These three tips will set you up for success in our market.

Whether you’re planning to buy or sell, here are a few tips to set yourself up for success in today’s real estate market:
1. Make a plan. Let’s form a plan that accommodates your current situation. You can achieve this by working closely in conjunction with your trusted real estate advisor. 
2. Get your financing in order. This can also be accomplished by working with a lender; if you don’t have one selected, now is the time to shop rates and gain a deep understanding of your purchasing power. For sellers, this is when you can sit down with your real estate advisor and compare notes on your net sheet, which will show your expected net proceeds and better prepare you to meet with a lender.
3. Move quickly. Whether you’re a buyer or seller, you need to be ready to act quickly in this market. Sellers need to be prepared to show their homes at a moment’s notice, so the inside of t ...

Here’s what’s happening in our real estate market as we push into spring.

Today I’m providing some insight as to what’s going on with home prices and inventory here in northern Alabama. Recent real estate trends show that our tight inventory levels will begin to ease up as we continue our transition into spring. At the moment, however, supply is still hovering at an all-time low, and home prices are steadily rising. Furthermore, historically low interest rates continue to fuel a massive wave of buyer demand. Though these conditions work together to create a fierce seller’s market, there are still plenty of unique opportunities for buyers. We don’t know how long these low interest rates will stick around, so there’s a strong incentive for first-time buyers and repeat purchasers alike to lock in an affordable monthly payment on a home while they still can. Finding a home can be a challenge in this fast-moving market, but the spoils go to t ...

Hello friends!
So with this being my very first blog, I'm going to need ya'll to bear with me as I get my feet wet in the blogging world. I plan to blog about REAL estate, REAL food, and REAL life, but first I thought I'd tell you a little about myself. My former english teachers will probably cringe reading this. 
Foremost, I'm a wife. My wonderful husband, Justin, and I have been married for 4 years. Some days it seems like 1 year and other days it seems like 25. Marriage isn't always easy, but let me tell you, it is always worth it. Justin is the best thing to ever happen to me and I love him unconditionally (even when he obsesses about fantasy football and leaves clothes on the floor). He makes me a better person. Yeah I know that sounds totally stereotypical and mushy gushy love stuff. You're probably thinking blah, blah, blah she sounds like the teacher from Charlie Brown, right? I get it. I really do. But when you find someone that makes you reflect on your own chara ...

 

 
Every home must be sold TWICE! Once to the buyer, and once to the bank appraiser if a mortgage is involved.
The second sale may have just become more difficult.
A new program announced by Fannie Mae may slow down the home-sale closing process by causing more disputes over prices between sellers and buyers.
In a recent Washington Post article they explained the basics of the program:

“Starting Jan. 26, Fannie plans to offer mortgage lenders access to proprietary home valuation databases that they can use to assess the accuracy and risks posed by the reports submitted by appraisers.” 
“The Fannie data will flag possible errors in the appraiser’s work before the lender commits to fund the loan, will score the appraisal for overall risk of inaccuracy and may provide as many as 20 alternative “comps” — properties in the area that have sold recently and are roughly comparable to the house the lender i. ...

At the end of the year, in every region of the country, hundreds of homeowners have a tough decision to make. The ‘listing for sale agreement’ on their house is about to expire and they now must decide to either take their house off the market (OTM), For Sale by Owner (FSBO) or list it again with the same agent or a different agent. Let’s assume you or someone you know is in this situation and take a closer look at each possibility:
Taking Your Home off the Market
In all probability, after putting your house on the market and seeing it not sell, you’re going to be upset. You may be thinking that no one in the marketplace thought the house was worthy of the sales price.
Because you are upset, you may start to rationalize that selling wasn’t that important after all and say,

“Well, we didn’t really want to sell the house anyway. This idea of making a move right now probably doesn’t make sense.”

Don’t rationalize your dr. ...