Guides & articles
The numbers worth understanding before you sign
Short, plain-English guides on the home-buying decisions that actually move money — each one with the matching calculator built right in, so you can run your own numbers as you read.
Yes, rates are high. Here’s what the payment really is
The headline payment isn’t the real cost. Walk a $1M purchase from the scary number down to the real after-tax monthly cost — buydown, deductions, effective rate, and all.
Read the guideThe cost of waiting to buy a home
“I’ll wait for rates to drop” has a price tag — a higher price, a higher payment for 30 years, and the equity you don’t build. See the real number for your purchase.
Read the guideSelf-employed and feel capped? There’s a better way to qualify
Your write-offs shrink the income tax returns show — and that’s what a traditional loan counts. See how bank statement and P&L loans qualify you on real cash flow instead.
Read the guideProp 19: move without losing your low property taxes
If you’re 55 or older, you can take your low Prop 13 tax base with you to a new home — anywhere in California, up to three times. Most homeowners don’t know it exists.
Read the guideRent vs. own: it’s not the payment, it’s where you end up
Renting isn’t throwing money away, and neither is buying. Compare both paths as net worth — including what your down payment would earn invested.
Read the guideThe real cost of moving up
Your payment goes up when you move up — your total cost may not. See what clearing debt, the bigger deduction, and Prop 19 do to the real difference.
Read the guideMore guides are on the way — rent vs. own, the real cost of moving up, and how a rate buydown beats a price cut. In the meantime, every calculator stands on its own.