While news of the housing crash is making headlines in most papers and front lining the evening news there still remain a few markets where the crash has not made as much headway. If you live in one of these markets and you have not yet been affected by the real estate market crash, be aware that you may not have as much time to respond as you think when the market in your area begins to slide downward.

This is because a market can practically spin on a dime and go from being quite healthy to being practically dead. As a result, you could find yourself holding a property that you are unable to sell. If this is an investment property, this could be quite serious; however, even if it is your own personal residence, it could still cause problems if you need to sell for a profit for some reason. This is why it is imperative to make sure that you protect yourself now so that you will have options available to you in the event the market does begin to crash in your area.

The first step that should be taken to protect yourself and your investment is to change from an interest-only loan or adjustable rate mortgage to a fixed rate mortgage. A fixed rate mortgage will provide you with the opportunity to tap into lower, more secure rates. In the event that rates continue to rise and do so sharply, this can provide you with some peace of mind.

In addition, you need to take steps to ensure that you will be able to afford to remain in your primary residence. In the event that you do not foresee a move in the near future, there should not be any real concern regarding whether the value of your home goes up or down right now. If you plan to be in the home for some time, it is important to recognize that it is really more than just an investment. In addition, it is quite likely that the market will stabilize eventually and the value of your home will stabilize as well. However, if you find it difficult to make your housing payments every month or you think you may need to relocate soon, then you should consider selling the property and moving now before the market in your area slips any further.

Furthermore, you need to ensure that your savings are safe. It is important to recognize that financial institutions do typically invest quite heavily in real estate. If the housing crash continues in the same vein, your investments could be at risk. Savings and loans and banks are the most at risk. To ensure that your investments are safe, it is a good idea to obtain an analysis rating of your bank or S&L.

In addition, it is important to focus on current and future investments. During this time conservative investments are likely to be the smartest investments to make. These investments include Treasury bills and CDs as well as foreign currencies which are strong.

Taking steps now to protect your investments and protect yourself against future possible downturns in the real estate market in your local area will help to guard you against possible risk.

Back when the housing market was still booming, many homeowners took advantage of the opportunity to renovate their homes. At the time it certainly seemed to make sense. Interest rates were low; loans were usually easy to obtain and homes were selling like hotcakes. Therefore, many homeowners easily made the connection that it was the ideal time to renovate their homes to include higher-end features. These homeowners reasoned that if they decided to sell their homes they would be able to easily recoup the cost of the home improvement.

In most cases, home-equity loans were used to finance these home improvement projects. A home-equity loan is a special type of loan which allows homeowners to take out a form of second mortgage on their home against the equity they have built up in their homes. Due to the fact that home values were skyrocketing in many areas, homeowners suddenly found themselves awash in rapidly rising equity. That, combined with low interest rates, made it quite easy to borrow thousands of dollars to put toward home renovations. In fact, many homeowners found no trouble at all in borrowing up to $100,000 or even more to fund various home improvement projects.

During this time kitchen renovations and upgrades wee particularly popular. Granite countertops became the standard for the day and all high-end homes and even those that bordered on the fringe of being high-end were suddenly being renovated with granite countertops. High-end appliances, especially those produced by Viking, also became quite popular. Homeowners speculated that adding such high-end features to their homes would raise the value even higher.

In many cases, homeowners were able to recoup at least 80% of the cost of those renovations. In other areas, it was not unheard of for homeowners to recoup almost 100% of the cost of the renovation. Taking into consideration a couple of years of use of the renovations and all together, most of these homeowners found it was quite a good deal.

Today; however, the boom has finally ended and many homeowners are finding that those home improvements are more expensive than they ever dared dream. There is suddenly so much inventory on the market from which buyers can choose; however, that they are no longer as impressed with such features as they once were. As a result, even upscale improvements and additions are now recouping less than 70% of their actual cost. There is no doubt that the return for higher-end renovations has certainly declined quite quickly.

This provides critical advice for homeowners who are thinking of renovating their homes in the current market. This message is that if you are planning to renovate your home, you should not go over the top; especially if you think you will be selling in the next three to four years. In most cases you simply will not be able to get the money back when you sell.

You should also take into consideration the fact that home-equity loans for the purpose of renovating homes are not easy to come by as they once were. Just a few years ago it almost seemed as if lenders were begging to give away money. Interest rates were so low, most homeowners felt as though they were being foolish if they did not borrow money against the equity in their homes. Like the rest of the mortgage industry; however, the default rate for home-equity loans has increased sharply. As a direct result, lenders are being far more cautious today about making home-equity loans.