Does This Price Tag Make Me Look Phat?



June 15, 2010First of all, “Phat” is pronounced fat and is slang for highly attractive.  And the answer is, “maybe”.   It’s tough trying to sell your home in a buyer’s market.  In today’s market you need to know quite a bit more than in previous years. Webster’s Dictionary states that “value” is: 1 : a fair return or equivalent in goods, services, or money for something exchanged; 2 :...

Being In Contract Reminds Me of Being 9 Months Pregnant:



June 11, 2010Anxiously awaiting the new part of your life as your current living situation becomes more and more uncomfortable. It’s been one million degrees in Denver for the last few days, and we don’t have air conditioning.  But our new house does.  Our new house is becoming more and more the oasis in the middle of the desert.   Someone stole my parking spot in front of our house and we don’t...

The Million Dollar Question: Who Pays Buyer’s Agent?



June 9, 2010Please see our page "How Colorado Buyers Agents get Paid" for the latest 2024 changes as a result of the $418M NAR settlement, set to take effect in mid July, 2024 The way your buyer agent will be paid is included in your buyer’s agent agreement.    These can be: 1)     A commission paid at closing to the buyer's agent based on the total sales price of the...

buyer’s agents Serve As Your Guide



June 3, 2010When your favorite fantasy character seems like a good person to turn too, it’s time to call an exclusive buyer’s agent. One thing that I wished I could find when I first decided to buy a home was a simple list of the steps involved in buying a house.  How do I get started?  Should I call a bank? Should I look online at houses? Should I call a real estate agent?  All I knew is that I...

Top 5 Things to Look for When Viewing Houses



June 1, 2010After looking at what feels like a million homes with our exclusive buyer’s agent, we became very efficient house hunters.  At first, it was hard to strip away the bad decorating or the incredible upgrades to the bathroom and see the house for what it really was.   Over and over again, I keep hearing this advice “Look at the things that you can’t change.”  Again, I have to go back to...

Shopping for Home Insurance, A Great Way to Kick Off Memorial Day Weekend



May 29, 2010One of the other fun activities you do once you are in contract is shop for home insurance.  There is a deadline set in your contract called Property Insurance Objection Deadline.  Basically it means:  if you go past this date you cannot break contract because you don’t like your insurance. Because I am a grown up now, I called several companies to get a quote.  Even on Friday before...

Radon, and Lead Paint, and Stairs! Oh my!



May 27, 2010What to expect during your Home Inspection. One of the things that you will do after you go into the contract has your home inspected.  Everyone that I have talked to about buying a home told me that this is one of the most important parts of the process.   It is your chance to make sure that there are no big problems lurking behind that fresh coat of paint. Pick your poison: choosing...