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KIRO Radio's Tom Kelly digs deep into the Puget Sound real estate market
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Small investors rolling retirement accounts into real estate

Amateur investors are increasingly tapping into their retirement accounts to buy homes and take advantage of the hotter housing market, CNNMoney reported.

'Dear seller: We are the best family for your home'

In a housing market characterized by a short supply of properties and by bidding wars, some buyers are hoping to get a competitive edge by writing sellers short notes about why they are so right for home and want to become its new owners.

Buying beats renting in Seattle if you stay 3.6 years, says Zillow

Buying a home is a better financial decision than renting for Seattle-area homebuyers intending to stay in their home for at least three years and seven months, according to a first quarter analysis from Seattle-based Zillow.

Banks loosen up, remain wary of risky loans

Stringent mortgage standards have kept many potential homebuyers on the sidelines the last few years.

Home 'annuity' could supplement seniors' incomes

A recent article in U.S. News and World Report suggests seniors and baby boomers consider turning their homes into an annuity by using one of the least tapped avenues of a reverse mortgage.

Rain break: Owning in Mexico could become easier

Purchasing real estate in Mexico has been a confusing for proposition for people looking to leave the rain or for those seeking a less expensive place to retire.

Low credit scores holding back borrowers

Would-be borrowers who have credit scores below 620 are increasingly being denied a mortgage, struggling to meet lenders' more stringent underwriting standards, Elizabeth Duke, member of the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System, told attendees at the recent Housing Policy Executive Council.

Incomes, rates keep state's homes in affordable range

Low mortgage rates and stabilizing incomes are keeping Washington state's home affordability high despite increasing home prices, according to the Runstad Center for Real Estate Studies at the University of Washington.

Want the house? Drop the contingencies

As the inventory of for-sale homes remains at low levels, sellers are allowing fewer contingencies.

About time: Fannie Mae begins taxpayer payback

Fannie Mae announced that it will pay $59.4 billion in dividends to the U.S. Treasury, helping to reduce the net cost of its taxpayer bailout to $21.1 billion, Reuters reported.