News, guides, and market updates from National House Search.
Ideas, insights, and a little inspiration for what comes next.
A builder inspection and an independent home inspection are not the same service. A builder may use staff and trade partners to check its work. A city or county inspector checks permitted work for…
An 11-month warranty inspection is a home inspection scheduled near the end of a new home's first year. Homeowners use it to record issues before a builder's stated one-year notice period may end.The…
New construction home inspections can find problems even when a home looks clean and complete. Inspectors may record drainage concerns, roof details, doors that do not close, plumbing leaks,…
Lock your mortgage rate once you have a signed contract, a closing date your lock can cover, and a payment you are comfortable with. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) says rate locks…
You buy down your interest rate by paying discount points at closing. One point costs 1% of your loan amount, and it lowers your rate for the whole life of the loan. Whether it pays off depends on…
Yes. You can use an FHA loan to buy a new-construction home in Florida, whether it is not built yet, under construction, or finished with no one living in it yet. The builder and your lender have to…
There is no single credit score you need to buy a house. It depends on the loan. An FHA loan allows scores as low as 500 with 10 percent down, or 580 and up with 3.5 percent down. Conventional loans…
"There is plenty to do in Fort Pierce, and most of it sits on or near the water. You can walk a historic downtown, visit a museum about the Navy SEALs, surf or kayak at a state park, watch boats at…
"Fort Pierce beaches are not all the same. One is known for surfing. One welcomes dogs. One has a lifeguard and a family feel. One sits behind a museum. The right beach depends on what you want to do…
"Some of the best restaurants in Fort Pierce, FL sit right on the water. Many serve fresh seafood, and several look out on the inlet or the city marina. This guide walks through a well-known local…
