"It's Time to Buy" say all the local real estate experts.   If you've been waiting for the right opportunity, it's time to get in the game says Stacy Johnson of Money Talks News.

"I've wanted to buy my first home for a while, but when my landlord told me that my rent was going up to $900 a month, I got serious about it." writes Angela Colley on Money Talks News.  "So I researched the estimated value of the house I rent now ($160,000) on my local property appraiser website and figured out what my total monthly payment would be ($817). In other words, I could pay my mortgage, property taxes, and homeowners insurance for $83 less than what I pay in rent each month."

Okay, so you agree it's time to buy now.  How do you begin?  Colley lists the steps to take to buy your first home:

1.       Make Sure You are Ready, says Colley.  This might sound simple but it's always good to look before you leap.

• Is your job secure?
• Are you planning on staying put?
• Is there a situation in your life that makes this a good time to buy or change houses? For instance, new marriage, starting a family.

2.       Know what you can afford.  Ending up "house poor" is how this whole crisis began.,  Be realistic about what you can comfortably afford and stick with your budget.

"Your housing payment - including the mortgage, real estate taxes, and homeowners insurance - shouldn't exceed 28 percent of your monthly gross income. To determine the most you can afford each month, multiply your annual take-home pay by 0.28 and divide that number by 12." says Colley.

3.       Fix Your Credit:  Lenders have tougher requirements than ever.  Your credit score needs to be above 700 to qualify for an FHA loan and higher than that for more conventional loans.

"Order free copies of your credit reports through AnnualCreditReport.com, then check out 3 Tips to Raise Your Credit Score - Fast for ideas on boosting your score before you apply for a mortgage. You should check your credit at least 6 months - preferably a year - before home shopping so you'll have time to improve it before applying for a loan." writes Colley.

4.       Down Payment:  Most lenders require 20 percent down.  "The bigger the down payment, the better." Advises Colley, especially in today's tough competitive market.  In a recent market analysis, research shows that the best loan rates came with an average down payment of 28 percent, according to USA Today.

5.       Get Pre-Approved:  Once you have checked (and fixed) your credit score and you have the money for a down payment, apply for a mortgage.  Getting pre-approved for the mortgage before looking for a home means that you can make an offer quickly and it might mean getting accepted over other bids. 

6.       Build a Good Team, says Colley.  Find a great REALTOR® who is familiar with the areas you are interested in and find a good lender.

7.       Know your local real estate market: Make sure you and your REALTOR® are familiar with everything that is going on in your local housing market.

Read:  Tips for First Time Home Buyers

Posted in Marketing, Ownership, Real Estate Market Conditions

Moving to your new home is thrilling but can be bittersweet, as well.  You are excited about all the new memories you will be making but you are also leaving cherished memories and possibly friends and family behind.  What can you do to make the move easier?

Have a Moving Party, but not the kind you think.  Sure, you might need to enlist friends for the big moving day, but THIS moving party is one last hurrah in the "old" place to say goodbye. 

Start Organizing!   The more you do before moving day, the better off you will be.  Trim the clutter, donate or resell all items you haven't used in years and won't need in your new place.  That includes personal items, clothing etc.   This will save you time and money on moving day.

Hire the Movers: Don't put this off.   Research companies online and get a few bids.  Get recommendations from friends and ask your REALTOR®. A professional moving company has the experience and the right equipment to move your belongings safely to your new home.

Plan to spend a lot of time Packing....  Pack everything carefully, using good packing supplies and make sure you label everything neatly on the top and on the side including what room it will go into. 

Pack the Essentials for your first night in the new house.  Make sure you pack a backpack or box with all the essentials you will need to spend your first couple of nights in your new home.   Pack extra clothes, toiletries and pajamas!  Do this for every member of the house, including your pets!  Make sure you have their bowls, leashes, beds and food, to help them make the transition easier.

Create a floor plan for a faster move.  Clearly mark every room in the new house, so that the movers can put boxes and furniture in the correct rooms quickly and easily.  

Enjoy it.  Once all the boxes have been moved and the beds set up, take your time.  Everything will get put away eventually.  Enjoy your new home and don't worry about making everything perfect immediately.

photo credit: E. Bartholomew

Posted in Marketing, Buyer Resources, Ownership, GenX GenY

Here's the scenario.  You want to buy a home and you have finally saved up enough money for a down payment and, luckily, home prices and the interest rates are still low.  What should you do first?

An article in Inman News, by Tara Nicholle Nelson, outlines the steps you should take to make this happen in 2012.

1.      First and foremost, says Nelson, fix your credit problems.  "More deals than ever are dying on the vine and credit problems are a top reason home-sale transactions fall out of escrow."  Review your credit report now and correct any errors.

2.      Do Your Homework: 

• Research the areas and neighborhoods you like. Nelson suggests going online to NabeWise.com for great information. Then look for an agent who is familiar with the areas you have chosen. "They can give you a deeper view into the need-to-knows" says Nelson, "like how long homes typically stay on the market and whether they generally go for more or less than the asking price."
• Research local agents. Ask your family and friends for a referral and then follow up online, searching online reviews and their website. Then arrange to meet them to see if it's a good fit for you.
• Look at all types of homes for sale...including distressed properties. When you interview agents, make sure they are knowledgeable in short sales and foreclosures, because there are some good deals to be had! "

"In some areas, more than 40 percent of the homes on the market are short sales and foreclosures, and they involve a very different timeline and set of facts than traditional home sales." Says Nelson, "Read up and talk with the agent candidates you interview about what you should expect from these types of listings, to minimize surprise and manage your expectations way in advance."

3.       Don't Stop Saving!  Nelson says that no matter what amount of cash you have on hand, when you start house hunting, making offers, closing your transaction or moving in, the time will definitely come when you'll wish you had more.

"You might want to ratchet up your offer a bit to best another buyer, or you might just end up with a place that needs a little sprucing up." Says Nelson. "It might be months before you know exactly what you'll need extra cash for, but now is not the time to press the gas pedal when it comes to your monthly spending."

4.      Start Clearing Out:  Especially if you have a house to sell.  This is the time to start donating, selling and giving away all those things you have accumulated.

"Use the proceeds to pad your cash cushion, or tuck the donation receipts away for your tax records next year." suggests Nelson.

This is a great time to buy a house!  Use these tips to make the process easier and be able to get into that new house in 2012!

Read the full story at Inman News.

photo credit: Justin Shearer

Posted in Marketing, Buyer Resources, Ownership, Real Estate Market Conditions

Trends are what everyone is thinking about... right now.  It changes daily.  It's easy for the main search engines to track this; they list the Top 10 Trends every day based off of what keywords people are searching for.

Trending is an important aspect of business.  Keeping on top of trends can help you shape your business and your marketing to take advantage of what your customers want.  NowandNext.com is a website devoted to trending and predicting what comes next.

So what are important trends for business? In a great article for OpenForum.com, Scott Ginsberg explores important trends in the business world that are here to stay:

1. Mentoring: Inspire the people around you to motivate themselves.

2. Value: Ginsberg uses the example of clothing. "Good brands are bought, great brands are joined" Offer value and you will have a customer for life.

3. Trusted Advisor: The real estate game has changed. Clients are better informed about the market because they research information online before calling an agent. Bernice Ross, Real Estate Coach and author, says that, in this new market, agents need to be a "trusted advisor" to their clients. Offer guidance and better service than the competition.

Nothing can take the place of the knowledge that you have as a real estate agent.  Clients can research online forever, but it is you who knows the heartbeat of the neighborhood and can guide the client to what will fit them best.  "Face-to-face is making a comeback. And we can't solely filter our lives through pixels. Not if we want those lives to matter." writes Ginsberg.

4. Service: Show the value of your services. Let the client know what they can expect when they hire you. Have your services outlined so the client can see why hiring you is the best value.

5. Marketing 24/7: You are your best PR firm!  Inman News columnist, David Fletcher, says that you need to use all meetings and gatherings as an opportunity to prospect for new clients. Wear your name badge or pin from your company to start the conversation.

Ginsberg agrees with that.  "Wearing a nametag 24/7 is a risk. But it's also good practice." he says. "Practice being vulnerable, that is. There is a connection between vulnerability, approachability and profitability. When you open yourself to the world, the world will opens its wallet to you."

Read the full article at OpenForum.com.

Posted in Marketing, Ownership, Real Estate Trends

Tom Guest, 2011 President of Metro Brokers Inc., talks about how things are developing this year within the Metro Brokers real estate organization.

Metro Brokers is a unique company allowing agents to start up their own business for very little money to join a company that offers statewide recognition.  Metro Brokers offers 100% ownership to agents and brokers allowing flexibility to focus on their strengths in real estate and even loans, property management and much more!

Metro Brokers get a free website, professional video opportunites and an online presence through Metro Brokers Online.

Future goals for Metro Brokers this year include building membership and strong offices through the great support offered by the organization and imroving communication as a whole.

Tom Guest is a Broker/Owner of Key Masters Real Estate Company and has sold Denver real estate for 18 years.

Interviewer:  Hi, I am Kathy Soltero with Metro Brokers TV.  Today in the studio, we have with us Tom Guest, he is with Key Masters Real Estate, and he is also our president of Metro Brokers, Inc.  Thank you so much for coming in, Tom.

Tom Guest:  You're welcome, Kathy. 

Interviewer:  You have been president since the beginning of January for 2011, and tell me how things are going so far? 

Tom Guest:  Things are going good.  You know it's been a real privilege and honor to be president of Metro Brokers.  We are an organization that elects their board of directors, we elect our president, so we are self run, we are self ruled, and it's been very enjoyable. 

Interviewer:  And you're still doing real estate at the same time.  So you've got a lot going on.

Tom Guest:  Yes. 

Interviewer:  What sort of activities are you involved in?

Tom Guest:  With Metro Brokers, I mean we do all of our planning, we have the triathlon coming up, I am involved with all kinds of activities that will span everything to build our business for Metro Brokers. 

Interviewer:  Real estate has been tough.  So, what are some of the challenges that we have been facing as in Metro Brokers?

Tom Guest:  Well one thing is our membership, membership numbers have been slipping last few years, but as it has in all organizations, the one thing we are trying to do is to build our membership to get our word out, to let everybody know how good we are as a membership organization, what we can offer them.

Interviewer:  Why should somebody join Metro Brokers?

Tom Guest:  One thing about Metro Brokers is we are unique in the business, compared to other companies.  We offer someone the entrepreneurship to where they can open up their own office; they can start as a broker associate, they can develop into a broker.  They can become an employing broker and they can become an office owner. 

Interviewer:  What are some of the other aspects of Metro Brokers that make it so enticing for people to join?

Tom Guest:  The things that make it enticing to join is that you can form your own business and you can have associates working for you.  So you can have your own business, this carries on with you forever, no one will take it away from you.  You can do your own business, you can be a loan officer, you can have loans, you can do property management, and you can do relocation.  So you form your own organization, you can do whatever you want within that organization and have your own agents working for you. 

Interviewer:  What are your hopes and aspirations for Metro Brokers while you are president?

Tom Guest:  Well a couple of things that we are looking at that are very important to us is to build our membership numbers.  So we want to build those back up into the 1500 range.  We want strong offices; offices are the key to our company and our success.  So increase the strength of the offices, improving communication, communication to the office owners, communication to each of our brokers from corporate. 

Interviewer:  We have great access on the web as well and websites for every individual involved in Metro Brokers, as well.

Tom Guest:  We do, we offer a free website, we also have metrobrokersonline.com and that is a complete website for the public to search for properties and offers all kind of opportunities for everyone to build our membership.

Interviewer:  Especially on the video aspects too, they can get interviewed and have a video presence as well. 

Tom Guest:  Yes.

Interviewer:  All right, well Tom thank you so much for joining us today, it's been a pleasure and good luck for the rest of the year. 

Tom Guest:  Thank you, Kathy.

Interviewer:  And for more real estate related videos like this one, be sure to tune into metrobrokerstv.com. 

Posted in MBI Advantages, From The President, Join Metro Brokers, Industry Leadership, MBI FAQ, Franchise Opportunity, Ownership