Buyers
The Value of Photos: It’s Good Seller Representation
June 13, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Buyers are hooked on photos. I mean REALLY hooked on what they see when searching online for a home. They read a home’s description in the marketing remarks, then expect to see a visual confirmation of all of the features mentioned. From there they go to Google maps, or Bing, or wherever and pull up aerial [...]
Keeping Transactions on Course is a Bit Like Herding Chickens
June 9, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Being a Buyer’s Agent Requires Amazing Knowledge
June 8, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Being a Buyer’s Agent … that broker who assists buyers find their dream house and guides them through to closing of their purchase … requires an amazing amount of knowledge in today’s market. Just a few years ago, being a buyer’s agent essentially involved locating and assisting a buyer in writing an offer, carrying it [...]
New Construction IS Selling in Auburn, Washington!
March 24, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Sigh. The national newspapers are shouting from the rooftops about how crappy terrible new construction is selling. Another sensationalism report blowing things totally out of proportion. According to an Associated Press article quoted in my local Seattle Times, new home sales so far this year across the nation accounted for just 5% of all sales. [...]
4 Critical Facts When Selling Your Manufactured Home
March 15, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Selling a manufactured home on land is a bit different than selling a stick-built home. There are a few more inspections and requirements, not to mention finding a lender that will lend! Here in the Auburn area of Western Washington, I’ve had the dubious pleasure of working through a few sticky manufactured home transactions [...]
What Kind of a Buyer are You?
March 4, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Talking with prospective buyer clients every week involves having frank discussions about how they see themselves reaching their new house goals. Listening to them describe the sort of house they want along with how they see themselves living in the home, the neighborhood and location, helps set up a relationship that describes how a buying [...]
So … What IS a Buyer Agency Agreement?
February 8, 2011 by Gabrielle · 1 Comment
In a previous post, I wrote a bit about why a Buyer Agency Agreement is important and how a Buyer / Broker relationship might occur. I also indicated that, as a rule, I require a Buyer Agency Agreement to work with Buyers. So what, exactly, does a Buyer Agency Agreement obligate a Buyer to do? [...]
Working With Buyers — That Scary Buyer Agency Agreement
February 8, 2011 by Gabrielle · 1 Comment
I love working with Buyers. The excitement of shopping for houses, seeing homes through their eyes, and the ultimate gratification everyone has when the transaction closes and move-in day occurs! It just doesn’t get much better than that!! But working with Buyers is a tremendous amount of work. There’s a lot of stress involved, a myriad [...]
Relocating? Consider Seattle-Tacoma Region Traffic When Choosing A Home
January 20, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
I absolutely love getting a phone call from a Buyer looking to relocate to the Seattle-Tacoma area. One of the early questions when talking to someone moving to the area involves where they will work and how long they’re willing to commute. Almost always, the answers are something similar to “I’m being transferred to ____________ (downtown [...]
Flood Maps Affect Home Sales and Purchases
January 19, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Another Rewarding Closing for First Time Homebuyers!
November 5, 2010 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
It’s just SO rewarding to hand the keys over to first time homebuyers! Especially one that’s been five children in the making! Last night I had the pleasure of giving the keys to a buyer moving into their very first … very own … brand new, built-just-for-them, house. And it was really cool! Imagine having [...]
Foreclosure Statistics – Auburn, WA
October 20, 2010 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
I was directed to a Web site this morning called Foreclosure Radar. Like most sites of this sort, its aim is to get real estate agents to subscribe to their service (for a fee) with referrals to be directed from the site back to the fee-paying agents. I typically avoid these sorts of things as [...]
FHA Mortgage Insurance Changes & How They May Impact a Sale
September 27, 2010 by Gabrielle · 1 Comment
You may have heard that costs surrounding FHA loans is changing in October, reducing the dollar amount needed at closing for Upfront Mortgage Insurance, while increasing the monthly portion of mortgage insurance that is added to a homeowner’s payment. If you have previously been approved for an FHA loan but haven’t yet found a home, you’ll [...]
Investor Alert: FHA Financing for “Flipped” Houses
September 23, 2010 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
In mid-January, 2010, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued a temporary waiver (good until February 1, 2011, or until extended or withdrawn) to give FHA borrowers the ability of obtaining an FHA-insured mortgage on a home that was purchased less than 90 days previous. What this means is that a Buyer can [...]
There is NOT a 3.8% Sales Tax on All Home Sales Starting in 2013!
September 22, 2010 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Over the last several weeks I’ve had a number of clients and contacts email me with a “Is This True?” question about the rumor of a 3.8% “sales tax” to be added to the sale of a home after 2012. With the passing of President Obama’s Health Care bill, some people are digging deep for [...]
