Paul Holland Reece and Nichols, Licensed in KS & MO 913-307-4051

There are more costs to homeownership than just a mortgage. Your monthly mortgage payment is likely to include four elements: Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance — referred to as PITI. For fixed-rate loans, the PI (principal/interest) payment is “amortized” so the borrower pays the same amount each month over the life of the loan. In the loan’s early years, a majority of the PI payment goes to interest. (The same is true for Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMS), however the amount of payment will change over time with adjustments to the interest rate.) On a fixed-rate loan of $100,000 at 5.25% [...] Click To Read More

The foreclosure process comes as a harsh reality to thousands of Americans each year. When discussing foreclosure, individuals are generally referring to the housing market. Within the past couple decades, society has felt the effects of a crashing housing market. Knowingly irresponsible big bank loans and questionable federal government legislation joined forces to blindside Americans with severe instability in the housing industry. In case you were previously unaware, foreclosure is an event in which a lender collects collateral from an individual after they stop making required payments. In this case, houses are the asset borrowers use as collateral. Unfortunately, federal [...] Click To Read More

When you buy a house, you also buy into the area schools. Why should schools influence the home choice of even childless couples? Resale values. Families will often spend thousands of dollars more for a home located in a better school district. Start with statistics Typically the best place to start is with research that relies heavily on statistics like test scores, high school graduation and college attendance rates, student-teacher ratios and spending per pupil. This data can give a snapshot of the condition of a school or school district over the recent past. Ask your real estate agent, informed [...] Click To Read More

 First-Time Buyer Specialists Six little-known ways your relatives can help you buy your first home. Relatives helping relatives buy a first home is nothing new. But now, in many ways, helping family members has never been easier. Lenders are encouraging parents and other relatives to be more flexible in the ways they help a family member afford to buy a home. 1. Make a gift deposit. The latest twist on bridal gift giving is bridal registries within banks. The idea is to help young married couples buy a home by channeling cash wedding gifts to an interest-bearing savings account earmarked [...] Click To Read More

Do you know what settlement costs are and what happens at settlement? Settlement (also called “closing”) involves a lot of paper signing, after which you get the keys to your new home! (Make sure you’ll get garage and outbuilding keys and electric garage door openers, too.) At the settlement with you will be an attorney or title/settlement company representative, the owners/sellers or their representatives with power of attorney, and the listing and selling brokers. (In the case of a “split settlement” however, each party to the purchase/sale signs documents in separate locations, with copies then faxed or emailed to the [...] Click To Read More