Who hasn’t seen the Superbowl?  With nothing better to do on a cold, snowy day... why wouldn't you watch the Superbowl?  Growing up in a “football” family, I always had the privilege of watching to Superbowl.  The year that I liked the best was when the Seattle Seahawks where in the Superbowl.   Unfortunately, I'm unable to find the pic of the Seahawk emblem razored in the back of my husband's head and the pics of my kids painted with Seattle green and blue faces but we definitely had Superbowl spirit... Well at least, for that year.

Personally, as the tradition continues year after year, my favorite part is watching the ads. 

To see some of last year's great Superbowl Ads click here: 

The more people I talk to the more I realize that they too watch the Superbowl just for the commercials.  Do you realize how much money is spent on those Superbowl advertisements?  Last I heard it was $2.5 million for a 30 second spot.  My friend calls this advertising “Pay and Pray” advertising.  You pay big money and pray that someone buys your service. 

Obviously, advertisers today spend a lot of money trying to get you to buy something you may or may not want.  If they are effective in their advertising, you have just bought their product whether you needed it our not.  They are counting on your impulse buying.  How many times have you walked out of a store and realized later that maybe that was a bad purchase?  I know I’ve done it with things like tech gadgets I didn’t really need, clothing that was not quite right - yet I thought I needed it anyway and there it sits in the closet, and other items I thought would make life better, easier, more fulfilling in some way, without taking the time to think about the purchase.  Sound familiar?    

Before you even think about buying anything, be prepared. Whether you realize it or not, purchasing a home is a very emotional experience.  As I said before, it’s probably the biggest investment you will make and you want to make sure you don’t move in and wish you had bought something else.  You buy a car based on its looks or what features it gives you, the consumer.  A home works the same way.  You may fall in love with a home because of the “Pottery Barn” decorating or perfect feng shui but it may not be the right home for you. 

The first step in the home buying process is to...

3/2008 

There's this country song by Tim McGraw and the lyrics in it are, "How bad do you want it?  How bad do you need it?  Are you eatting, sleeping, dreamin' with that one thing on your mind."   

I LOVE THE HOUSE HUNT!  It's a great process and with all the homes on the market, we have so many to choose from.  My question to you is, "How bad do you want it?"  For those who are motivated buyers, it's definitely time to buy because the good deals are going very fast. 

Regardless of what the media may say, homes that are priced accurately or even below market are coming off the market as fast as they went on the market.  Great news-especially for you as a buyer. 

3/7/08 

WOW!  I've run into so many different issues when it comes to mortgage lenders.  In fact, I've been irritated to the point of finally letting the lender have it will both barrels.

I guess you have to understand my philosophy with business.  Besides the great values of honesty and integrity, my philosophy is, "I do whatever it takes to get the job done."  For instance, I had a situation where my buyers had to get out of their apartment because the apartment complex was being renovated into a condo unit.  By the grace of management, they allowed these tenants to stay their longer than anyone else in the complex because they knew they were closing on a house soon.  We had some issues that we thought we handled up front and felt that everything was in order... but at the closing table had more issues which caused it not to close on time.  In fact, it took several days.  Nowadays, this isn't uncommon because of all the restrictions that are on the mortgage industry.  My complaint with this transaction was that the mortgage broker wasn't going up the ladder far enough to get the job done.  I'm willing to jump through hoops for my clients, why can't they.  In fact, based on the rental situation, I suggested that it might behoov them to pay for a hotel room until they can get this mess cleaned up.  Fortunately, the management through several phone calls allowed them the extra couple of days, grudgingly of course.  If you want to read more on this story, here is a link for you to view:  http://activerain.com/blogsview/203408/Why-Can-t-Anyone

So, we have one side of the coin where the lending practices have tightened up and the other side where lenders are still trying to promise the world.  My latest "sound-off" was with a lending company that my buyer's chose because of the "great deal" they were getting.  Mind you, this is the bank that they do most of their banking with and they felt comfortable with the lending institution.  We've had several "empty" promises on multiple occasions with differing stories to different parties.  Oh by the way, those stories changed from the originals a couple of times.  I don't want to say that this lender (originator) was lying BUT...  Here's the thing, people can handle items much better if they are told the TRUTH!  When the client and REALTOR get the run-around, it makes for a very disruptive transaction in which the process of buying a house IS NOT FUN.  My goal is to make sure the process IS FUN and have a good time with it.  Now, granted we usually have issues on real estate transactions.  Usually, these issues are handled easily and in a timely fashion, which then make it no big deal.  If you want to see my frustrating article titled, "Mr. Mortgage Guy Stop Making Promises You Can't Keep and Tell the TRUTH!"click here: http://activerain.com/blogsview/408307/Mr-Mortgage-Guy-Stop

Honestly why am I telling you these things?  Because it's important for you to pick a mortgage company that is reputable and will do a good job for you.  Here's what you need to know when looking for a mortgage company to work with:

• Does the bank/lending institution have a good reputation in the business?
• How long has the mortgage broker/person been in the business?  I firmly believe that you should work with a mortgage person that has at least 10 years in the business. 
• Is the lender willing to be upfront and honest with you?  Possibly, tell you that something can't be done.  If so, you probably have a honest lender that will do what's right for you, the client.
• REALTORS have relationships with mortgage lenders that they know will do the job that needs to be done.  This is not a bad thing.  In fact, it allows us to "push" our mortgage people when they need to be pushed and have a little bit more control in the transaction.  My mortgage people are highly qualified and "get the job done." 
• As I run into first time home buyers and seasoned buyers, trust is something that needs to be established.  The same process holds true for REALTORS and the mortgage industry.  These two industries work so closely together that we need to trust the people we are working with... that's why we make the suggestion to call "our lenders".  We trust that they can do the job they are supposed to do.
• Finally, If something seems "to good to be true, it usually is."

SO PLEASE, PLEASE at least call the people we suggest that you call for mortgage financing.  There is definitely a reason for it!

What are HUD homes?

HUD homes are GOVERNMENT foreclosed homes.  These are homes that are run through the FHA (Federal Housing Administration) program.  The FHA program was a program that many REALTORS didn't like to use because of it's strict regulations.  Today, the government has come up with a great program to assist many first time home buyers of HUD foreclosed homes, it's called the HUD Initiative Program.