The press and news reports are screaming “the sky is falling, the sky is falling” about the real estate market.  The only thing falling are interest rates!

Mortgage interest rates, reported by our beloved Freddie Mac fell to the lowest level in  a month, matching rates from more than a year past! Sure this could give investors reason to worry about about a possible ressession, but let’s face it money investors worry about everything!

30 year fixed rate mortgages averaged 6.07% The Adjustable Rate Mortagage (ARM’s) were unchanged and remain at 5.9%.

Yes, most neighborhoods in the Denver area real estate markets have suffered with declineing prices and slowed activity. The facts remain that homes are selling and there are many homeowners who need to sell. The banks are loosening up and understand they MUST sell to reduce their number of REO’s (real estate owned) as they anticipate the next wave of foreclosures.

Buyers,  sitting on the bench waiting to get in the game should seriously think about getting in shape, ready to buy in this amazing real estate market place.  Getting in shape?  Yep, get ready to buy, prepare yourself for the marketplace in order to optimize you ability to purchase.

So what to do to get in shape: First talk to a great lender with a long track record. Stay away from the fast talkers and promises of way below market interest rates. Then, think about your “wish list.”  Your written wish list is a must. Write it down then prioritize it. Include everything you want to find in your new home, from number of bedrooms, bathrooms, lot size, architecture, square footage to neighborhood schools, room sizes and everything else you can think of. Now reorder the list from “must have” to “really want” to “it would be nice to have.” Prioritizing will really make you think about the property so that when you begin your property search you will have a heighten understanding of what is important to you. Read the rest of this entry »

Well I’ll be…another New Year’s Day. The Rose Parade, 6 bowl games on TV and when the day is over, what have we got but another new year.

A year, that in just 11 months and 30 days you’ll be saying “wow, where did the year go? Glad that one is over!”  Well, don’t let that happen! Make this the year what you want it to be. A great 2008!

Forget about the mortgage crisis. Forget about the foreclosure numbers. Stop reading the bad press about real estate.  Ignore the Iraq war. Don’t pay attention to who is leading today for the party’s nomination. Forget about about teaching George W to read.  Instead pay attention to the positive.

Last year was horrible year for a lot of real estate agents and mortgage lenders. Gayle and I had a great year. We even sold 2 homes in the last week of December. Why?

Why?  Because we have written goals! Because we have a plan!  If you read our earlier posts you’ll know that our plan and our goals are ready to go for 2008!

So, what’s my point here. I say no matter what you do, no matter who you are, write down your goals for 2008. What do you want for you in 2008! What about your family? What about your finances? What about….what about? Write it down. Think and rewrite. Outline a plan for goal achievement.  Then share your goals and your plan with a partner. Make sure they will hold you accountable. Try it, you’ll see. Need help with the how to for your goals or your plans. No problem. Google GOAL WRITING and get to work.

You will have a great 2008. Happy New Year!

The National Association of Realtors membership roles are declining. Why? Real estate markets almost everywhere are in turmoil. An abundance of listings, the mortgage crisis and many buyers still fence-sitting waiting for whole bubble to burst.  The days of fast and easy transactions are gone. Loan criteria is tight and tightening. Appraisals are coming in low. Property inspectioners uncover often costly needed repairs and owners, especially bank owners, are unwilling to make the fixes.

So, no more “fast money” for agents who got into the business for just that! That’s a blessing. Let them go and stay gone. Better agents with more education, better customer service,and advanced marketing techniques who understand their fiduciary responsiblities to their buyers and sellers will tough it out, as in past down markets. 

Many times this year while attending a closing, the Colorado ceremony to celebrate the passing of the deed and signing the lender and title company documents, I felt the lack of communication, trustworthyness and misdoubt between the other client and their agent who “represented” them. Those agents often taking phone calls during the closing or their rudeness by leaving room to go work on another “deal”  make me think and wonder if this is the way they treated their clients from the start.

Jeff Rickard at 1760 Mortgage Guide asked me to be a guest speaker on his mortgage blog and talk about how to find a good agent to represent a home buyer’s best interests. I offered Jeff’s readers 12 points to consider when choosing a real estate agent. To find out more read Not Just Any Realtor.

“Best of’” at National Assn. of Realtors “No Limits” from EskyKnows in Vegas.  While talking to my web hosting company Myers Internet  I hear someone say, “Hey Esky, what is the best thing you have found here at the Realtor Expo?”  Much to my surprise it was Mark Eibner from Denver with digital camcorder in tow. Another new web adventure for Mark, BrokerIPTV! So he handed me the microphone, turned on the microphone and here is what I had to say about Point2NLS!

A special thanks to Mark Eibner one of my real estate techno gurus and fellow Metro Broker and his gang at IPTV!

John Rebcook recently wrote in the Rocky Mountain News about a Littleton Colorado couple who sold their home in 5 days under the tutoring of a Denver University Real Estate class following the guidelines set out in the book “How to Sell Your Home in 5 Days,” by Bill Effros.

The home being sold was listed twice by 2 different real estate agents, always at the listed price of $329,000. After reviewing the available information for comparable properties in the immediate neighborhood; reviewing the photos of the kitchen, living area, yard and front elevation picture and comparing those properties to listed property, it is clear to me that both agents listed the home at least $23-30K over value.

So the property sat on the market, like all over priced properties. Sure there were showings, more than 50, and no offers. Why? most agents can’t read their buyers, they are waiting to take the buyers “order.” Someone in that lot of 50 would have been interested at the “right” price.  After sitting on the market, showing after showing and with no offers, the sellers became frustrated.

Read the rest of this entry »