New-Home Sales Are 41.5% Higher Than a Year Ago

New-Home Sales Are 41.5% Higher Than a Year Ago: Buyers continue to shift from city centers to the suburbs, the homebuilder’s trade group says.

Record Number of Homeowners Stand to Lower Mortgage Payments

Record Number of Homeowners Stand to Lower Mortgage Payments: Over 19 million owners could save more than $300 monthly, a study suggests.

Get Fired Up! Checking Your Furnace for Winter

 Nov 30, 2020

LaTasha Beal

When the last of the brightly colored leaves cling tightly to otherwise bare trees, you know that winter is coming. It’s a sad state of affairs, but happens every year, just like clockwork. The sleet, the snow, the ice, the cold, it all comes in a cycle, and because of that, you need to be paying particular attention to your furnace this time of year. Even if it hasn’t yet started raining down frozen apocalypse upon your head where you live, being ready for the day you’ll have to kick the heat on is a good idea. After all, you don’t want to find out that your furnace isn’t working properly when there’s a foot of snow in the forecast.

Furnace Basics

There are a lot of different kinds of ways to heat a house, but this article is about furnaces in particular. A furnace is a complex piece of equipment that not only contains a heat source, but also a blower to distribute heat throughout a home using a duct system. It’s part of a larger HVAC system, which generally also includes an air conditioner or heat pump. They can be mounted in attics, crawlspaces, garages, basements, and even outdoors in the right situation.

You should already be performing basic maintenance on your HVAC system, no matter what season. This would include items like changing the furnace filter (or cleaning it if it’s an electrostatic one) and flushing the condensation line. Keep those up, even in the winter.

Getting Ready for Winter

As for winter-specific tasks, your furnace should have a pre-launch check at least yearly. If you’re already using it for heating, it’s not too late, just remember to do this before you fire it up next year. Go through this list and hit all the items on it:

• Thermostat. Likely you use your thermostat year-round, but if you don’t, check that your furnace will come on and go off with the control on the wall. If your thermostat is very old, it might be a good idea to replace it with a programmable or smart thermostat to help you save more fuel or electricity this winter.
• Pilot light. Older gas or propane-powered furnaces often have a standing flame pilot light, which is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a fire in your house. All the time. Make sure the pilot light is actually lit if your furnace has one, otherwise you’re gonna be cold, and there’s also a chance gas is leaking in your home. If it’s a newer furnace, it likely has an electric ignitor, which will light the furnace automatically when it kicks on. If you’re not getting heat from a furnace with an electric ignitor, follow the instructions on your furnace to reset it; if that fails, try resetting the breaker.
• Detectors. Smoke and CO2 detectors should be checked regularly, but definitely before you fire up the furnace. They have test buttons on them for this purpose. If they don’t go off, check the batteries or connections if they’re hardwired. Any detectors that fail inspection should be replaced immediately.

These are all simple things you can do to get ready for furnace season. However, there are a few other tasks that you should call an expert in to check or maintain.

When to Call in the Pros

Obviously, you’ll need to call a pro if your furnace won’t come on despite your best efforts. But you should also have an HVAC professional out to clean the air handler, flame sensors, and other vital parts of your furnace. Some DIYers might be able to do this with no issue, but for the general public, it’s safer and much smarter to call someone who knows furnaces inside and out.

Where would you find such a person? Well, in your HomeKeepr community, where you can search for an HVAC professional in your area. It’s great to know that the pros you’re working with have been used by the people in your own networks and found to be at the top of their game.

Your Local Market Report - Tigard, Oregon

 

Get Started With Home Winterization

 Nov 23, 2020

LaTasha Beal

While the fall has been mild and even warm in many areas, it’s important to realize that winter is right around the corner. There’s no way to tell what the winter might hold, and even if you don’t see much in the way of snow and ice you can still run into some problems if your home isn’t ready for cold winter temperatures. To make sure that you’re as ready as possible for whatever the winter might have in store, here are some things to consider as you make your winterization plans.

Weatherproofing and Heat Loss

One big problem during the winter is heat loss, with doors and windows being some of the biggest culprits here. A few big aspects of weatherproofing to prevent heat loss involve things like installing weather strips on your doors and windows, caulking around windows where you can feel a draft, adding a door sweep to keep drafts from occurring under your door, and even installing a storm door if you don’t have one. Adding thermal plastic over windows and other exposed surfaces can help with this as well.

Leaks and Burst Pipes

Depending on where you live, leaky pipes and even pipes bursting after a freeze can be big problems during the winter. There are a few ways to prevent this, including disconnecting external hoses, installing covers over external faucets, and adding pipe insulation to the pipes under your home. Sealing or caulking cracks and other openings where pipes and conduits travel through walls can also help, as can installing heat cables on your pipes if freezing is a major concern.

Prepare for Heat

If you’re like most people, you’re going to need to heat your home during the winter. It’s best to do some maintenance and testing of your heating systems while it’s still warm so that you’re not left in the cold once winter hits in earnest. If you use a fireplace, have your chimney cleaned to remove creosote and blockages before you have to use it. Clean any external components of your heating system to remove leaves and other debris, then turn the heat on to make sure that it’s actually working properly. Don’t be alarmed if you smell a bit of dust burning off, but if the burning smell continues or the heat isn’t coming out of the vents very well then get some maintenance done on your system.

Check the Roof

Your roof and gutters should be checked toward the end of autumn, after the leaves have mostly stopped falling and before the temperatures drop too much. Look for signs of damaged or missing shingles, as well as any obvious dips, leaks, or weak spots in the roof. Clean your gutters thoroughly and make sure that they’re securely fastened to your home. You might consider installing snow or ice guards to prevent large amounts of snow becoming a falling hazard during the winter as well. In addition, take the time to check your attic and make sure that all the insulation is in good condition and that there’s sufficient ventilation to keep mold and other problems at bay.

Last-Minute Maintenance

While you’re not likely to use them much during the winter, be sure to take an afternoon to clean and maintain your mowers, trimmers, and any other power equipment before you stow it away for the winter. This also applies for any grills or other outdoor equipment you won’t be using again until spring. While you’re at it, do some maintenance and testing of equipment such as leaf blowers, snow blowers, and portable heaters that you might need to use over the winter to make sure that everything is in proper working order.

Winterization Upgrades

Heating bills can really climb during a hard winter, so this might be a good time to invest in energy-efficient heating solutions such as a smart thermostat or an upgraded heat pump. HomeKeepr can help you find an HVAC installer that will get you exactly what you need to stay toasty all winter without breaking the bank. Sign up for a free account today to find the pro you need.

Will Mortgage Rates Remain Low Next Year?

 

Will Mortgage Rates Remain Low Next Year?

In 2020, buyers got a big boost in the housing market as mortgage rates dropped throughout the year. According to Freddie Mac, rates hit all-time lows 12 times this year, dipping below 3% for the first time ever while making buying a home more and more attractive as the year progressed (See graph below):When you continually hear how rates are hitting record lows, you may be wondering: Are they going to keep falling? Should I wait until they get even lower?

The Challenge with Waiting

The challenge with waiting is that you can easily miss this optimal window of time and then end up paying more in the long run. Last week, mortgage rates ticked up slightly. Sam Khater, Chief Economist at Freddie Mac, explains:

“Mortgage rates jumped this week as a result of positive news about a COVID-19 vaccine. Despite this rise, mortgage rates remain about a percentage point below a year ago.”

While rates are still lower today than they were one year ago, as the economy continues to get stronger and the pandemic is resolved, there’s a very good chance interest rates will rise again. Several top institutions in the real estate industry are projecting an increase in mortgage rates over the next four quarters (See chart below):If you’re planning to wait until next year or later, Mike Fratantoni, Chief Economist at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), forecasts mortgage rates will begin to steadily rise:As a buyer, you need to decide if waiting makes financial sense for you.

Bottom Line

If you’re planning to buy a home and want to take advantage of today’s low rates, now is the time to do so. Don’t assume they’re going to stay this low forever.

Portland Market Action Update - October 2020