Blog
October 4, 2007
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Soon, Williams Gateway will be no more and we’ll have Mesa Gateway. The changing of the name is just the beginning for the area. A few months ago, I mentioned that the Gateway Area has some interesting commercial and residential projects planned. In today’s paper, there is more news of the plan to create a major international cargo hub. The project is called Arizona Direct and there looks to be […]
September 28, 2007
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Our friend, Nate Hobley, joined Lori and I at the new Tempe Center for the Arts (TCA)last night for a preview of a new urban development at Mill and Ash called Mosaic. We were very impressed with the new arts center and with the plans for Mosaic which will be built above a Whole Foods Market. Along with previews of the TCA and tons of information about the new project, […]
September 19, 2007
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Apparently, Homes Illustrated Magazine is one of the latest casualties of the current market. In an email I received yesterday, they said; “This market has been hard on all of us, both you our customers and our industry as a whole.”I’m not 100% convinced that the market had as much to do with their decline as did “marketing” practices in our business. While they have a web site, the focus […]
September 18, 2007
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The real estate and mortgage businesses have been on a heck of a ride the past few years. Hopefully, many lessons have been learned during this time. I have heard and read a lot this past week about the coming changes in the FHA guidelines. My friend, Ricky Khamis, tells me that we can expect to see a lot more of the FHA loans in the very near future. (more […]
September 4, 2007
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As long as I can remember, feedback has been an important part of the home selling process. EVERY seller wants to know what people thought of their home after a showing occurs. While you would think that providing a listing agent would be a professional courtesy extended by showing agents, it is often difficult to get helpful information from them. The most common way to obtain feedback over the years […]
September 1, 2007
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Every day, the paper and the national media have stories about the falling mortgage and real estate industry. With large and small banks going out of business and homes selling in months instead of days, the media loves it. Just like when the opposite was true, the loved it. Why, because it sells stories. The President’s plan will try to help people re-finance their sub prime loans but it is […]
August 12, 2007
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As more and more foreclosure listings come on to the market, I see more and more lenders/Realtors write in the listing that the SPDS (Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement) and CLUE Report or Claims History will not be provided.In my opinion, there is no reason for a bank, other than wanting to “play dumb,” to say they “can’t” provide this information. While it may be obvious that they have never occupied […]
August 6, 2007
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There has been a lot of interesting articles in the news lately about the troubles in the mortgage industry. The “crisis” of predatory lenders, raising foreclosure rates, mortgage companies going out of business etc. is certainly news worthy.Lender’s are changing guidelines as they adjust to market conditions. Many of the programs offered in the past couple of years are disappearing; making it more challenging for some to qualify for a […]
June 28, 2007
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Let’s face it, the market always dictates the price of a property. BUT, in a market where a lot of competition exists, it is good to have real plans in place to aggressively promote your home over the competition. In my opinion, a “for sale by owner” home in this market is like a row boat in the middle of the ocean. We have been implementing new ways to market […]