It's definitely not always take-it-or-leave-it, but it depends a lot on the lender and your situation. When I was starting out, I managed to negotiate...

Haha, seriously! When I renovated a rental property last year, I thought I had everything neatly organized—then tax season hit and suddenly I was neck...

I've had mixed results trying to negotiate closing costs. Banks can be surprisingly rigid on certain fees, especially appraisal and title-related stuf...

This is spot on. When I transitioned from my steady 9-to-5 into property development, I had similar doubts. What helped me was breaking things down st...

Good point about ARMs—I've seen them work out nicely for short-term holds too. Recently had a townhouse we knew we'd flip in under three years, went w...

That's a good point about keeping financial activity minimal—definitely makes life easier. I had a similar but slightly different experience recently....

10% does seem safe, but honestly I think it depends a lot on your specific situation. If you've recently renovated or upgraded major systems (roof, HV...

Had my HVAC go out mid-July a couple years back... talk about timing. Learned the hard way to pad the escrow cushion a little extra—saved me from anot...

Went through something similar last year when rates were bouncing around. I ended up locking mine in, mostly for peace of mind. Sure enough, rates dip...