Real Estate Information

Many people fall out of the home buying market when interest rates start to go up. This is often a mistake. Many of the best mortgages deals become available when lenders are competing for new business and sellers are competing within a smaller buyer pool. You just have to know how to keep the costs down in order to counter the higher interest rates.

One of the best tricks is the buy-down. In a buy-down, a fee is paid at the closing to get a lower interest rate. In a soft market, an anxious seller may be lured into to paying all or part of the buy-down. Another approach is to get the seller to pay some of closing costs, thus lowering the amount of cash a buyer needs to close. Frequently the seller's costs can be used as a write-off by the buyer. Always consult with your tax advisor if you are considering such an arrangement.

If the market is softening due to rising or higher rates, the price itself becomes an area where a buyer may be able to save a lot of money on a house through skillful negotiating. Lower prices mean lower loan amounts, so don't be discouraged by higher rates--use them to your advantage.

Home maintenance tip –

Tips for preventing plumbing problems...

When your home’s plumbing system is working well, al is right with the world!  Here are a few tips to help avoid those pesky plumbing problems that can soak (in more ways than one) you.

• Use Strainers for sink and tub drains to prevent clogs
• Refrain from flushing anything other than toilet paper down the toilet
• Do not pour grease down drains
• Close foundation vents in the fall and winter to prevent pipes from freezing
• If your house is going to be vacant for an extended period of time, leave your heat on low and wrap exposed pipes.
• A sagging ceiling may be a sign of a severe water leak.  Other signs of leaks may include water spots or dark spots on walls and ceiling, or rusty spots underneath sinks, the water heater and clothes washer.

Sound simple?  YUP!  Avoid being SOAKED!!

Summit County Colorado, September 23, 2010, world class ski resorts are starting to make snow!

Loveland Ski area is just waiting for the temperature to drop to 28 degrees. Last night we may have hit the mark. Stay tuned for more updates as the temperatures drop. Arapahoe Basin reports that they are ready to start making snow also and are just waiting for the temperature to drop. Last night  it got down to 33 degrees and at 10 am it is still 44 degrees outside. Start the guns! Hope to see you this ski season.

Summit County Colorado 2010 Parade of Homes, this Realtors choice, 31 Red Buffalo Trail, Hamilton Creek Subdivision, Silverthorne, Colorado

Here is a picture from the deck of my favorite home on the parade of homes tour this year. Located at the top of Hamilton Creek subdivision on Red Buffalo Trail is this 3942 square foot masterpiece with incredibly spectacular views.  Four bedrooms, four and a half baths, custom detailing inside and out. Contemporary design, rustic materials, large decks with water feature and so much more.  Open for public viewing  this Saturday and Sunday (Sept 18-19), plus next Saturday and Sunday (Sept 25-26). By the way, the aspen leaves have turned and the fall colors are amazing to see. Come check this home out!

Just a couple of quick photos to show you all that the fall colors are here again and they will not last long. These photos are taken from beautiful Angler Mountain Ranch in Silverthorne today. There are three homes on the Parade of Homes tour this weekend and next. Brand new subdivision, duplexes, single family homes, and views galore! Best deal on a new home with great views in Summit County. These pictures do not even do it justice. Come check it out this weekend. If you have any questions or would like to view more homes please call Keller Williams, Top of the Rockies 970-368-7000 and schedule a appointment with the best Real Estate team in the west.

People buy a home for a lot of different reasons. They may want to put down roots in a community and create a sense of stability in their lives. Then there are the financial considerations and the "forced" savings that builds up in the form of equity. In addition, the monthly cost of owning a house is usually much more stable and predictable than renting.

If you are considering the possibility of purchasing a home, contact a knowledgeable real estate agent in your community. An important part of our job is to educate prospective buyers about the potential benefits and responsibilities of renting versus owning a home. We can help you determine your purchasing power and show you the best homes in your price range. We can also give you a side-by-side comparison of the costs of owning a home compared with what you pay for rent. When you fix up your home to suit your needs and taste, you benefit from the added value of the improvements instead of the landlord!

Give us a call at 970.368.7000 for more information!

Meatball Sundae by Seth Godin is another of his books on the new marketing trends.  The main thrust of the book is that you cannot just add the new internet marketing approaches on top of existing products.  If the product can be reconfigured or changed to fit the new marketing technologies, then it will work.  Some products cannot utilize the new rules.

He identifies fourteen trends that are changing the way marketing works.  He talks about the “long tail” and direct communication between consumers and producers.  But he also addresses the significant influence of the independent authority and the reversing of the bell curve that we all remember about price and volume.  I like how he describes the low end now, “At the cheap end stands Wal-Mart.  If I don’t care enough about a product to seek out the best, then I want the cheapest.”

You can find out more about Seth and his writings at www.SethGodin.com or more about Meatball Sundae at www.squidoo.com/meatballsundae

What if you hear one day that the house you have coveted for years is on the market. Out of curiosity, you might call your real estate agent and arrange to see if the inside of your dream house is as terrific as the outside. It is, and you fall in love with the place. The sellers need a relatively fast settlement, and are not in a position to accept an offer that is contingent on selling your home before closing on the new one. While you are confident your house will sell fairly quickly, you cannot be sure in a fluctuating market.

A bridge loan might be your solution. Many lenders specialize in providing short term loans for just this type of situation. The principal and interest is paid back when you close the sale of your present house. If the market in your area is strong and there is a good possibility of selling your home quickly, or if you are willing to offer your home at a price that will make it attractive in a sluggish market, then a bridge loan is a tool that could make the home you love a real possibility. A good real estate agent and a knowledgeable loan officer are the team you need to work it out.  Contact us at www.YourSummitRealEstate.com to find that perfect agent for you!!!

If you’re only using traditional internet search engines to look for specific information, you may just be scratching the surface.  You can expand your search and get more of the information you need by accessing the “Deep Web,” a vast amount of content in searchable databases that can only be accessed by direct query.  Here’s how to get to this data:

Use a specific site’s search engine.  Google, for example, will not find all the information in the Library of Congress web pages (and if it did, it would bog everyone down).  Instead, do your search on the Library of Congress web site directly at:  www.loc.gov.

Add the word “database” to your regular search.  For example, if you’re searching Yahoo for information on toxic chemicals, you may find more specifics by searching “toxic chemicals database.”

Use a “Deep Web” subject-focused search engine or directory.  Traditional search engines are working on accessing all this data (Google Scholar already searches scholarly literature, books and reports) but, in the meantime, try a site such as www.completeplanet.com, which captures more than 70,000 searchable databases.

There are many specialty search engines.  To name a few, check out www.pubmed.gov for health and medical information; the Librarians' Internet Index at www.ipl.org, a collaborative research directory; or www.artcyclopedia.com, which lists 9,000 artists and 2,600 art sites. 

Get a library card.  Many public libraries offer access to research databases for users with a library card (some of these databases are subscription only or password protected).  Some city or county Public Libraries, for example, subscribe to services you can access through your home computer such as NetLibrary eAudiobooks, Film and Television Literature Index, Computer Source and Consumer Health Complete.  

You will probably find this hard to believe, but the cost of owning a home today is extremely low.  In 1981, comparing the median price of a home to the median income, it took 36% of a family’s income to pay for the home.  In 2009 it took only 15%!  Less than half.