Dear Barry,  more...

If you think you might enjoy earning an above-average income helping home buyers and homeowners obtain mortgage money, "Your Successful Career as a Mortgage Broker" by longtime mortgage broker David Reed explains the details. According to Reed, the average mortgage loan officer earns $76,000 per year, but those who make it to the top 5 percent of the industry earn more than $360,000 annually.  more...

DEAR BOB: My wife and I are both 85. We bought our house five years ago in an Internal Revenue Code 1031 tax-deferred exchange. It was our third 1031 exchange in a series so our cost basis is very low. We rented out the house for about three years and took it over as our home two years ago. Our plan was to sell it eventually and claim the $500,000 exemption to offset the capital gains tax we will owe on the 1031 deferred gains.  more...

The median price of homes sold in the San Francisco Bay area was up 6.6 percent in April 2007 compared to a year earlier. For homeowners waiting for a signal that it's time to sell, this could be good news. Or, is it?

Half the homes sold in a given time period sold for more than the median price quoted for that period and half sold for less. Changes in median price do not necessarily reflect changes in home values.  more...

DEAR BOB: My 31-year-old niece died recently without a will. She purchased a condominium about three months ago. Can her mom now sell the condo, or does she have to do something else first? --Georgia Z.

DEAR GEORGIA: Unfortunately, because your niece died intestate without a will or a revocable living trust, her condo and other major assets will have to be "probated." That means the local probate court will determine who inherits her assets.

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.  more...

Recently I received a letter from a reader who asked if having a tall water tower about 1,000 feet from his house would hurt his home's market value. By coincidence, a few days later I saw an appraiser friend at the local post office so I confronted him with that question.

"It sure won't help a home's market value," was his reply. Then, being an experienced appraiser, he reminded me the water tower is called "functional obsolescence." That means it is a material fact that is virtually impossible to eliminate but has a significant impact on market value.  more...

DEAR BOB: I recently purchased my first home, a townhouse condominium. While getting acquainted with my new neighbors, the subject of insurance came up. One of my neighbors, who rents her townhouse condo, says she has a renter's insurance policy. Since I am an owner, do I also need a renter's insurance policy? --Nancy B.

DEAR NANCY: No. As a condominium owner, you need a condominium owner's insurance policy. It will protect you against negligence liability, such as when somebody is injured in your condo.  more...

DEAR BOB: In your articles you always seem to extol the virtues of revocable living trusts. However, living trusts are not for everyone.  more...