Elena Garrett, Realtor in Dallas Texas - My Blog

Residential and Investment Properties in Dallas - Fort Worth

Elena Garrett, Realtor in Dallas Texas - My Blog

Has the Election Spooked the Texas Housing Market?🎃 It Seems So!

There is no doubt, the 2024 presidential election is making waves in DFW real estate. Historically, elections always bring some uncertainty—buyers pause, interest rates shift, and policies are up in the air. But this year, the results seem to be even more pronounced. But here’s what the historical data shows: Read more…


Exploring Rent-to-Own Options in North Texas (2024)

rent-to-open 4 options in 2024

by Elena Garrett, Oct 14, 2024 If you’re exploring rent-to-own programs in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, four prominent options you should consider are Divvy Homes, Utopia Homes, MLS Rent-to-Own Properties, and Off-Market Properties. These programs offer different approaches to helping you transition from renter to homeowner. Let’s take a closer Read more…


Beyond Credit – An Innovative Solution

by Elena Garrett, March 2, 2024 One of our long-standing partners, Supreme Lending, announced a groundbreaking new program that would allow home buyers with low credit scores or insufficient job history to be eligible for a home purchase. Here is the video of the interview with Karla Parra from Supreme Read more…


MARCH 2024 – NORTH TEXAS HOME MARKET UPDATE

Despite still-elevated interest rates, the sale trends in 2024 are currently repeating the traditional “Spring-Summer” price fluctuation of the previous year. The best times to sell at the highest profit this year is likely going to be MAY due to potentially unpredictable impact of the Realtor commission lawsuit that is guaranteed to add more chaos and uncertainty to the already-unsettled current home market, not to mention the potential national and international Black Swan events that may appear closer to the conclusion of the Election Campaign this year. The best time to buy the house in 2024 will be April-May, due to the same lawsuit and the same potential issues that the election environment might bring unexpectedly.


Rent-to-Own Programs Update – 2023

Here are some important update that I wanted to send out to everyone who may be thinking about buying a house in 2023.  The real estate market has shifted significantly after August 2022: which lead to the following changes. 1. Home prices tumbled (in some areas, by over $50,000-$100,000 per Read more…


3 Ways to Save on Your Mortgage

March 2033, by Elena Garrett Many home shoppers experience sticker shock at the cost of home mortgages in 2023. Elena and Melissa Condensa from Guild Mortgage go over a few recent changes to home loans that may help home buyers to stay within their budget while everyone else scrambles. A Read more…


Do not sign another lease until you read this: The hidden costs of renting

Any rent vs. own calculator can show you the obvious short-term costs of renting that are easy to see and calculate. There are also a number of hidden and delayed costs that are much harder to estimate in a spreadsheet, but that over time can compound to become very noticeable and detrimental to the family’s financial growth.


Protect Your Mortgage & Your Income Security

A well-designed insurance policy can pay off the entire remaining balance of your mortgage, as well as cover the costs of other living expenses for your family in the event any of the following happens to you or your spouse:
death
long-term disability
critical illness (such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, organ failure, loss of mobility, etc)
terminal illness
serious illnesses preventing employment for 90 days or more


DFW Home Buyer Guide for 2022

Elena’s home buying forecast for 2022 In a word: the forecast is difficult. The buyers planning to buy in the DFW area in 2022 need to be prepared for intense competition for homes, which means that they need to either 1) find ways to find the extra cash to win Read more…


Ready to Buy a Home?

tired of renting picture

Renting has many disadvantages: increasing rents, difficulty having repairs done right, lack of privacy and control over your own living space. The most important disadvantage, however, is the fact that none of the money you spend on rent every year is generating any return on investment for your family. Many Read more…