How Often Should You Look at Your Zestimate?
To hear the real estate portals tell it, you should track your home's value on a weekly basis. Is it really necessary to look at your Zestimate that often?
Author
My First Apartment
Alex Starace
Alex Starace and his wife own a condo in Chicago. Alex enjoys basketball, biking and jazz. His writing also appears regularly in My First Apartment, South Florida Opulence and TriQuarterly.
Decorate Like a Pro: Secrets of TV’s Biggest Home Design Stars
If you're like most condo-owners, you've watched your share of TV shows on home design. Make your place look like it should have a show of its own.
Should You Rent Out Your Condo Instead of Selling?
You’ve decided to move. Should you rent out your condo? Being a part-time landlord has its appeal, but is it right for you?
Is It Time to Get a Bigger Place?
When you buy a condo, you seldom expect to stay forever. When should you upgrade? It depends. Getting a bigger place could be a great idea, or it could take more time and money than you’d bargained for. Your Situation Your Place Was Always Too Small You thought your first condo was a little tight,…
What’s It Like to Have a Nest Thermostat?
I got a Nest Thermostat at the beginning of the summer. Now that I've had it for a while, how much do I like it? Is it worth buying?
Should I Buy a Nest Thermostat?
It’s trendy, it’s sleek, it uses wifi and it could be yours. It’s a Nest Thermostat. Should you get one? MyFirstCondo received a complimentary third generation version to review, so we thought we’d put it to the test. If you’ve recently bought a condo, you’ve likely seen the Nest Thermostat touted in home listings. Its…
The Plusses and Minuses of Buying A Condo Pre-Construction
If you’ve been searching for a condo a while, you’ve probably come across listings of places that are still under construction. Maybe you can see developer’s plans, or you can visit a model at the developer’s office, or you can walk around the construction site. But the place you’re buying is not yet built and you cannot see…
10 Point Neighborhood Checklist for Condo Buyers
Before you go out condo hunting, you need to decide in which neighborhood(s) you’re going to look. Since you’re buying for the long term (ideally, five years or more), you want to be confident you’ll still love where you live down the road – and that when you go to sell, the property (and neighborhood)…
Should You Pay Extra on Your Mortgage Principal?
As much as you love your new condo, you sure are paying a lot of interest on your mortgage. You’ve heard that it’s possible to pay extra principal each month – and that there are benefits to doing so, including reducing your overall interest payments. Is this true? How does it work? Assuming you have…
How to Run a Successful Condo Search
You have a broker, you’ve made a list of your must-haves for your first place and you know what neighborhood you want to live in. The key now is actually finding good prospects – places you’re excited to go out and see. Here are some tips I found useful in my search. First, let your…
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