Planning that summer vacation? Here are our top tips to give you added peace of mind while you're away. One of the most effective steps is to make your home appear occupied. Use timers or an app on a few lights throughout the house, scheduling them to turn off and on at various times after dark. Use extra caution when communicating about your vacation dates on Facebook and other social media. And don't post photos until you're back. Information spreads quickly, and you don't

Owning a home has great financial benefits. In a recent research paper, Home ownership and the American Dream, Laurie S. Goodman and Christopher Mayer of the Urban Land Institute explained: “Home ownership appears to help borrowers accumulate housing and non-housing wealth in a variety of ways, with tax advantages, greater financial flexibility due to secured borrowing, built-in ‘default’ savings with mortgage amortization and nominally fixed payments, and the potential to lo