Category Archives: Featured

Learn to Dispute Charges on Your Credit Report for After Shopping Season

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Check credit after holiday shoppingAfter all is said and done with holiday shopping, even if you were very careful with credit card usage, staying close to budget and being a responsible borrower, there is still a chance for errors to end up on your credit report. Some of this may be errors, or it could be fraud, and it is important to know how to report and resolve the issue. The credit and finance experts at Equifax share information about what to do when you find errors on your credit report, after the holidays or otherwise, in the new article, “

How Do I Dispute Information on My Credit Report?”

First, you want to carefully look over your credit report for all activity. If you spot something off, you need to dispute it with the credit reporting agency right away. The dispute is free of charge, and depending on the agency, you may have to call or send in the dispute by mail. Equifax offers free and easy online disputes. If you send in a dispute and it is resolved, the one credit reporting agency will notify the other two agencies of the corrected information. If you want to have the most up to date information though, in the case of needing to have a spotless report for an application for a mortgage in Atlanta or the like, you should contact each agency independently and immediately.

After you report your dispute, the credit agencies are legally required to investigate within 30 to 45 days, and before the time has elapsed, the credit agency will inform you of their findings. From there, the disputed item will either be removed or the reporting agency will explain that the findings of their investigation lead them to keep it on.

Even if the disputed item wasn’t removed, you should keep a close eye on your credit report going forward and dispute as necessary. If you are concerned about activity on your credit file (due to identity theft or potential identity theft), you may want to sign up for a credit monitoring service like the Equifax Complete plan.

For more information about protecting your credit score and more

personal finance advice, check the Equifax Finance Blog.

CNN Money Ranks Carolina Markets as Best Buys

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Asheville real estate market

If you’re looking to buy or sell a new home, some real estate markets have recovered better than others. Recently, CNN Money ranked their top five markets for buyers, and two Carolina real estate markets made the list.

Coming in at number one was southern South Carolina, which includes towns such as Beaufort, Hilton Head Island and Charleston. Currently, homes are averaging 156 days on the market and being listed at $269,900. This means that buyers have a longer time to shop around for their perfect home, although they shouldn’t expect great deals to stay on the market as long.

The Asheville market makes the list at number four with 146 days on the market on average and a median listing price of $249,900. Housing here still remains inexpensive especially considering that the city consistently ranks as a top place to live. However, those looking to buy will find that inventory has dropped significantly over the past few years.

For the full list from CNN Money, click here.

New Website Aids Charleston Home Buyers

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South Carolina homes

If you’re a South Carolina home buyer looking for new digs in Charleston, you’re in luck. Carolina One Real Estate and the Historic Charleston Group have teamed up to launch www.CharlestonBuyersGuide.com.

Visitors to the site will find an advanced MLS search, interactive map, information on local communities, all kinds of useful information for buyers and sellers and a blog. When searching for a home, buyers will be sure to love the site’s access to Microsoft’s Bird’s Eye View as well we Google’s Streetview. Buyers will also be able to view comprehensive listings that can be saved for future reference, and they can request for property information that matches their predetermined criteria to be emailed to them. The additional information provided in the community listings, market reports and blog is also of use to buyers, sellers and real estate professionals alike.

“CharlestonBuyersGuide.com was designed to fill a niche in the Charleston, SC real estate market,” John Lisi, the site’s co-founder says. “There was really no other website out there that emphasized the buyer and also utilized special technologies.”

According to Zillow, home values in Charleston have risen 7 percent in the last year to a median sale price of $249,300. This is higher than the national average sale price which is currently around $160,000. In addition, the market in Charleston is primarily made up of single family homes (68 percent), but condos (19 percent) are also prevalent.

For more information on the Charleston real estate market and to view the city’s current listings, be sure to visit www.CharlestonBuyersGuide.com.

Avoid a Design Crisis After Your Foreclosure Purchase

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Carolina real estate design

You just bought your first Carolina real estate foreclosure property, now what? Chances are you have a million thoughts running through your mind about all of the updates your new home needs. Don’t panic! By creating a design plan, you can effectively turn your home from shabby to shiny!

The first step is to make a list of things that clearly need some work. Next, make a design board. Gather inspiration and pictures from a variety of courses and paste them onto your board. You can get a sold vision of your home by thinking about your choices for cabinets, countertops, lighting, flooring,  trim, paint, appliances and more. Good sources of inspiration include new home construction models, the internet, magazines and more. Model homes are especially useful because all the design research has been done for you, and oftentimes the design trends used are ahead of the curve. You can also turn to larger companies such as PPG Porter Paints for ideas. They have color consultants around the world working to draw trends together for a global, well-rounded look.

Once your list and design board are complete, it’s time to get to work. Consider what items are most important and what can wait? That hideous bathroom may be unbearable, but the flooring throughout your main living areas are seen by more people.

Having a design board and a list will not only help you prioritize, but also stay on track. Even though you probably can’t afford to do everything all at one time, you’ll be able to rely on your research to complete your transformation seamlessly over a period of time.

Tessa Jones is a South Zone Color Consultant with PPG Porter Paints

New Home for Veterans Opens in North Carolina

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North Carolina veteran housing

Recently, state and city officials gathered for the grand opening of the new N.C. State Veterans Home in Black Mountain. The facility aims at providing long-term healthcare for U.S. military veterans.

“We always like to say that North Carolina is the most military-friendly state in the nation and it really shows with the opening of the new N.C. State Veterans Home in Black Mountain,” said Gov. Perdue. “This is how we show appreciation to those who served and sacrificed to make our state and country a better, safer place to live and prosper.”

The facility, which has 100 beds total, provides residents with their own rooms and bathrooms. These rooms are grouped into “neighborhoods” of 12-14 residents who share a common area complete with dining room, large-screen TV and courtyard.

In addition to these housing facilities, residents also receive skilled nursing care and a state-of-the-art therapy center.

The N.C. State Veterans Home program provides skilled care services to qualifying North Carolina veterans. Currently, about 765,900 veterans live in the state, and approximately 100,000 of those reside in the western portion of the state.

The State Veterans Home program is a fully receipt-based operation. Homes operate on funds from private pay, Medicaid/Medicare, Veterans Affairs pension and/or per diem, and other sources such as gifts and donations. The N.C. Division of Veterans Affairs, which is part of the N.C. Department of Administration, employs a private provider to manage the facility. North Carolina currently operates two other facilities, a 150-bed facility in Fayetteville, and a 99-bed in Salisbury. A fourth facility in Kinston is scheduled to be completed in early 2013.

For additional information about the State Veterans Home program, visit the N.C. Division of Veterans Affairs website at www.ncveterans.net. For more North Carolina real estate news, explore our site.