Dave Halpern, Broker, SRES

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver from Kennedy fame may divorce. If they divide the marital homes they will not have a problem paying the mortgages, if they have any. Most Americans, however, are not in that position. Once the reality of divorce sets in, the question of selling or keeping t...

Many times one of the divorcing spouses is NOT obligated or liable for the loan and therefore their credit may not be impacted. I'm referencing obligation to the lender, not obligation under the divorce agreement. Sometimes one of the spouses did not have had good enough credit while the other sp...

Activerain is undergoing significant changes. No one knows yet what the outcome will be. But whatever the outcome, many thousands of Realtors have benefited from this great synergistic platform. It reminds me of the quote “The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns t...

Divorced or divorcing spouses often call me to help them sell their house. Sometimes they say they have a very simple divorce. No kids, no complicated assets to divide up. Just a mutually agreed upon decision to part ways. “There is that house we need to sell. But, there’s no equity to split, so ...

  Some sellers are extremely proud of their wall mural and can't understand why the buyer wouldn't want to keep it. Some sellers can't bring themselves to paint over their labor of love. Some sellers paid big bucks to an artist to paint a work of art on the walls. But after all, it is all about ...

Okay, call me nuts. I find inspiration about helping sellers avoid foreclosure in the weirdest pIaces. I’m not a big fan of reality TV shows. Most of them do not reflect reality at all. I usually channel surf right over them. This time I was vegging out after a very long and tiring day and couldn...

Realtors, buyers and sellers should be very specific about what stays with the house. In real estate sales sometimes each side can interpret differently what stays with the house and what does not. It’s always better to avoid a dispute than win one. Disputes can arise over; Which appliances stay?...

I took this photo at a recent air show in Louisville, KY. Who knows what missions this plane flew back in the day. I'm glad the history of our nation and national heroes is preserved so nicely. Air shows serve a great purpose, they are a great recruiting tool for future generations of those who d...

Millions of homes are “underwater” or “upside down”, meaning the debt is higher than the value of the property. I am often asked variations of the question “When will home values rise back to equal what is owed?” I never want to sound negative, but the answer is measured in years. Here’s a simple...

Divorcing and owe too much on your house? Mortgage payments too high to handle? Who to ask for advice? Typically the first people turned to are relatives, marriage counselors, divorce lawyers, sometimes bankruptcy attorneys. Maybe the Realtor who helped you buy the house years ago will be called....