8 Tips for Finding Your New Home

By: G. M. Filisko

Published: February 10, 2010

A solid game plan can help you narrow your homebuying search to find the best home for you.

1. Know thyself

Understand the type of home that suits your personality. Do you prefer a new or existing home? A ranch or a multistory home? If you’re leaning toward a fixer-upper, are you truly handy, or will you need to budget for contractors?

2. Research before you look

List the features you most want in a home and identify which are necessities and which are extras. Identify three to four neighborhoods you’d like to live in based on commute time, schools, recreation, crime, and price. Then hop onto REALTOR.com to get a feel for the homes available in your price range in your favorite neighborhoods. Use the results to prioritize your wants and needs so you can add in and weed out properties from the inventory you’d like to view.

3. Get your finances in order

Generally, lenders say you can afford a home priced two to three times your gross income. Create a budget so you know how much you’re comfortable spending each month on housing. Don’t wait until you’ve found a home and made an offer to investigate financing.

Gather your financial records and meet with a lender to get a prequalification letter spelling out how much you’re eligible to borrow. The lender won’t necessarily consider the extra fees you’ll pay when you purchase or your plans to begin a family or purchase a new car, so shop in a price range you’re comfortable with. Also, presenting an offer contingent on financing will make your bid less attractive to sellers.

4. Set a moving timeline

Do you have blemishes on your credit that will take time to clear up? If you already own, have you sold your current home? If not, you’ll need to factor in the time needed to sell. If you rent, when is your lease up? Do you expect interest rates to jump anytime soon? All these factors will affect your buying, closing, and moving timelines.

5. Think long term

Your future plans may dictate the type of home you’ll buy. Are you looking for a starter house with plans to move up in a few years, or do you hope to stay in the home for five to 10 years? With a starter, you may need to adjust your expectations. If you plan to nest, be sure your priority list helps you identify a home you’ll still love years from now.

6. Work with a REALTOR®

Ask people you trust for referrals to a real estate professional they trust. Interview agents to determine which have expertise in the neighborhoods and type of homes you’re interested in. Because homebuying triggers many emotions, consider whether an agent’s style meshes with your personality.

Also ask if the agent specializes in buyer representation. Unlike listing agents, whose first duty is to the seller, buyers’ reps work only for you even though they’re typically paid by the seller. Finally, check whether agents are REALTORS®, which means they’re members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®. NAR has been a champion of homeownership rights for more than a century.

7. Be realistic

It’s OK to be picky about the home and neighborhood you want, but don’t be close-minded, unrealistic, or blinded by minor imperfections. If you insist on living in a cul-de-sac, you may miss out on great homes on streets that are just as quiet and secluded.

On the flip side, don’t be so swayed by a “wow” feature that you forget about other issues—like noise levels—that can have a big impact on your quality of life. Use your priority list to evaluate each property, remembering there’s no such thing as the perfect home.

8. Limit the opinions you solicit

It’s natural to seek reassurance when making a big financial decision. But you know that saying about too many cooks in the kitchen. If you need a second opinion, select one or two people. But remain true to your list of wants and needs so the final decision is based on criteria you’ve identified as important.

More from HouseLogic

HOAs: What You Need to Know About Rules

A Financial Plan for Your Home

When It Pays to Do It Yourself

G.M. Filisko is an attorney and award-winning writer who has found happiness in a brownstone in a historic Chicago neighborhood. A frequent contributor to many national publications including Bankrate.com, REALTOR® Magazine, and the American Bar Association Journal, she specializes in real estate, business, personal finance, and legal topics.

Keep Your Home Purchase on Track

By: G. M. Filisko

Published: March 30, 2010

You’ve found your dream home. Make sure missteps don’t prevent a successful closing.

1. Be truthful on your mortgage application

You may think fudging your income a little or omitting debts when applying for a mortgage will go unnoticed. Not true. Lenders have become more diligent in verifying information on mortgage applications. If you fib, expect to be found out and denied the loan you need to fund your home purchase. Plus, intentionally lying on a mortgage application is a crime.

2. Hold off on big purchases

Lenders double-check buyers’ credit right before the closing to be sure their financial condition hasn’t weakened. If you’ve opened new credit cards, significantly increased the balance on existing cards, taken out new loans, or depleted your savings, your credit score may have dropped enough to make your lender change its mind on funding your home loan.

Although it’s tempting to purchase new furniture and other items for your new home, or even a new car, wait until after the closing.

3. Keep your job

The lender may refuse to fund your loan if you quit or change jobs before you close the purchase. The time to take either step is after a home closing, not before.

4. Meet contingencies

If your contract requires you to do something before the sale, do it. If you’re required to secure financing, promptly provide all the information the lender requires. If you must deposit additional funds into escrow, don’t stall. If you have 10 days to get a home inspection, call the inspector immediately.

5. Consider deadlines immovable

Get your funds together a week or so before the closing, so you don’t have to ask for a delay. If you’ll need to bring a certified check to closing, get it from the bank the day before, not the day of, your closing. Treat deadlines as sacrosanct.

More from HouseLogic

How maintenance adds to home values

Reducing closing stress

Other web resources

More on calculating closing costs 

More on the closing process

G.M. Filisko is an attorney and award-winning writer who wanted a successful closing on a Wisconsin property so bad that she probably made her agent rethink going into real estate. A frequent contributor to many national publications including Bankrate.com, REALTOR® Magazine, and the American Bar Association Journal, she specializes in real estate, business, personal finance, and legal topics.

7 Steps to Take Before You Buy a Home

By: G. M. Filisko

Published: February 10, 2010

By doing your homework before you buy, you’ll feel more content about your new home.

1. Decide how much home you can afford

Generally, you can afford a home priced 2 to 3 times your gross income. Remember to consider costs every homeowner must cover: property taxes, insurance, maintenance, utilities, and community association fees, if applicable, as well as costs specific to your family, such as day care if you plan to have children.

2. Develop your home wish list

Be honest about which features you must have and which you’d like to have. Handicap accessibility for an aging parent or special needs child is a must. Granite countertops and stainless steel appliances are in the bonus category. Come up with your top-five must-haves and top-five wants to help you focus your search and make a logical, rather than emotional, choice when home shopping.

3. Select where you want to live

Make a list of your top-five community priorities, such as commute time, schools, and recreational facilities. Ask your REALTOR® to help you identify three to four target neighborhoods based on your priorities.

4. Start saving

Have you saved enough money to qualify for a mortgage and cover your downpayment? Ideally, you should have 20% of the purchase price set aside for a downpayment, but some lenders allow as little as 5% down. A small downpayment preserves your savings for emergencies.

However, the lower your downpayment, the higher the loan amount you’ll need to qualify for, and if you still qualify, the higher your monthly payment. Your downpayment size can also influence your interest rate and the type of loan you can get.

Finally, if your downpayment is less than 20%, you’ll be required to purchase private mortgage insurance. Depending on the size of your loan, PMI can add hundreds to your monthly payment. Check with your state and local government for mortgage and downpayment assistance programs for first-time buyers.

5. Ask about all the costs before you sign

A downpayment is just one homebuying cost. Your REALTOR® can tell you what other costs buyers commonly pay in your area—including home inspections, attorneys’ fees, and transfer fees of 2% to 7% of the home price. Tally up the extras you’ll also want to buy after you move-in, such as window coverings and patio furniture for your new yard.

6. Get your credit in order

A credit report details your borrowing history, including any late payments and bad debts, and typically includes a credit score. Lenders lean heavily on your credit report and credit score in determining whether, how much, and at what interest rate to lend for a home. Most require a minimum credit score of 620 for a home mortgage.

You’re entitled to free copies of your credit reports annually from the major credit bureaus:Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Order and then pore over them to ensure the information is accurate, and try to correct any errors before you buy. If your credit score isn’t up to snuff, the easiest ways to improve it are to pay every bill on time and pay down high credit card debt.

7. Get prequalified

Meet with a lender to get a prequalification letter that says how much house you’re qualified to buy. Start gathering the paperwork your lender says it needs. Most want to see W-2 forms verifying your employment and income, copies of pay stubs, and two to four months of banking statements.

If you’re self-employed, you’ll need your current profit and loss statement, a current balance sheet, and personal and business income tax returns for the previous two years.

Consider your financing options. The longer the loan, the smaller your monthly payment. Fixed-rate mortgages offer payment certainty; an adjustable-rate mortgage offers a lower monthly payment. However, an adjustable-rate mortgage may adjust dramatically. Be sure to calculate your affordability at both the lowest and highest possible ARM rate.

More from HouseLogic

Learn how Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages can help you save on financing

Learn more about the costs of homeownership

Other web resources

Homebuyer counseling resources

Get a free credit report from each of the three credit reporting bureaus

G.M. Filisko is an attorney and award-winning writer who has thrice survived the homebuying process. A frequent contributor to many national publications including Bankrate.com, REALTOR® Magazine, and the American Bar Association Journal, she specializes in real estate, business, personal finance, and legal topics.

Best, Worst Real Estate Markets

Daily Real Estate News  |  January 19, 2011

More than 15 states are projected to experience housing inflation or appreciation during the year, according to Housing Predictor, which releases an annual report of its choices for best and worst housing markets.

The top five housing markets are:
1. Portland, Maine
2. Kansas City, Kan.
3. Tri-Cities, Wash.
4. Omaha, Neb.
5. Fargo, N.D.

However, not all markets will fare well in 2011, with the foreclosure crisis particularly still battering some areas as well as high unemployment and overbuilding during the boom era that has led to high home inventories.

The top 5 worst markets, according to Housing Predictor, are:
1. Bend, Ore.
2. Las Vegas
3. Atlantic City, N.J.
4. Miami, Fla.
5. Medford, Ore.

View all 25 worst markets that made the list in the Housing Predictor report.: "Best and Worst Real Estate Markets Announced in 2011", PR.com (Jan. 17, 2011)

6 Most Promising Real Estate Markets for 2011

Daily Real Estate News  |  March 14, 2011

Inman News recently released a list of 10 real estate markets to watch in 2011 based on housing, economic, and demographic data. Inman News took into account such factors as the area's median sales price, unemployment rate, sales volume, and foreclosure activity.

1. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va.: The metro area was one of the few markets to see year-over-year gains in its home prices.

Median sales price (Q4 2010): $331,100
Median sales price % change (Q4 2009-Q4 2010: 8.1 percent
Foreclosure activity rate (2010): 1 in 49 units

2. Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N.Y.:  This metro area for the last year has boasted a low delinquency rate and one of the lowest foreclosure rates in the country. It also has one of the fastest-rising median list prices in the nation.

Median sales price (Q4 2010): $126,500
Median sales price % change (Q4 ’09-Q4 ’10): 14.3 percent
Foreclosure activity rate (2010): 1 in 322 units

3. Des Moines, Iowa:  The city has a low unemployment rate and one of the highest projected job growth rates for the third quarter of 2011.

Median sales price (Q4 2010): $151,300
Median sales price % change (Q4 ’09-Q4 ’10): 5.5 percent
Foreclosure activity rate (2010): 1 in 79 units

4. Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, Maine: The Maine community has plenty of reasons for making the list, including a low unemployment with projected job growth, a rising median sales price, and high affordability.

Median sales price (Q4 2010): $223,000
Median sales price % change (Q4 ’09-Q4 ’10): 8.3 percent
Foreclosure activity rate (2010): 1 in 150 units

5. Kennewick-Richland-Pasco, Wash.: Rising household income and a rise in the median price helped this Washington metro make Inman’s list.

Median sales price (Q4 2010): $183,000
Median sales price % change (Q4 ’09-Q4 ’10): 8.9 percent
Foreclosure activity rate (2010): 1 in 161 units

6. Fargo, N.D.-Minn.: This North Dakota community is becoming more desirable with its low unemployment (about 4 percent), which is lower than nearly any other state in the nation (the national average is about 9 percent).

Median sales price (Q4 2010): $148,500
>Median sales price % change (Q4 ’09-Q4 ’10): 6.2 percent
Foreclosure activity rate (2010): 1 in 7,423 units

Source: “10 Real Estate Markets to Watch in 2011,” Inman News (March 11, 2011)

Kennewick: A housing market to watch in 2011 (Inman)

Three structures at 300 Area of the U.S. Department of Energy's Handford Site are demolished with explosives on Oct. 9, 2010. Handford demolition and cleanup work is helping drive the Kennewick area economy. (Handford/U.S. Department of Energy)

The Kennewick area is one of “10 real estate markets to watch in 2011,” according to Inman News.

“(H)ousing appreciation in the Kennewick area remained modest while the rest of the country was experiencing a boom,” the real estate news service wrote Friday.

The metro area has fairly low unemployment compared to the national rate and was one of three markets on the list to see household income rise between 2008 and 2009. Population and in-migration from other states also rose during that time, each up 4.2 percent. Median sales price in the Kennewick market rose 8.9 percent from fourth-quarter 2009 to fourth-quarter 2010.

And there’s economic strength in Kennewick, Don Havre, broker at The Real Estate Firm there, told Inman.

We are a transportation hub with rail, barge traffic and (a) freeway network. Our economy includes agriculture, with its growing grape/wine market, high-tech companies like Infinia, which manufactures generators powered by the sun’s energy, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, and the Hanford Project.

Speaking of federal projects, the No. 1 market to watch was Washington, D.C. No other Northwest areas made the list.

Aubrey Cohen

Aubrey Cohen is the aerospace and real estate reporter for seattlepi.com. 

Realliving.com relaunches website powered by LPS - WAV Group

Real Living is among the fastest growing franchise groups in the United States and have a track record of of impressive accomplishments. Today they represent more than 400 offices and more than 10,000 agents. Entrepreneur Magazine, Inman News, Swanepol Trends Report and a 96% satisfaction rating (As surveyed by QSC) among consumers are among the accolades. In an announcement today, they unveiled a new consumer facing franchise website developed by industry technology leader, LPS. LPS has been the technology provider for many leading broker organizations, including the supplier of website services to Home Services of America, a Berkshire Hathaway company.
WAV Group sees this a a major game changer among Broker and Franchise websites. Real Living has a large footprint of brokerages across America, that will now be laced together through this new web property. Strategically, they have taken a page out of the RE/MAX and Century 21 web strategy handbook, powered by eNeighborhoods. The model is that consumers who search on the RealLiving.com website are dynamically and seamlessly redirected to a local office website where IDX listings are viewed.
According to WAV Group WIN Reports, Realliving.com is already climbing the rankings of the most popular consumer real estate websites in the country. According to Experian Hitwise, Realliving.com moved up from a traffic ranking of 340 in the United States to a ranking of 311 in a matter of 2 weeks, reporting a unique visitor count of just over 39,000 visitors a week. They have seen an even more dramatic lift in page views, which relates directly to engagement. Again, over a two week period, realliving.com has moved from a ranking of 433 in America up to 373 with a promising result of 211,000 page views per week. In looking at the success of other LPS driven web properties like edinarealty.com and socalmls.com, our forecast is that they will drive higher on this performance over time as the new site engages consumers at a deeper level as a result of the deep property centric information provided around each listing. This is already bearing out in the Time Per visit category where realliving.com has moved from a rank of 815 up to 596 in the real estate category with an average time per visit of just under 10 minutes. As a benchmark, SocalMLS.com is the top real estate website in the United States in time of visit of 56 minutes. (note: SoCALMLS is also powered by LPS)
Key new features on the site include:

• Social Network integration to share property on Facebook, linkedin, twitter, etc
• Alll IDX data
• WalkScore
• Housing Values, area demographics, economic data, school information, environmental, quality of live, mapping
• Mortgage information
• Rate this house (lets consumers keep track of their favorite homes)

Listing Syndication for Real Living is now being managed by LPS Data Vault rather than other syndication providers, Point2 or ListHub. According to Matt Kaufman of Real Living, Data Vault has many advantages that meet their needs including minimizing the complexity of directing consumers to the desired listing detail page; economic advantages; robust reporting on traffic sources across syndication sites, and most importantly - Data Vault has a full featured data rights management platform that allows RealLiving to keep control of their listing information out on the syndication sites and control the timelines and accuracy of those listings.
Here is the press release:

Real Living Rolls Out New Technology Platform for Brokers and Agents and Launches an All New www.RealLiving.com for Consumers

© Business Wire 2011
2011-01-25 14:34:03 -
Real Living, one of the nation’s most innovative national real estate franchisors, today announced that it has launched a bold new technology initiative, Web strategy and online platform for brokers and agents.

Central to the strategy, Real Living also announced it has launched an all new national site,www.realliving.com : , that now gives home buyers and sellers
more search options while also providing the latest in mapping technology and rich community information for greater context and a better overall search experience.

As part of its Web strategy, all of the features found in the national www.RealLiving.com : site extend across the entire platform to power local websites that are provided to all Real Living brokers and agents.

Some of these features include: powerful and flexible listing search options, nationwide community and housing market data, social media integration, interactive marketing tools, and more. The company will be providing ongoing enhancements to its platform, with major new releases occurring quarterly.

“We didn’t just launch a new website: Real Living has taken a totally different approach to our Web strategy,” said Real Living President Harley E. Rouda, Jr. “At the national level, our site’s goal is to attract consumers, then seamlessly drive them to local broker or agent sites as quickly as possible, or first and fast, as we like to say,” Rouda added.

“As simple and straightforward as this sounds, historically national real estate companies have been more concerned about keeping consumers on their national sites as long as possible,” Rouda added. “Through our new technology initiative, Real Living today is taking a bold and exciting step to change that way of thinking by directing home buyers and sellers to our brokers and agents sites that are filled with local listings and content.”

For Consumers

Unlike many real estate sites that emphasize technical features at the expense of customer usability, Real Living’s online presence serves buyers and sellers with a refreshing mix of innovation and practicality, offering.

- A listing search developed for the way people really think about real estate. Real Living makes it easier than ever for buyers to find the homes they want with traditional feature and price search options complemented by intuitive map search options, as well as searches by neighborhood, school area, address and street names. Keyword searches of listing descriptions, niche search pages for property types and new search options emerging based upon user behavior, have also been integrated.

- Rich and deep information on local communities across the nation, with details on area home values, property appreciation, the local economy, environment, quality of life, schools and more, compared to city, county and national figures. Home buyers and sellers will find this key information available on every listing’s page, as well as open for general search and community comparison, to give them real context for each home they are considering.

- More options than ever to openly share listings and content on social networks with friends and family, and to privately share listings, house ratings and commentary with their Real Living sales professional through their own RealLiving.com account.

- Access to listings and more via mobile technology that matches and optimizes the information to display to the smart phone in use.

For Brokers and Agents

Real Living’s Internet strategy is to provide a customizable platform for brokers and agents that is continuously being updated while providing consumers with a more consistent online experience since brokers and agents are now using the same platform. Features and benefits of the new platform include.

- A focus on driving consumers, at every opportunity, directly from the national site to a local broker or agent site where they have the opportunity to work with a local real estate professional.

- Each broker and agent is provided a robust website that leverages the same features of the national site, with a local focus.

- A Lead Management Platform that undergoes regular analysis, evolution and improvement. Features include lead notification via cell phone or e-mail, flexible lead-routing options, detailed lead-activity reports for agents and brokers, and enhanced integration with lead incubation and marketing systems.

- Comprehensive E-Marketing - from an automated monthly electronic newsletter with more than 50 pre-built targeted marketing campaigns, to animated home tours, flyers postcards, professional printing and fulfillment. Additionally, the site enables real estate professionals to post and share information on social media sites.

- Real Living Business Center - RealLiving.com integrates its public website with the company’s intranet site to enable brokers and agents to manage leads, develop and maintain their websites, store online files, provide easy access to marketing materials and e-marketing systems.

Real Living’s new technology platform and www.RealLiving.com : were developed in conjunction with LPS Real Estate Group ( www.LPSREG.com : ), one of the foremost developers of real estate technology and tools for brokers, agents and consumers.

“We are very pleased with our new technology platform, which is the first of its kind in the real estate industry,” said Matt Kaufman, director of Internet marketing for Real Living. “We’ve worked closely with LPS over the past several months to deliver a robust platform that will continue to grow and evolve, while bringing incredible amounts of community data and mapping technology down to the broker and agent level.”


About Real Living

Real Living is a full-service real estate brokerage franchise company with a comprehensive and integrated suite of resources and services for franchisees and their sales professionals, as well as the consumers who work with them. The Real Living brand and its innovative concepts were recognized as one of the best by Entrepreneur magazine; won the Inman Innovator Award, and was named “The Most Promising New National Brand” by the Swanepoel TRENDS Report. Real Living is an affiliate of Brookfield Residential Property Services, a leading global provider of real estate and relocation services, technology, and knowledge. In 2010, Real Living maintained an industry-leading customer satisfaction rating of 96 percent based upon research by an independent research firm. For more information, visit www.realliving.com : .