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How can a homeowner easily increase their equity? Increasing equity on your home means you’ll make more money when it sells AND it means you can refinance to get a lower monthly payment. So obviously, there are a lot of advantages to equity. And the good news is, every mortgage payment pays money toward the … Continued

When you’re trying to sell a home, what exactly ARE closing costs? Closing costs for a seller can reach 8% – 10% of the sale of a home. So estimated closing costs on a $250,000 home could be $20,000 to $25,000… That’s a lot of money! But where is that money going? Does the seller … Continued

More people are working from home than ever before! And as fun as working from home is… it also has its challenges. Maybe, for instance, your home doesn’t have room for an additional office and so you’re having to work at the kitchen table, in the guest room, or even in your bedroom. (Meanwhile, the … Continued

Trying to decide between saving money and fixing your home? Maybe you want to save money for college or for buying your next house or just for building up that rainy day fund. Whatever the case, you’re not the only one who’s had to make that decision. At Manatee, we’ve worked with a lot of … Continued

Did you relocate to Bradenton, but you didn’t really know the area? This is often the case. A person has to move for a job change or transfer, to be closer to family, retirement, or many other reasons. Their house sells quickly, and now the clock is ticking – time is not on their side. … Continued

Are you behind on your property taxes? It happens to more people than you think, and often through no fault of their own.  An unexpected financial crisis, job loss, divorce, or serious medical issues are some of the most common reasons we’ve seen. As soon as a homeowner falls behind on property taxes, the local … Continued

Thinking of adding an above-ground pool to your home? 🏊 That’s great! Having a pool at home can be an awesome source of fun and a great way to make memories. But is it worth it? Is the cost and work of putting in an above-ground pool worth the payoff? For starters, HomeAdvisor’s estimates that … Continued

What should a homeowner do if they’ve fallen behind on their mortgage payments? Unfortunately, most homeowners who’ve fallen behind get overwhelmed and simply ignore the phone calls, emails, and bill statements… hoping that the problem will go away. But it won’t. In fact, the worst thing a homeowner can do is ignore the problem. But … Continued

Are you worried about your home’s foundation wearing down? Unfortunately, a sinking or settling foundation is one of the biggest problems homeowners can experience — and it’s one that you DEFINITELY don’t want to ignore. Just check out what Peak Structural Inc. has to say about it… “One of the biggest dangers of neglecting a … Continued

Want to update your kitchen but don’t know where to start? Join the club. Home renovations can be pretty expensive… and so we don’t want to mess anything up or spend our money on the wrong thing. At Manatee, we’ve been working in real estate in Bradenton for quite some time now. And we’ve seen … Continued

What’s the best paint color for selling a home? 🤔 It might seem like a trivial question, but today’s buyers actually DO care about the color of the house they’re buying. As a rule of thumb, stick with neutral colors — according to HomeLight’s Top Agent Insights Report for Q1 2020, 98% of agents surveyed … Continued

Want some easy every-day tips for maintaining the quality of your home? Your home is like anything else in your life that you care about — to maintain it, you’ll need to give it a little bit of love every now and again…and stay committed… But that doesn’t need to feel overwhelming… At Manatee, we’ve … Continued

Planning to make some repairs to your home? Well, most people spend a lot of time talking about the repairs and updates you should make to modernize your home and get it to sell for top-dollar… But what about the repairs you should AVOID? After all, some repairs are so expensive that they’re not even … Continued

Planning to hire a contractor to help repair or update your home? It’s unfortunate, but at Mae, we’ve seen a lot of homeowners hire bad contractors 🙁 Sometimes they quit the job half-way through, do a shoddy job, or charge you more than promised. That’s why we HIGHLY recommend vetting the contractor you choose to … Continued

Did someone make you a cash offer on your home? Did it seem too low? Or maybe it seemed too good to be true? Whatever the case, when professional homebuyers make offers, they don’t always disclose WHY their offer is what it is… or even if it’s actually “fair” or not. And you’re not a … Continued