Real Estate • January 25, 2014

Don’t Throw your Money Away! Use the Referral From your Realtor

by Tom Fine

Do you like to throw your money away? If you are like me, I value my money and don't like throwing money away. Don't get me wrong, I do buy things once in a while that might be ridiculous, but at least I am making that choice. When you pick a mortgage broker, because they are a friend or friend of a friend or they may be a big bank. This may be you are gambling with your money.

Why do I bring this up, well this happens more than I would like. I have clients that come to me and they have a buddy that is a banker for a large bank and we have a real estate property that we are in contract with. It has a 45 day close. The banker takes the information and the appraisal doesn't happen for 15 days, (what! 15 days for an appraisal) but the client is told by the banker everything is good and release the financing contingency. Done, Financing contingency is released, no contingencies left. I tried to interject and emails would not come back to me form the banker, the banker was only responding to his client which is "our client". 5 days before the scheduled close, the client is rejected by underwriting, (What!) The banker said to his client (Suppose to be our client) he can work it out and needs another 5 days. We are now going to 50 days to close. Seller does not accept an extension, guess what, we are so close to the client loosing his earnest money. Why? Because of the buddies relationship with the banker. a large sum of money was on the table as far as the earnest money that was in jeopardy. After an exhausting day with multiple conversations with the listing broker, I was able to work out an extension with working with the listing agent and negotiating a deal. Today, the deal got done, but my gosh, none of us need to have this kind of stress.

What can be learned from this? Please use the referral from your Realtor.

It is about getting the deal done for our clients, with the least amount of stress to the clients. Our clients need to feel special and that they are being taken care of. It's critical to provide them with updates with the current program and where they sit in the funding process.

This is what we do, getting the job done with the least amount of stress and provide updates and clear and open communication.

Real Estate Sales Volume Numbers in Sales Up 17% in NW Region (Seattle and Surrounding Areas)

by Tom Fine

#'s going up and Down, see the text below for clarification on which numbers are doing what

Great News, the numbers are in for real estate sales in the Pacific NW for 2013. The sales numbers compared to the year before are up 17% equating to 11,000 more properties. Who wants to argue that the economy is doing worst or stagnant? I am very happy with these numbers and look forward to a great 2014. These numbers state we re a nice increase and hopefully it will be a nice gradual increase. While we look at these numbers to determine the health of the area, other factors are contributing; unemployment numbers are lower than they have been in over 6 years to 6.6%.

Investors are spending a great deal of cash to buy foreclosures and turn them around in record time to get them on the market.

Other great news, we are seeing more homes coming onto the market for sale.

Contact me to discuss your investments.

Tom Fine

Windermere RE, Capitol Hill

Tips, Trends & Living • January 17, 2014

Options to Keep our Parents in their Homes as Long as Possible

by Tom Fine

Many seniors prefer to stay in their homes as long as possible. Of course, your ability to do this hinges on many factors, including the nature of the challenges you face in your current home. Major home renovations may be required, but there are also numerous inexpensive steps you can take to improve your living situation, including:

SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS

Flooring: carpeting is preferable to area rugs because it reduces tripping hazards and can cushion falls. But if area rugs are used, make sure they’re secured to the floor.

Handrails: on stairways, add a second handrail along the opposite wall for improved stability.

Footwear: to prevent falls, non-slip shoes are preferable to slippers or socks.

Non-skid safety strips: adhered to the floor of a tub/ shower, non-skid strips are preferable to removable in-shower bath mats.

Bathroom grab bars: ideally these should be anchored into the wall, but if that’s not possible opt for a safety rail clamped onto the side of the tub.

Quality step ladder: purchase a broad-based heavy-duty step ladder with a hand-hold bar across the top to safely reach items stored out of reach.

Lighting: whether it’s making a bathtub brighter or installing motion-activated night lights in the hallway, better lighting can help prevent falls and make hobbies, reading, etc. more enjoyable. Lighting improvements might be as simple as changing the bulbs (to higher wattages or to bulbs that mimic daylight instead of “yellow” soft lighting) or adding battery-operated units.

Generations

CONVENIENCE FACTORS

Hand shower: convert a standard fixed shower head into a hand-held system with a flexible hose.

Raised toilet seats: no need to buy a new toilet when a removable seat can be added to most standard toilets.

Mail catcher: mail delivered via a slot in the door may be easier to retrieve than from a mail box, especially if a narrow basket is mounted below the door opening so the recipient doesn’t have to pick mail off the floor.

Knobs: replace round door and/or faucet knobs with lever styles, which are easier to turn. Likewise, loop pulls can make drawers easier to open.

Eating: specially-designed cups and eating utensils can minimize food spills, including weighted options that help counterbalance shake-prone hands.

Cooking utensils: lightweight and ergonomically-designed options are readily available now, many offering non-slip handles and bright, attractive colors.

Keep things handy: move often-used items to easy-to- access locations.

Eliminate excess “stuff”: having fewer items to store, sort, juggle and handle can make aging in place an easier and more enjoyable proposition.

Real Estate • January 16, 2014

17 Steps to Purchasing a Home

by Tom Fine

Here 17 Steps to purchasing a home.

This list will prove guidance to understanding the steps to obtaining a home.

As any investment person would say, create a realistic budget and stick with it. This will give you a good perspective of what you can afford a month for a mortgage payment.

The realtor you have selected should be utilizing a process as shown below, will make finding your home a smooth process.

In each of the steps below there are details to understanding each of these steps

The 17 steps to home ownership

Save money for down payment
Select a Realtor
Understanding financing methods
Finding a lender
Get Pre-Approved
Determine your home search criteria
Research and view homes
Select a home
Make an offer/negotiate, leave emotions out of it
Sign a purchase and sale agreement
Get inspections, Home inspection and any other inspections
Apply for mortgage application
Realtor/Broker will confirm a clean title
Get home insurance
Final walkthrough
Closing, signing documents
Documents recorded, keys are turned over to you

As with any part of the real estate process, if at any time you have any questions or concerns ask your realtor. That is what they are there for, to provide you guidance that you can trust and believe in.

Do you have questions in the Seattle area, contact Tom Fine, tomfine@windermere.com or 206-434-6561

Tom's next blogs break down the 17 steps of purchasing a home.

Happy Home Hunting!

Real Estate • December 11, 2013

Buying a New Home, What Steps to Take?

by Tom Fine

Thinking of buying a home?

What are the first steps? What do you do?

These steps below will get you started in the right direction. The best thing to do is to engage with a professional Broker (Realtor) that you work wwell togetrher with. They will should have aprocess that will make the home buying event easier and more fluid.

The Beginning

First step is to check out mortgage brokers, to get Pre-Approved, research 2 or 3 to see what their rates are, such as Cobalt Mortgage or Cornerstone Home Lending

To make a commitment wit the mortgage broker and get the pre-approval process in the works.

There is a difference between pre-approval and pre-qualified, here is the difference between the 2 of them.

Pre-qualified is a simple process of the mortgage broker asking simple question, such as income and debt and then you are pre qualified for X amount.

Pre approval is more in depth financial information to determine what your purchasing power is. Typically both require a credit check, yet the approval process will require you digging deeper into your financial world, break to the W-2’s, 401K docs, and investment paperwork, pay stubs.

Once your broker (Real Estate Agent) has the paperwork/letter stating what your purchasing power is, all may be in order with your finances if they are not, then you may need to pay a little or a lot of attention to fixing any issues that popped up during this process.

Now is the time to figure out what you are going to look for?

What areas you like, rate 1, 2 and 3^rd

What schools area do you want to be in?

Public transportation? Is this important

Work, how close to work?

What style of home do you like? Contemporary, Modern, Tudor, Rambler?

What size of home?

How many floors, this goes with style of home

How many bedrooms? Size of rooms

How many bathrooms? How extensive of bathroom finishes are you looking for?

Den/ library are they in your future?

Property, how much property are you looking for?

Kitchen, what are you looking for in a kitchen, simple, or extensive

Garage, 1,2 or 3 cars?

Living room, media rom?

There are so many things to think about when purchasing a home.

When looking for a home it’s important to enjoy the search and make it a good experience.

Fireplace/s Gas or wood burning

Backyard amenities?

Are you looking for a basement, finished?

This is not my complete list, though it is fairly long and encompasses a lot of items.

I hope this helps you get pointed in the right direction. Be smart and just because it has a nice paint or great paint colors doesn’t mean it’s a great house. Use a very good home inspector; the home inspector should not be used to get a lower price but to get a very good idea of what the condition of the house is in and what repairs are needed.

If you have a great Broker (Realtor) then utilize them for their expertise and advice, a true Realtor will be worth all their money.

Good luck and enjoy your search.

Tom Fine

Fine Homes NW, Inc.

Windermere Real Estate Capitol Hill, Seattle

206-434-6561

Real Estate • October 5, 2013

Incredible Madrona Home Ready for New Owners

by Tom Fine

What Great Views and a Wonderful Home!

Come to Madrona, Don't forget to explore the tunnel to the garage. There are s may great features of this home, from the beautiful renovated home, the kitchen, bathrooms, the millwork, the comfortable living spaces and the basement area that has the exposed basement walls that give this home the warm characteristics and shows so well.

Perched high above the street with serene lake and mountain views sits this completely renovated traditional home. This 1926 Craftsman unites formal and informal living spaces to create the perfect home. Leaded glass windows, crown moldings , Batchelder tile mantles and built ins abound.

Updates include a generous kitchen, 3 baths, a powder room, electrical, roof, sewer, heating and plumbing.

Enjoy the patios, greenhouse, hot tub and mature landscaping. A well lit stair meanders to the rocking chair porch and the front door. There are three garages, one of which has an underground passage lead-ing to the house. A fantastic find just minutes to Lake Washington, downtown and the eastside .

As you enter the front door and you look tot he right (Which is East) the great views from the main floor mesmerize you and as you walk up the wonderful stairway, they views don't stop. Exploret he house, it's fabulous form basement to the top floor and on the nicely presented grounds.

Contact me today to see this wonderfull piece of Seattle History. No modern home can compare to this!

Tom Fine

Fine Homes NW, Inc.

Windermere Real Estate

Real Estate • August 23, 2013

Houses are Moving and We Just Closed on Another Great One and On-Time!

by Tom Fine

In this challenging market, finding a house is hard enough and then meeting all the criteria is another challenge and finally the sellers looking to close as soon as possible.

Another challenge was my client wanted to use a good friend of his that worked for one of the larger banks in the country, of course keeping those friendships tight, is big business and we all understand helping friends and families. The issues that came up was my client wanted to use his friend at the big bank ad we had multiple discussions on this and that it was critical to meet the requirements of the contract and close in 30 days or less.

The Big bank wanted 2-3 weeks to do the appraisal and could close in most likely 45 days. The kicker to switch my client over was when he heard me say he would loose the earnest money if we didn't close in 30 days or less, could his friend guarantee 30 days, No, he couldn't guarantee 45 days.

Thanks to Jackie Murphy and the group at Cobalt Mortgage, they put all the paperwork together in less than 30 days.

It's all about having a great team behind me that makes me shine. I am so happy to have them work with me to help families find a great home.

Let me and my team helps you buy a home or sell your current property.

Tom Fine, Broker

206-434-6516

Fine Homes NW, Inc.