Blog Posts

By Marc C. Shaffer

One question real estate agents often pose to sellers is, “How emotionally attached are you to this house?” The reason they ask is because when emotions are at play during negotiations, they can cast a shadow over a good deal and hurt the seller in the end.

Perhaps your children grew up in the home and you’re saying goodbye to the memories, not just the structure.

Perhaps you inherited a home from a grandparent, so you value it more than other properties.

Although it may not be easy, a house is an asset that could have the ability to set you up for your next move or investment, so taking away the emotion (as much as you can) could mean being ready to accept a different offer than one you might accept with emotions in the way.

By Marc C. Shaffer

I’ve heard figures ranging from the $20ks to $100k. I’ve had friends who likened their experience to the cost of buying a used car, and others who are closer to the cost of buying a house. These are the figures that it’s costing people with infertility to try and have a baby and everyone’s circumstance is unique, so you may find yourself anywhere along this financial spectrum.

Did you know that Americans donated an estimated $449.64 billion to charities and other nonprofits in 2019? According to the findings from Giving USA, this was one of the greatest years ever recorded in terms of charitable donations (since its first report was published over 60 years ago).

By Jessica Searcy Kmetty

In the nick of time?

One week after adding a cybercrimes addendum onto our homeowner’s policy, we were notified by my husband’s employer that someone tried to file for unemployment benefits using his name and Social Security number.

By Marc C. Shaffer

“Procrastination is something best put off until tomorrow.” -Gerald Vaughan

It is a fact in my life that as the years go on, I get busier, things get more complicated, and time shrinks. I have to be very strict with my time, going as far as adding ‘call this friend’ and ‘schedule a trip’ and ‘buy new running shoes’ reminders on my calendar.

I don’t want to get so busy that I miss these things, but I also know the important things take time so I make it a point to schedule time so they happen.

I envy people who schedule these things for Someday. Where is that on the calendar? Why don’t I have a Someday??