn continued. “Of course, we still have some money to recoup from our startup fee, but we don’t doubt that we will get it. If you travel a lot, even close-to-home vacations, it pays off.”

With family throughout the Southeast and in Michigan, there are plenty of opportunities as members of Vacation Inspirations for the Montagnes to continue booking hotels, rental vehicles, airlines and excursions, all at great rates and all including rebate checks when the vacation is over. “We have already booked our next vacation through Vacation Inspirations. It is one we’ve wanted to do for years, a Roman cruise across the Mediterranean, and Vacation Inspirations has already set us up at a nice location and got us a good price,” Carolyn said.

People who are accustomed to island living know how to enjoy the laid-back lifestyle, so it’s not surprising that the Montagne family of Pawleys Island, South Carolina, enjoyed their most recent 14-day vacation to the island of St. Martin.

Robert and Carolyn traveled with their family to Philipsburg on the Dutch side of the island.

“We chose St. Martin because we had stopped there previously on a cruise and knew we wanted to go back. The food was good and it has beautiful scenery,” said Carolyn Montagne. “It is a very relaxing place to go, with beautiful water. I recommend anyone to take a trip out there.”

As new members of Vacation Inspirations, Charleston, SC, their trip to St. Martin was their first booking.

“Everything, all of the scheduling, was done promptly, within 48 hours of me contacting them,” said Carolyn. “The whole experience was great and St. Martin was very pretty.”

“Vacation Inspirations [Charleston] placed us at a great resort that had a good price and location. Since we travel often to see family and usually stay in nearby hotels, we appreciate the prompt rebate checks,” she added.

The Woodrows and others stayed at sea for almost nine hours before it was deemed safe enough to continue island hopping. Despite being part of one the worst natural disasters of the past century, the family still describes their experience as “most enjoyable.”

“It’s hard to pick a favorite island in Hawaii because each has its own distinct beauty,” said Charles. “Hawaii has volcanoes like Kilauea and Oahu was also very pretty. It’s very difficult to pick one over the other, and I don’t think I can.”

Kilauea is an active volcano that frequently causes damage, while Oahu is home to the famous naval base at Pearl Harbor.

With the majority of their vacation spent in the capital city of Honolulu and being caught slightly off-guard by pricing on the islands, the Woodrows managed to save money by booking travel through Vacation Inspirations. They used the Vacation Inspirations website and travel agency, rating the company’s service in selecting and booking hotels and cruises, as well as its overall customer service, as excellent.

Best of all, because the Woodrows are members of Vacation Inspirations, they received a rebate check after their vacation was over. While they are staying closer to home for their next vacation, Vacation Inspirations will be on hand to assist in planning and booking to save even more money.

To learn how you can save money in booking your next vacation, call Vacation Inspirations at (800) 692-1587 or visit www.CharlestonTravelAgency.com.