Hey there homeowners! As the chilly winds start knocking on our doors, it's time to give our homes a warm and snug welcome to the winter season. Whether you're a seasoned homeowner or just embarking on the homeownership journey, these five simple tips will ensure your space is winter-ready and cozy.    1. Get Your Plumbing Ready: Let's start with the basics – your plumbing. Nobody wants burst pipes causing chaos. First things first, locate that water shut-off valve. It's like knowing where the emergency exit is; you hope you never need it, but it's essential. If you've got outdoor pl ..read more

Homeownership is one of the best ways to invest in your financial future, especially as your home equity grows. Home equity is a form of forced savings that can work to your advantage as the value of your home appreciates. Across the country, home equity was increasing before the health crisis swept our nation, and it continues to grow throughout the year, giving sellers powerful options in this market. According to the just-released Q2 Homeowner Equity Insights Report by CoreLogic: “U.S. homeowners with mortgages (roughly 63% of all properties) have seen their equity increase ..read more

When you sell your home, the buyer usually thinks that they will live there from that day on. But sometimes the seller stays in the house for a little while after the sale. This is called a lease-back agreement. If you're a buyer reading this, you might be thinking that you don't want to buy a house only to become a landlord. But don't worry! Seller lease-backs are very common in North Texas. In this blog, we'll explain what lease-backs are and how they work. We'll also talk about the risks and benefits for both buyers and sellers.    What Is a Seller Lease-Back? A seller lease-back ..read more

Here at the Haistings Group, we love nothing more than spending a leisurely afternoon on a beautiful patio with good food, good drink, and good company. That's why we've put together a list of our favorite patios in North Texas for you to enjoy this fall!     Matt’s Favorite: Katy Trail Ice House Outpost This is one of my favorite patios in Dallas! It's the perfect spot to enjoy a cold beer after a long day or to spend a Saturday afternoon watching college football. The Katy Trail Ice House is located in Dallas on the Katy Trail, but the outpost is located in West Plano offering low ..read more

A lot of buyers are reaching out to us on the Zillow platform. Zillow is a great place to look at homes and see what exists. Unfortunately, when it comes to shopping for a home, it is a very frustrating tool since roughly 2/3 of the homes shown “For Sale” on Zillow are already sold. In the video, Matt explains why that is. There’s a really simple reason for these data discrepancies on Zillow in the DFW real estate market. Our listing system has four different “Active” statuses for a property. Zillow simply shows all four as “For Sale”, but the reality is that most of these homes are really Und ..read more

Summers in Teaxs are hot and nothing is more refreshing than having a pool ready for you and your family to relax in. But if you don't have a pool, and would like a nice in-ground one, you are faced with a dilemma.   Should you build one in your backyard, or buy a home with an existing pool?       If a pool is an important feature to you, it’s important to sit down and really understand the financial implications of buying a house with a pool, or adding one later. Go over the numbers and understand how costly the investment will be.   Option #1 is buying a home with a ..read more

When it comes to selling a home, sabotage - especially self-sabotage - is the worst thing that can happen. Luckily, if you know what to look out for, sabotage is largely avoidable. Let's look at some of the main things that sabotage a home sale.     1. Not knowing the local market Without comparable properties to price your home, you may overprice or underprice it.  So it could either sit for long periods of time or pull in less money than it could have. When you work with our team, we’ll keep track of the neighborhood stats for you and give you the best advice fo ..read more

Finding a beautiful home that you can envision you and your family living in is exciting. Imagining yourself in the living room, out on the patio, and picturing the space as if it’s already your own is euphoric. But when someone else comes along with a stronger offer and pulls the carpet from underneath you, it can feel pretty devastating. No one wants to lose out on their home which is why we've compiled some info to increase your chances of getting your offer accepted.      Here are 4 Ways to Make Your Offer More Competitive. Right now in DFW, inventory is very low a ..read more

It’s not uncommon for homeowners to want to buy their next home, before they sell their existing one. The tricky part is that many people need to sell their current home to get the equity out of it and use it as the down payment on the next house. In this blog, I want to share with you how you can make this desire a reality. What better than to move into your next home before selling your existing home!   1. Talk To a Lender The first option is to talk with a lender. You may be surprised to find out that you can actually purchase the next home without a need to sell the original one ..read more

 One of the best things about the weather in Texas is being able to sit on the patio at my favorite restaurants for 9+ months of the year. Here are a few of the best Plano Restaurant Patios to enjoy the summer sun, a nice breeze, and great food and drinks. Let us know which are your favorites!   4700 W Park Blvd, Plano, TX 75093 PHOTO CREDIT: Dog Friendly Alliance Katy Trail Ice House Outpost Take your dog with you, and enjoy Katy Trail Ice House’s great outdoor seating. With plenty of seating, fantastic food, and space heaters all around, this is the perfect patio for a burger ..read more