
What to know about buying a house with solar panels
It’s an eco-friendly idea, but be aware how it affects your home’s financing, closing and future costs.
Assessment is a money term you need to understand. Here’s what it means.
An assessment establishes the value of an asset, such as a home or a vehicle, for taxation purposes. In some cases, an assessment is calculated to determine risk or the quality of a company’s asset management.
The types of assessments include:
Property tax assessments are a reality for almost all homeowners, as they must pay property taxes even after paying off their mortgages. Every municipality, county and state has its own rules for calculating property taxes.
In general, if an individual buys a house valued at $200,000, and the assessed value increases to $210,000 the following year, this increase in assessment means the owner will pay higher property taxes. If the effective property tax rate is 2 percent both years, the owner would pay $4,200 in property taxes after the increase, as opposed to $4,000 in the year before the assessment increase.
It’s an eco-friendly idea, but be aware how it affects your home’s financing, closing and future costs.
Counter-offers are a key part of the homebuying process. Here’s what to know.
They let the sun shine in. But be aware of this new tech’s pros and cons, and how they differ from solar panels.
Don’t spend time or money on things that prospective buyers don’t care about.
Some may surprise you. Here are workarounds, if you’re renovating or building.
You can choose the hard way to add a floor to your home. Or you can pick the harder way.
Home values in San Diego have increased by 19 percent in the last year. Here’s what to know if you’re ready to sell.
Sunny San Diego is a popular — and expensive — place to call home.
In a sobering trend for homeowners, natural disasters like hurricanes and wildfires are becoming more frequent.