Despite the title of Robert Irwin's new book, real estate agents have nothing to fear from "Sell Your Home and Save Thousands on the Commission." At first I thought it was about how to sell a home without a real estate agent. Wrong! Then I thought it was about how to cut the realty agent's sales commission when listing a home for sale. Wrong again.  more...

Most sellers would be delighted to receive multiple offers. However, figuring out which offer to accept is not always as simple as you might think.

Suppose you receive three offers. One is for $495,000: your asking price. Another is for $10,000 more. And the highest offer is for $525,000–$30,000 over the list price. If you look at price alone, you'd have no reservations about accepting the highest offer.  more...

DEAR BOB: I read with great interest your recent item about stepped-up basis on inherited property. My father-in-law recently passed away. My mother-in-law intends to stay in the house, which was built by her father in 1923. Should we at this time get an appraisal to establish her stepped-up basis due to my father-in-law's passing? My mother-in-law's will says when she dies the house will go to her three surviving children. Will there then be another new stepped-up basis? – Paul D.  more...

Dear Barry,

Do you think the mold issue has been exaggerated? I do. Mold has been on the earth for millions of years. How is it that all of a sudden, last year, mold became so toxic that people are now tearing down their homes, ripping out sheetrock, pulling out their hair, and spending untold millions annually on mold inspections and repairs. What is the source of this crazy new scare? Could you offer a more logical, even-handed response to this overblown issue? – Martin

Dear Martin,  more...

Are you less than perfect about paying your bills on time? Or maybe you pay your rent, utilities and other bills with cash or money orders so you have no credit record.

If that's your problem, you can still buy a house or condo.

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.

Thanks to innovative outreach home mortgage programs from Fannie Mae and other major home loan lenders, if you have a reliable source of income you can probably buy a home.  more...

DEAR BOB: My late mother and I were joint tenants with right of survivorship for her house. It was her house, but her lawyer advised holding title in joint tenancy to avoid probate costs when she died. After title was transferred into my name, I decided to sell the house. But it required considerable fix-up work. I spent about $8,500 getting it ready for sale. The house really sparkled when the Realtor listed it for sale. To my surprise and pleasant shock, it sold for almost $7,000 above the asking price. My question is can I deduct the approximate $8,500 I spent on fix-up costs?  more...