If you are thinking about buying a vacation or second home, first read "Second Homes for Dummies" by Bridget McCrea and Stephen Spignesi. It will alert you to virtually all the pros and cons of owning these unique properties, which are often hundreds of miles away from one's primary home and are frequently for personal use and renting to tenants.  more...

DEAR BOB: I used to live in California where the word "escrow" referred to the closing of a real estate sale. For example, we said, "We're in escrow for the sale of our house." But then I moved to Florida where the term "escrow" seems to have an entirely different meaning. Here, it refers to the mortgage lender requiring the borrower to deposit a stated amount each month into escrow for payment of the property taxes and insurance bills when they come due. Which is the correct use of the word "escrow"? --Myron A.  more...

Imagine you receive a gift deed from your uncle to some valuable, vacant, highway-frontage farmland. You pay the property taxes. About a year later, in need of quick cash your uncle sells the same land to a developer who promptly records his deed. Then your uncle dies.

Who owns that property: you or the developer?

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.

If you failed to record your gift deed, the legal answer is the developer owns the land.  more...

DEAR BOB: The sellers of our house changed their minds on several items that were supposed to be repaired shortly after the close of the sale. They didn't fulfill their requirement. We have two signed documentations by the landscape architect the seller hired, as well as the homeowners association, stating the work was incomplete. Our real estate broker wants nothing to do with this matter since he already got his commission. What are our options to get reimbursed for these added expenses? --Danielle M.  more...

DEAR BOB: I have a follow-up question to the one about renting a principal residence for three years after having occupied it as my primary home for the previous two years. Do I have to depreciate it while renting to tenants? Or can I just deduct on my income-tax returns the mortgage interest, property taxes and other rental expenses? I recall you stating in one of your articles something about the IRS requiring depreciation deductions even if it was previously the owner's principal residence.  more...

In July 2003, Mitchell Weiss and others borrowed approximately $5.2 million at 5.33 percent interest on a 10-year promissory note from Washington Mutual Bank. The loan was secured by Los Angeles and Beverly Hills buildings.

Before signing the loan documents, Weiss read the prepayment penalty and concluded it was about 2 percent of the amount borrowed. He decided that was acceptable and went ahead with signing the paperwork.

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.  more...

Don't be misled by the title of well-known real estate author Robert Irwin's latest book "Rent to Own." Just one chapter in the book is about renting a home with an option to purchase. The balance of this well-written book is about why owning is better than renting, and how to purchase a home with a minimal amount of cash.  more...

DEAR BOB: We own two homes: one in Virginia and one in Washington state. My husband works in Vancouver, Canada, which is why we bought a home just across the border in Washington. He is a resident of Washington and I am a Virginia resident. We have a commuter marriage. When we sell the Virginia house, can we still claim the $500,000 tax exemption even though I am the only one who lives in it most of the time? --Eileen McA.  more...

DEAR BOB: After purchasing a townhouse condominium, my husband and I soon learned the heat didn't work. I have had several heating experts confirm the problem. Local heating contractors tell me they are aware of the deficient heat throughout the complex. In addition to the seller failing to disclose this major defect, her real estate agent who sells these units lived in the complex until recently. Replacing the electrical system (gas is not available) won't be cheap. Estimates are about $30,000.  more...

Would you be interested in acquiring a house, condo or other desirable real estate with little or no competition from other buyers? Or perhaps you are a real estate agent looking for an endless source of listings from sellers who are motivated to sell?

Often-overlooked sources of properties for sale, frequently at below-market prices, are probate properties.

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.  more...

DEAR BOB: We own a rental property that was not properly set up two years ago to "stepped-up basis" when title passed from a deceased spouse to a surviving spouse. Should we amend the tax returns to reflect the higher basis or begin the adjusted cost basis for depreciation purposes in 2006? We are thinking of selling the property. --Rebecca C.

DEAR REBECCA: You can amend your income-tax returns for the last three "open" tax years. From your description, I would do so.  more...

Tenant Un Sil McNairy and other residents of the 224-unit Victoria Apartments sued the owners and resident managers -- Hee Cho and his wife Man Park -- for actual and emotional distress damages due to breach of the warranty of habitability.  more...

DEAR BOB: What is involved when you give a real estate listing agent an "exclusive"? Will the property go on the MLS (multiple listing service)? Can another realty agency show your house and bring a purchase offer? --Craig A.

DEAR CRAIG: There are two types of "exclusive listings." One is called an "exclusive agency listing." That means if the home seller finds a buyer without any agent's help, a sales commission need not be paid to the listing agent.

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.  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...

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...