Ask to See Homeowners Association Books!

Here is a new one for me; a while back I had a client that bought a lot to build his home.  The subdivision was a nice upscale area that was only partially completed with most lots not sold.  My client built the home and has been there for two years now. 

Not many of the lots have sold as they are one acre and economy probably had much to do with that.  My client asked to see the books for the subdivision (which has CCNR’s) and he was told no!  So he is doing a hold back on monthly dues until they show the books.

The person in charge and owner has stated the doesn’t have any books to show! (Red flag).  I have never been across this before as a realtor.  The law requires that everything is separate from personal accounts just like realty brokerages.  I guess my warning would be before closings ask to see the books of the Association to see if they are solvent or just collecting money for the cruise they are going to take.

Apathetic Sellers will waste your time!

I had a gentleman call me the other day; the first thing he said was that he was looking for a realtor to sell his crappy house! (His words not mine).  My response was to ask why his house is crappy.  His answer was: well I really don’t care if it sells or not, I am going to be foreclosed on in the next couple of months and I just want to know if this selling short thing really works!

Now as a Buyer agent I have written a couple of contracts with other agents that have had sellers that really don’t know what it takes on both sides to get a deal on a short sale.  I would not waste the time of my buyer customers to even show such a home.  Most are not this blatant when they tell you that I am going to waste your time as this gentleman was, but you can also get a hint by asking a couple of questions from the start:

1.       Are you willing to gather all of the documentation such as tax returns bank accounts etc.?

2.       Will you allow agents to show the house under normal circumstances?

If they balk at either of these two questions then I can’t help them.  This of course was one of those times when I told him no, and that I don’t have a referral to anyone else.

Business Opportunity!

Lindy's Steak House and Saloon. Lindy's is a popular destination bar and restaurant with a robust lunch trade in the bar along with a quiet white napkin dinner menu in the Steak House.

The bar has a warm friendly atmosphere with full Boise City Liquor License, pool tables, seven television sets and several different game tables plus dart competitions. The bar restaurant is open 7 days a week and the Steak House is opened 6 days. The clientele is mostly local and has been very stable.
(View Listing)

Safe and Pet Friendly Properties

The working life of a Realtor and Property manager is rewarding and builds lasting relationships with your clients.  Finding homes in about half of the clients in today’s world involves pets and the right environment.  They should be safe and accessible to your pets. I too manage properties.

That is why I am disturbed, (being a pet lover), when my friend in the River Pointe apartments cat was removed from the premises after being baited and trapped.  The complex boasts pets are accepted. 

It not only is sad her Family was stolen and removed to another area other than turning it over to the humane society, but what happens next? Carefully investigate the property management about pets when you are choosing your living space for you and your pets.

Top 10 turnaround towns

Boise's economy is an offbeat combination of old and new. The logging industry still pays a lot of the bills in town, but tech jobs have also become increasingly prevalent.

In fact, chip maker Micron Technology is Boise's biggest employer, according to the Boise Valley Economic Partnership. And lately, the food industry has heated up, enabling many of the area's agricultural-based companies to pump out increased profits, according to Clark Krause, the organization's executive director.

"We're hopeful that things are turning around," he said. "Even during the bad times, we had a net immigration of people and now there's a lot of new investment in construction and other industries."

That diversity of employers -- and the growing number of jobs they're offering -- is a prime reason this town is starting to stage a comeback.

According to Realtor.com, the number of homes for sale during the fourth quarter fell by 40% compared with a year earlier. That shrinking inventory should help drive home prices higher. Fiserv is forecasting annual home-price appreciation averaging 6.3% over the next five years.

2012 Home buying is back!

If you made it through the last couple of years without complete loss of your fortune, you will probably make it through the rest of the storm.  What does this mean if you want to be a home owner?  It means that the current data shows the economy are picking up slightly and the inventory of listed home are selling at a faster pace.

Now I am one of the biggest skeptics when it comes to following the experts that are trying to make lemons look like lemonade.  There is no doubt however those things are better than the last two years.  I can now see some real time data that provides a much better than normal increase in home sales.  Are we out of the mess?  Probably not, But I see light ahead. 

Buyers now have still low interest rates and all time low home prices.  2012 is probably a flux year for the economy, but home sellers aren’t going to keep prices down forever!

Happy New Year 2012