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Archive for the ‘For Buyers’ Category:

Spice * Interest * Transparency * Realism – WHAT?

By North Idaho Dream Team on February 7th, 2012

Today is Tuesday. Tuesday’s and Friday’s are the days each week I have dedicated to provide YOU with something spicy, interesting, transparent, realistic, etc. about real estate in the Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls markets. Perhaps I’m just not feeling spicy or interesting today. I’m always transparent and realistic (sometimes WAAYYYY too much so), so ... [Continue Reading]

Is it dumb to finance a home purchase?

By North Idaho Dream Team on January 25th, 2012

Caught your attention?! In most cases, no, it’s not dumb to finance the purchase of your home. However, there are some things that are really dumb to finance. Recently Dave Ramsey asked his twitter followers what the dumbest things they financed were. He shared the Top 10 Dumbest Things Financed. What’s the dumbest thing you’ve ... [Continue Reading]

Know when to buy or sell real estate, by looking at new car sales

By North Idaho Dream Team on January 24th, 2012

In order to know when you’ve hit bottom in a bad economy, you have to look at various industries. I like to look at housing and at automobiles. When the economy is improving, more people buy vehicles. When more people buy vehicles, they start buying houses. When more people buy houses, prices stop depreciating, stabilize ... [Continue Reading]

What is absorption rate and what does it have to do with me buying a home in Post Falls or Coeur d’Alene?

By North Idaho Dream Team on January 21st, 2012

What is absorption rate and what does it have to do with me buying a home in Post Falls or Coeur d’Alene? Absorption rate, in a nutshell, tells us if the current amount of homes on the market are increasing or decreasing in number. A “healthy” absorption rate is is between 4-8 months of inventory. ... [Continue Reading]

4 easy steps to eliminate sensory overload when shopping for a home.

By North Idaho Dream Team on January 13th, 2012

As a home buyer, do you know if you are in sensory overload? Sensory overload is: a condition where one or more of the senses are strained and it becomes difficult to focus on the task at hand. Are there homes that make you breath a huge sigh of relief, that make you feel relaxed? ... [Continue Reading]

Ask the Agent: Is there down payment assistance available in Coeur d’Alene or Post Falls?

By North Idaho Dream Team on January 10th, 2012

Q. Is there down payment assistance available in Coeur d’Alene or Post Falls? A. YES. Absolutely! Post Falls has several down payment options, including loans with zero down payment. Coeur d’Alene has available some loans with down payment assistance for income qualified buyers. Want to know if you can get into a home with zero ... [Continue Reading]

USDA loans – what are they – what’s the difference between direct and guaranteed?

By North Idaho Dream Team on January 9th, 2012

USDA loans – what are they – what’s the difference between direct and guaranteed? USDA Direct Loans – are loans that are directly funded by the Government. These loans are available for low and very-low income individuals or households purchase homes in “rural” areas. In Kootenai County, rural areas include Post Falls and Rathdrum (as ... [Continue Reading]

Real Estate Investors: Are you watching the right metrics?

By North Idaho Dream Team on December 7th, 2011

As a real estate investor (or someone who wants to be a real estate investor) … Are you watching the right metrics? I never, ever, watch the news on TV. I also don’t read the newspaper. I also don’t go to news websites. Call me crazy. I’m in the real estate business – how on earth ... [Continue Reading]

How much is a down payment?

By North Idaho Dream Team on December 2nd, 2011

How much is a down payment? Chuck is working with some great clients who thought they couldn’t buy a home right now because they didn’t have “enough” saved for a down payment. Instead of just saying “ok” – Chuck asked them how much they thought they needed for a down payment. How much do you ... [Continue Reading]

Money – it’s cheaper now.

By North Idaho Dream Team on November 29th, 2011

I can tell people all day long that interest rates are historically low, but somehow, that just doesn’t resonate with most people. What does “historically low” mean to me? The consumer? To my bottom line? WSJ: “In 1991, a $1,700 mortgage payment allowed a borrower to take out a $200,000 mortgage. Today, it gets that ... [Continue Reading]