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April 24, 2014

Top 10 Reasons Owning Your Home Beats Renting One

OwnVsRent

 

  1. Not having to answer to a landlord.
  2. Paying YOUR mortgage & expenses beats paying someone else’s
  3. Being able to tap into your home equity in case of emergency.
  4. Appreciation (MORE MONEY!) if/when you’re ready to sell.
  5. Not having to move because your landlord booted you.
  6. Being able to …
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April 3, 2014

8 Tips to Get Your Home Purchase Offer Accepted

Originally written on 5/23/13 and updated on 4/2/14.

PurchaseContractAre you frustrated that you can't get your offer accepted? Have you made offer after offer with little luck? Are you considering walking away from buying a home?

With the spring market fully underway and the real …

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Feb. 27, 2014

8 Steps to Price Your Home For a Quick Sale

20140226-fallingpriceWhen it comes to selling a home, almost every Phoenix & Scottsdale seller’s goal is to eek out as much money from a buyer as humanly possible. Not that I blame them, but that desire to maximize profits can sometimes sabotage the primary goal.

For the last ~6 mos, I’ve …

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Feb. 11, 2014

6 Tips for Buying a Home in a “Buyer’s Market”

AARPurchaseContractIt’s been a little over a week since I suggested that the seller’s market we’ve experienced in Metro Phoenix for the last ~2years might be cooling. As of yesterday, Michael Orr, Director of the Real Estate Center at the W.P. Carey School of Business at ASU and the guru …

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Posted in Buyers, Featured, Sellers
Jan. 31, 2014

An End to the Robust Metro Phoenix "Seller's Market"?

The last 2 years, 2012 & 2013 were much better years than sellers had seen since the housing bust. While multiple offers and sales for over list price were common even though we hadn't regained all the ground we'd lost since ~2006, sellers who had been watching from …

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Jan. 30, 2014

My "Relax & Enjoy the Big Game", 15-min, Chili Recipe

ChiliI hate standing over a pot... ALL DAY. If you like chili, but don't want the wait, try this one. My family loves it and asks for more. 15min and done!

Taken loosely from Ortega's Quick & Easy Recipe:  (I apologize in advance because I don't …

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Posted in Featured, News
Jan. 26, 2014

Small Improvements= Big Impact on Your Bottom Line

Plan on selling your home this spring in the Valley of the Sun?

After a year or 2 of record low inventory, things are changing. Namely, more people are deciding the time is right to sell their home too. With a myriad of new listings coming on the market, how …

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Posted in Featured, News
Jan. 9, 2014

What to expect in Spring 2014?

2014?If you're buying or selling real estate in spring 2014, there are a few things you should know.

Our friends at the Cromford Report recently reported a new low on 1/14/14 of pending listings of -42.1% (year over year). This means the number of homes going …

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Sept. 30, 2013

Have an ARM? (Adjustable Rate Mortgage)

ARMRateIf you are like millions of other American's you may have purchased a home during our housing boom with an ARM or adjustable rate mortgage to save a little money on your home payment given the high prices during that time.  This means that your interest rate was …

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Feb. 7, 2013

12 Tips for Getting the Best Home Loan for YOU

Home LoanIf you plan to buy or refinance your home this spring, I applaud you for taking advantage of historically low rates.

Sure, getting the financing may not be as quick or as easy as it once was during the housing boom because lenders and banks who lost billions from borrowers …

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