One project homeowners should never DIY

During our time as homeowners, my husband and I have painted rooms, installed ceiling fans, landscaped the front and back yards, and even replaced a garbage disposal-all ourselves. But one thing we'll never DIY is selling our home. There's a lot to know about disclosure, time periods, pricing, and accepting offers, so when we decided recently that it was time to move, our first step was to meet with a Texas REALTOR®. She walked us through the selling process and explained tasks we should complete to help the property look its best, like decluttering and making minor repairs. She even taught us a few things about how much properties have appreciated in our neighborhood and how quickly these houses are selling. If you're thinking about listing your home, talk with a Texas REALTOR®. He or she can help you understand the process and take much of the stress off your shoulders. As for us, we have a few more trips to the home-improvement store in our future before that for sale sign hits the ground.

Demand for Texas homes continues to soar

3 Texas cities attract the most interest from homebuyers online The Lone Star State is home to some of the hottest housing markets in the U.S., including number one. Read more at realtor.com. Texas home prices are likely to keep climbing The trend will continue statewide if inventory stays tight and demand stays high. Read more from KBTX. Bryan-College Station sees an increase in housing demand Rising prices are creating a seller's market. Read more from KAGS. East Texas homebuyers act fast as mortgage rates drop Favorable rates are making real estate purchases even more attractive. Read more from KTRE. Why home sales are up in San Antonio The city's competitive market is favorable to sellers, but there's still good news for buyers. Read more from Texas Public Radio. Texas REALTORS® demand tax relief and transportation funding Thousands of real estate professionals met with their legislators at the state Capitol on April 14 to advocate for private-property owners. Read more in the Austin Business Journal.

A money-saving tip 70% of homebuyers don't know about

How would you feel if you got home from the grocery store and found a $3 coupon on your kitchen table for the $8 bottle of olive oil you just bought? Frustrating, right? Now imagine your reaction if a similar thing happened after you bought a house. No, you're not going to find a coupon for your next home. But there are more than 2,200 homebuyer assistance programs in the U.S., many of which could save you thousands of dollars on your home purchase. Assistance programs exist for first-time buyers, people who work in certain professions, buyers with modest incomes, veterans, people who purchase certain types of properties, and other circumstances. Many of these programs reduce the amount of your downpayment, lower your closing costs, or provide a lower interest rate than you could otherwise get. Yet 70% of adults don't even know these programs exist, according to a survey by NeighborWorks America. If you were among that 70% before reading this, do something for your own good: Explore assistance programs on txhomeprograms.org. Better yet, work with a Texas REALTOR® to identify programs that may save you a bunch of money.

Give yourself an option

Whoever invented the undo function in computer software is one of my heroes. Think about it: If something doesn't turn out the way you intended, hit Control + Z and-poof-it never happened. There aren't many places in life where you get to undo your actions like that, but the option period in a real estate contract is one of them. It lets you walk away from purchasing property, legally undoing your contract. How do I know? At my REALTOR®'s urging, I purchased an option period in the contract to buy my current home. With three days remaining in that period, my home inspector found a leak in the plumbing system that he couldn't pin to a source. The next day, I had a plumber scour the house. I was ready to exercise my termination option, to undo the contract, if he couldn't figure out what was going on. He eventually located the source: a faulty valve in the sprinkler system. No big deal. The seller fixed it, and I bought the house. If that leak had turned out to be something larger, however, I had the chance to hit Control + Z on the whole deal. That's what the option period is for, and it's right there in your real estate contract.

A tug of war over the earnest money

A buyer backed out of purchasing my home and has asked for his earnest money back, but I think I'm entitled to keep his earnest money. He didn't cancel during the option period, and he hasn't given any other legitimate reason for backing out of the deal. How do I prove that I'm entitled to the earnest money? Also, can I continue to look for other buyers while I try to settle the earnest-money issue? If you and the buyer can't agree on who is entitled to the earnest money, it's prudent to settle that issue before putting your home back on the market. Getting the first contract formally terminated will ensure you can sell your home to someone else without risking a lawsuit that could stop that second transaction. Regarding your dispute with the buyer over the earnest money, Texas Real Estate Commission contracts require buyers and sellers to try to resolve disputes in mediation before heading to court If you're intent on putting your house back on the market before resolving your earnest-money dispute, keep in mind that many title companies will refuse to process a second transaction if the first contract has not been officially terminated. If that does not dissuade you, you should consult an attorney concerning the risks of proceeding with a subsequent sale of the property without a settlement of the earnest-money issue.

6 renovations that will give you the best-and lowest-return on investment

Thinking of adding a deck this year? Need to replace your garage door? While you may not be looking forward to spending money on those upgrades, there's good news: They may help your resale value. The 2015 Texas Remodel Valuation Report, released this week by the Texas Association of REALTORS(R), shows that garage door replacements recouped up to 107.6% of the total project cost, ranking in the top five most profitable projects nationwide, regionally, and in four Texas cities. Wood deck additions recouped up to 116% of their cost. Those aren't the only upgrades that were good investments in 2014. Here are three others you may want to consider: • Back-up power generator. The most profitable project, which recouped 129.2% of its cost. • Steel entry door. Installing this type of door recouped up to 113.2% of its cost. • Basement remodels. Projects that maximized existing square footage were good investments last year, with basement remodels recouping 98% of their project costs. And here are three you might want to save for another time: • Sunroom addition. This project showed the least return on investment, recouping as little as 29.3% of the total project cost. • Home-office remodel. Renovating a home office closely follows sunroom additions as one of the least profitable remodeling projects, recouping a maximum of 62.2% of the project cost. • Master-suite additions. Both typical and upscale renovations were unprofitable. These projects ranked among the five least profitable projects. View the full report on texasrealestate.com