MainVue Homes at The Bridges in Auburn, WA
January 18, 2012 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
New home-building in Auburn, WA continues to increase, as evidenced by a quick drive through the area. One of the most ambitious new developments in Auburn is The Bridges, by MainVue Homes, located just east of 124th, between 304th and 288th. A few years ago I watched as the area was cleared and developed with [...]
You Can Test Drive a Car … But Not a House!
January 14, 2012 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
The last couple of weekends have included a few hours helping our son decide what car to buy. We’ve been to this dealer and that, had him prequalified … and have driven a number of cars, usually with the all-chatty salesman in the backseat telling us exactly why this car is THE one to buy. We’ve [...]
A Great Lender Helps From Start to Finish, Especially in a Short Sale
January 11, 2012 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
One of the very first steps in the home buying process is determining how a Buyer will pay for their new home. Not only must a Buyer determine much they can afford, but how an offer must be structured–whether closing costs must be paid by a Seller, gift funds will be used for a down [...]
Okay, Should You Sell … and Buy in 2012?
December 27, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
Like many, you may have been sitting impatiently on the fence for the last three years hoping for a miracle that would allow you to sell your existing home without sacrificing too much more equity … and buy at today’s price and interest rate. At least once a week I get a call from a previous [...]
Think Housing Prices Are Too High?
December 16, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
I have a client that loves to send me little jokes and ditties every now and then. He’s just slightly older than I am and loves to pontificate about how prices are outrageous and how he can’t imagine how people can afford to live any more. In some respects, of course, he’s absolutely right. But [...]
12 Reasons Why That House Might Not Qualify for FHA Financing
October 19, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
In my practice, FHA loans are used for the majority of home purchases. At the moment, without a doubt, an FHA 203(b) is the most logical choice. Credit score qualifications start at about 580 (depending on the lending institution involved), interest rates are awesome, the minimum down payment requirement is only 3 1/2%, closing costs run [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
Flood Maps Affect Home Sales and Purchases
January 19, 2011 by Gabrielle · Leave a Comment
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 [...]
