How Buying a Home is Like Finding the Perfect Shoe adage “one shoe fits all” does not work when buying home.  It doesn’t work when shoe shopping, either, for that matter!  Homes, like shoes, are very personal, and often emotionally-based purchases.

Try as they might to create a home that will meet every need and every taste, home builders are aware that it just can’t be done.  As with shoes, versatility lies in key components – simple design, elegant tones, and a combination of shine, style and comfort.

As with your shoe purchase, buying a home requires you to consider what is most important to you and your future plans.

• Open design vs. cozy comfort?
• Modern storage options vs. vintage style?
• Planned, pre-designed landscaping vs. creative gardening?
• Modular vs. eclectic structure?

You should also consider how and who will be using the home.  Should it be tailored to you or is it an investment property?

• Primary residence or vacation home?
• Adults only? Adults and pets? Adults, children and pets? Renters?  College students?
• Will it be used to entertain often and is parking sufficient?  Do you need a guest room?

Of course, there are many other questions to be considered, so take your time with your home purchase. Enjoy the journey as you find the home that is the perfect fit for you and your circumstances. And when you find the home that makes you want to click your heels so you can return?  Make an offer!  As to shoes?  If the shoe fits… buy it in every color!

Buying a Home Still Considered a “Best” Investment in U.S. and has several unique advantages when compared with renting. Aside from being able to decorate as you choose, receive additional tax benefits, enjoy stability in your housing payments, and increase your ability to make future investments, it just feels good to own your own home!

A survey conducted last month by the PEW Research Center, a non-profit, non-partisan organization considered a “fact tank” on social & demographic trends in America, determined that the majority of adult Americans (81%) still believe “that buying a home is the best long-term investment a person can make.” It is interesting to note that while the same study showed that 47% of those surveyed felt that current economic factors have resulted in a decrease in their current home value, those same home owners felt that their home investment was a safe one.

Even renters seem to agree with the idea of investing in a home, with 81% wishing to buy a home at some point, even if individual circumstances prevent it currently. In fact, when asked to rate long-term financial goals, homeownership and “being able to live comfortably in retirement” were rated the highest by 80% of those surveyed. Survey participants seemed to understand that owning a home provides more than an avenue for generating savings – it also is a place to live and provides an element of physical and emotional stability unlike other investment options.

Further pursuing this question, the survey compared investments – trying to determine which held fast in the long run – the stock market or the housing market. The answer was variable, depending on the year of investment, however, and unable to be determined overall. One item not considered in the survey is that owning a home provides income tax benefits that are not likely to be found in other investments, which could affect the dividend bottom line and how you choose to invest. Click here to view the survey in its entirety.Buying a Home Still Considered a “Best” Investment in U.S. and in our local twincities market.

Consider Bike Score When Buying a Home, location,location location. You’ve heard time and time again that when buying a home, location is what matters most…. and for good reason! For that purpose the concept of Walk Score was created. Dedicated to the idea that “less time in the car means more time for the things you love,” Walk Score, developed in 2008, has made it easier for home buyers to find a home that is closer to the activities and places they love.

Providing ratings from 0 to 100 to determine a neighborhood’s walkability, buyers can decide if the area they are considering is more Car-Dependent, Very Walkable, a Walker’s Paradise, or somewhere in-between. If you are searching for a home, you will also enjoy visiting tools such as Transit Score which helps in calculating the cost of your commute and the even newer Bike Score!

Bike Score was introduced this week in honor of Bike to Work Week and suggests areas that are best suited and not so desirable for bike riding. Considering such issues as hills and bike lanes, along with “road connectivity” and a town’s biking population, communities have been rated using the same type of scoring system, with 70-100 being named Very Bikeable. Topping that list were Minneapolis, Portland, and San Francisco.

The goal of Bike Score is to help cities measure and then improve their bicycling ridership. Check it out and see where Blaine, Andover, Coon Rapids and your  your town rates by clicking here. If you would like more in-depth information about places where you can walk and ride in our local community, please contact me     Consider Bike Score When Buying a Home.

Buying A Home?  These Apps Can Help!  Each day technology becomes even more impressive as new tools, products and apps are rolled out that truly have a place in your daily life. It can be exciting and exhausting to try to find the ones that will benefit you. As a homebuyer, it can be overwhelming to narrow down all the choices.  With that in mind, I’ve made my real estate website tech and mobile friendly in the hope that you will find the results you need in your search, however, when it comes to buying a home, these apps may of benefit to you as well.

Many of these apps are even offered free of charge, although they may request your location information in order to produce the results you desire. If you want more specific information or ideas on specialized apps for your tech devices, please give me a call so we can brainstorm on how I can help meet your real estate needs.  In the meantime, though, check these out!

Not sure where you want to live?

• Nabewise Get to know neighborhoods in-depth, complete with pictures, reviews and ratings ond rankings on the things you care most about.
• GreatSchools Get to know local school options and read reviews by staff and parents of children attending the schools. Schools are also scored based on scores and ratings.
• Yelp Find the best restaurants, shopping, and entertainment in the area you are researching directly from the people who live there. A true “insider’s view.”

Trying to keep track of everything?

• Evernote Keep track of your buying process, including the information on homes you have seen, complete with your personal notes!

Want to compare?

• House Hunter This tool allows you to set priorities on your wants and needs and match them to homes you are considering with the feature list and also has a mortgage calculator built in.
• Trulia – Easy to use and even includes a help button! Depending on your mobile device, you can check and compare listings and even search by feature using your voice.

Looking for actual numbers?

• Zillow Zestimates and make me move allow you to get an idea of what homes cost on any street and even permit you to make offers to home owners who do not have their property for sale.
• Realtor.com Get stats on new homes, sold homes, and homes for sale easily and quickly, including price changes in any neighborhood.

Pass this article Buying A Home?  These Apps Can Help! on to your friends, I have had several clients tell me this is Great Information.

Play to Win When Buying a Home, areas of the United States are seeing a shift towards a seller’s market. In a seller’s market, homes for sale may receive multiple offers and are often sold in less time. Home sellers get excited at that news, but if you are trying to purchase a home, it may make competition a bit tougher. If you have been searching for a home and have finally settled on one that you love, don’t delay on contacting your lender, or you may miss out on the home of your dreams.

Interest rates have been reduced to historic lows allowing you, the home buyer, to get more home for the same amount of money, which sounds fantastic. However, if you do not “lock” in your rate and then follow through with providing the necessary paperwork in a timely manner, you could lose your opportunity. More than ever, now is the time for you to know the rules and play to win in the housing and lending market. If you are wondering about how you can make sure you are doing all you need to qualify for your loan and your home, contact me or consult the following list.

• DO get your paperwork in time.  Whether you are asked for a letter of employment verification or 27 pages of bank statements, do not delay in submitting these documents to your lender.  Any delay can result in your loan taking longer than necessary, making the seller potentially question your ability to purchase, especially when back up offers have been submitted.
• Do not encourage the seller to begin any construction work until after the appraisal, even if your inspection warrants changes being made.  An appraiser could see the hardhats and debris and devalue the property.  Wait until AFTER the appraisal is complete to request repairs OR agree to do the work yourself once you own the home.
• Do not buy a new car or new furniture or go on a celebratory shopping  spree until your escrow has funded!  Credit ratios are VERY important at this time and if they become out of balance or new credit is extended, it can make you less likely to qualify for your home loan.  It does not matter if the offer is ZERO percent interest... it still affects your credit line.
• DO pay your current financial obligations.  During the busy home buying time, it can be easy to forget to pay bills or miss deadlines – be careful because late payments will reflect negatively on your credit and could even result in your loan being denied.
• Do not make changes in your employment – including changing jobs to make more money.  The key to getting a mortgage is showing a picture of stability and a job change could tarnish that image.  Wait until after escrow closes to accept the new position.Remember Play to Win When Buying a Home

Feng Shui and Your Home for Sale Selling a home can be quite challenging at times, causing sellers to question what they can do to make the sale occur more quickly. Service providers such as home stagers, organizers, and professional clutter eliminators can all offer assistance, but many sellers are also considering the art of feng shui, through consulting services or as a do-it-yourself technique. Feng shui offers some universal principles that can benefit in selling a home, whether you subscribe to tenants from the form or compass school, or prefer the eight mansion Bagua theory, so utilize the ones that work best in your home. The overall goal is to create “positive chi” or energy flow in each room of your home.

This quote from A Guide to Quality, Taste & Style, by Tim Gunn, can help you understand how something as seemingly insignificant as a closet can affect you and your potential buyer. “Closets are where we hide things: skeletons, forbidden loves, terrible birthday gifts we couldn’t return. It is for this reason that deciding what to wear while staring into those murky depths can be not just daunting, but emotionally exhausting as well.”  Using feng shui techniques, you can clear the clutter, along with the negative memories and energy, creating a home that will sell more easily.  On that note, let’s move to 5 real tips that will give you positive emotional energy while readying your home for sale.

• #1 Open the windows and doors. Let a breeze blow through your home to clear the negative energy and refresh you as you begin your work.
• #2 Step outdoors onto your walkway, the entrance of your home. What do you see first when you walk into your home?  Clear any cobwebs and dust and make sure nothing is blocking the entrance. If you have to step over something, remove it.
• #3 Add energy with greenery. Whether an indoor or outdoor plant, make sure your home feels vibrant through adding plant energy. You can do this through exterior landscaping, by adding fresh flowers to the entry, or with the addition of indoor plants.
• #4 Add positive energy through art and movement through proper mirror placement. There are tons of books that can guide you through this step, however, remember that the goal is to reflect positivity and not overwhelm or create clutter in your home for sale.
• #5 Clear the clutter. Cull what you don’t need and create a “spa feel” throughout your home in all rooms. Counters should be free of objects and papers, furniture should be placed to allow for ease of movement. Any obstacles to interior door entrances should be moved.

While these tips may not offer a “cure all” to getting your home sold, they can definitely point you in the right direction. Stop by the library and get a few books on feng shui to increase your knowledge.  As you do, take care to notice your landscaping and apply some shine and good chi to your Home for Sale sign too, Feng Shui and Your Home for Sale

Buying a Home?  Don’t Forget the Inspection! Finally found the home that is just right and made an offer and it was accepted. Now you just wait for escrow to close, right?  Wrong.

Now is the time to have the home inspected to make sure you are aware of any possible issues in the home before it’s too late and the deed has been transferred. An independent inspector can evaluate your potential home on a structural and functional level and give you a full report, generally in under two hours. This report can help you feel at ease with your purchase and alert you to any areas of concern.

If there is a swimming pool or spa or unusual home appliance or fixture, you may want to have that inspected individually by a reputable repairman in that field. Questions and concerns relating to asbestos, lead or chemicals, mold and mildew, or pests will need to be directed to an inspector licensed in those specific areas of expertise.

Generally speaking, a home inspection on a property for sale will cover the following areas:

• An evaluation of the walls, ceiling, floor, roof, firewall, windows, foundation and slab.
• Inspection of the landscaping, looking particularly at grading and drainage, although drives and walkways, fencing, trim, doors, windows, and outlets will be checked as well.
• General framing as seen in exposed beams or attics, ventilation, duct and plumbing systems, and the condition of roofing materials, plumbing and rain gutters will be noted, too. Water heaters, fireplaces and the sprinkler system should be evaluated.
• The electrical sources and wiring in the home will be inspected, from circuit breakers and grounding systems to exhaust fans and receptacles.
• All appliances, including the garbage disposal, alarm system (if needed) and all smoke detectors.

Every county including Anoka County and state has different regulations in regards to home inspections, so it it best to use a local inspector recommended by someone you trust. If the inspection uncovers issues in the home regarding health and safety issues, a need for the roof or ventilation system to be replaced, a problem in the home’s foundation or significant drainage concerns, you will want to further explore the problem at the seller’s expense. Remember when Buying a Home?  Don’t Forget the Inspection!

Short Sales Timelines Reduced for Home Buying and Selling, buyers interested in short sale homes and the sellers of such homes had some good news this week. Freddie Mac established new timelines to aid in expediting decisions for borrowers. Under the new guidelines, once a completed application has been submitted, a decision must be reached within 60 days. Applications can come in the form of a traditional offer or a Borrower Response Package (BRP). After 30 days, weekly updates are now required, as well. If a counteroffer is extended, response time has been regulated too, allowing borrowers 5 days and the servicer 10 days to come to a decision.

The recent real estate market resulted in 45,623 short sales closed by Freddie Mac in 2011, an increase of 140% from the amount of short sales they serviced in 2009. According to Tracy Mooney, Senior Vice President, Single-Family Servicing and REO, of Freddie Mac, “Short sales are more complex than routine home sales since they may involve multiple parties and long-distance negotiating. Freddie Mac’s new timelines are intended to help make the decision process more transparent and timely for short-sales under the Obama Administration’s HAFA program or Freddie Mac’s traditional short-sale option.” Mooney went on to say that, “Today’s announcement underscores our commitment to help reduce credit losses and taxpayer risks by supporting more opportunities for sustained occupancy in our nation’s homes.”

Keep in mind that if you are purchasing a home through the short sale process, you may need to spend more time and research in identifying the home you decide to purchase and expert help is always advised.  Make sure you compare and physically view the property, research any liens or mortgages and contact lenders directly, along with completing your application and offer before negotiating and completing the sale.  To find out more about this process from a home seller standpoint, please click here  For questions about Short Sales Timelines Reduced for Home Buying and Selling in the twin cities area contact RE/MAX Team Tollefson at 763-757-8080

March 2012 totals are in and show some trends that you will want to consider if you have a home for sale or will be buying a home soon.  According to Realtor.com, housing market indicators are looking up.  The national median list price has increased between February and March, displaying a steady, slow rise.  The median list price averaged $189,900 in March of 2012, versus $179,900 in March of 2011.  Market recovery seemed to be more dependent on local economy than on housing developments at large.

Actual national home inventory displayed an increase between February 2012 and March 2012, as well, and the average days on the market for a home decreased from 111 days to 89 days in that same month span, which are other positive indicators.  While median list prices vary across national markets, the data collected by Realtor.com indicated a slight upward swing, causing many a home owner to take note.

If you are considering buying a home or selling your current home, these statistics can provide insight into the current real estate market.  Combining these statistics with historically low interest rates (3.88% for a conventional 30 year mortgage last week), could help you in determining your decision. To get more details on the study and comparisons to previous months and years and see the actual graphing trends, please click here.