Improving Your Home, Planning Your Move

Put the ROI Back into RenOvatIons

Put the ROI back into Ren-Ovat-Ions. Some PMG clients bought a house not too long ago and have been slowly fixing it up with the intention of selling it and moving into a bigger place.  Their house has around 800 square feet of living space and a very dated kitchen.  We were discussing his plans for the house, and they were having a difficult time making a decision on what to invest in next. The couple had a budget of $25,000 and had two projects left on the horizon: the kitchen and the basement. The kitchen was dated, but functional. The basement was unfinished, but useful as a storage space. Since living space was limited, they proposed that a finished basement might help to open up what...

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Improving Your Home

You can’t do it, the (insert big box home improvement store here) can’t help.

Here’s a cautionary tale for those of us who like to take home improvement into our own hands. Recently, a couple that lives around the corner from me decided to put an addition on their home. We’ve all met these people. The types who decide professional trades people...

Financial Tune Up, Home Away From Home, Improving Your Home, Planning Your Move

How much does it cost to break my mortgage?

In the past year, the subject of break penalties has come up almost as often as the fixed vs. variable rate conversation and for good reason. There is a major discrepancy in the way that break penalty is handled from lender to lender.  The major bank break penalties...