Selling a home in Alaska is risky.  This is especially true if the home has some major defects which you are hiding. I’ll never forget looking at a home for a seller who wanted to know what I thought his home was worth.  As we walked in the front yard he mentioned in an off-hand way that a fuel tank was buried under the lawn but he had cut the pipe off about a foot down.  He said he didn’t think it was important to tell anyone about it.  As you can imagine, that is not a listing I pursued.  That seller was just asking for trouble.

If the buyer knows about all the defects in your home and buys it anyway, you will incur very little risk.  The important thing is to disclose as much as possible.  The Alaska Property Disclosure Form is required for all residential properties in Alaska. You should complete it as thoroughly as you can.  Answer all the questions for which you know the answer.  Some questions may require a little research, so if you can find the answer, write it down. 

Read the rest of this entry »

Bookmark this article!

Some people want to sell their home without the aid of a real estate broker.  This article will start you in the right direction to market your home yourself.  Hopefully it will help you find a buyer and bring you and your buyer to a trouble free closing.  In Wasilla and Palmer, real estate is a little tricky to market on your own so a few guidelines will help.

You need to determine price.  You need to determine what your house is worth to real buyers, not to friends and neighbors who aren’t  ready to part with money on your home.  You do this by comparing your home with similar homes that have recently sold or are now on the market.  A great resource is the Mat-Su Borough web site.  This shows you the amount that the Borough thinks the property is worth.  However because the Borough has to assess all the properties every year they are often way off.  For example I am currently marketing this property for $77,000 less than the borough’s assessed value.  And I have another going on the market today for just about $100,000 more than the assessed value.

Find recent sales.  If you live in a neighborhood or subdivision with other home similar to your own there should be some recent sales.  Since most Alaskans move every 5–6 years, you should find some homes in the area that have sold in the last year.  Find some homes similar in size and style to your own and find out what they sold for.  If they are recent sales the Mat-Su Borough website will often be up to date.  It may even have the most recent sales information on the site.  This is good information.  Figure the price per square foot and then multiply it times your square footage.  Now you are at least in the ball park. 

Read the rest of this entry »

Bookmark this article!

Getting the price right is the most important issue in determining the sales time of a home.  If it isn’t priced right it will not sell, period.  But even if the price is right there is a final step to take that will put you a notch above the competition.  We call it staging your home.  You are setting your house up so that potential buyers can feel themselves moving in. 

Most people in Wasilla and Palmer do not stage their homes, so this will help put you over the top. 

You need to de-clutter mercilessly.  You are no longer making the home comfortable for yourself or for anyone, for that matter.  You are setting the home up like a model home.  If you’ve gone into a model home that is staged well, you will notice that it has furniture, but not too much furniture.  The table may be set but there aren’t any dishes on the counter or in the sink. There may be a book on an end table but only one book.  So get rid of all the extra furniture, all the extra dishes, all the extra clothes, all the extra books.  Pack them nicely in boxes and stack them in the garage, or better yet, put them in storage.  You are going to be moving anyway.

De-personalizing allows someone else to feel at home.  Even though we all have photos of loved ones on the walls, momentos of adventurous hunts hanging over the fireplace, small pictures of all the cousins, aunts, and babies stuck to the fridge with magnets, they now need to go.  Anything that reminds buyers that this is YOUR  home and not THEIRS needs to be taken down.  Pack it up, you are going to be moving anyway.

Neutralize.  I think I have shown close to 6,000 homes since I have been in real estate.  I have yet to show a home with wall paper without a buyer commenting on it.  And the comment is never positive.  Wall paper is so personal  that it will almost never please the next buyer.  Take it down and paint the wall.  And while you are painting, repaint the green and purple bedroom that your pre-teen insisted upon.  It is best to repaint the whole interior some neutral color. 

If you have anything else in the home that is not a very neutral color replace it.  Most sellers say they would rather allow the buyer to pick their own colors and replace at closing but that is a mistake. 

Most buyers will not even buy your home if the colors cause them to have an emotional reaction. Choosing a home to purchase is first and foremost an emotional decision.  If a home doesn’t feel right the buyer will walk away.  They will usually name something about the home that wasn’t right but the real reason is that they could not feel at home in the house. 

It is much easier to mentally move in to a home that is staged well.  The buyers will sit on the sofa and just try to imagine themselves living there if you have obeyed the three laws of staging.  

Bookmark this article!

The information below was provided by Bryan Scoresby at Countrywide in Wasilla

?

?Loan Type????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 30 year?????????????? 15 year

Bryan Scoresby
Home Loan Consultant
1981 East Palmer Wasilla Hwy. Ste. 200
Wasilla, AK 99654
(907) 352-4504 direct
(907) 357-5866 fax?????? Email Bryan

?

Bookmark this article!

Let?s take another look at market statistics to see what we can learn.?

As of today there are?328 homes on the market between Sutton to Big Lake to Settlers Bay.?I took out the?brand new homes and condos.? ?Those homes range in price from $75,000 to $2.5 million.? The median price for the homes is $245,000.? But this is the most important number?these homes have been on the market for an average of 119 days.? That?s right, these homes that are on the market right now have been there for an average of?almost 4 months!?

Now lets look at the houses that have sold in the last?4 months.? Since?September in this same area?265 houses have sold.? The median sales price was $195,000.? But here it is?the houses that actually sold in the last four months were only on the market for 68 days.? So the average days on the market for houses that sell is only 68 days.?But the average house on the market right now is almost twice that.? What is the difference?

The big difference is price.? People that wanted to sell, priced their home to sell.? People that wanted to sell only if they get a certain price ended up just putting their sign on the house, and it?s been there for 4 months.? Many of them used these methods to price their home.? Obviously, this doesn?t work.?

Some homes are just so unique that it?s difficult to get a good value comparing to what is on the market.? On those few homes it is best to get a very experienced realtor to help.? Use someone you trust and work with them.? They will honestly tell you how they are arriving on a price and work with you and the market to sell your home.

But most homes in the valley can be priced close enough to the market to sell.? Of the homes that did sell in the last 4 months, the sales price was 95% or more of the asking price.? That shows that it is very important to price it within 5%? of the market.? With a good selection of inventory, buyers are not even making offers on house priced 10?15% over market price.? An experienced realtor can help you find the correct price.? You should list the house at that price and expect an offer very close to the price.

I have been selling homes full time?in the valley for 16 years.? I average more than one sale a week? Call me, I can help you find that magic number.?My cell is 232?7900, and when you call it?guess what?? It?s me that answers, not a receptionist. Or you can email me marty@valleymarket.com

Bookmark this article!

We occasionally go out to eat as a family after church on Sunday.  Gerrit, (12), is usually the one who pushes it and is normally turned down.  Yesterday he wanted pizza but was immediately rebuffed, then he pushed for other ideas with no interest shown.  Then he said there is a new Mexican food place by Walmart.  The new and the Mexican picked up interest. We knew about several other Mexican places but not this one.

My oldest daughter was going back to school in Tucson last night and since she loves anything Mexican, including the food, we decided to try it out.  We were pleasantly suprised. 

Tacos Cancun is located in the Seward-Meridian Plaza just across from Walmart.  It is a clean, simple, small eatery with good food. The prices are reasonable and the menu is authentic.  I’m not much of a connoisseur of Mexican food, or any food for that matter,  but my wife and daughter make taste a big deal and both gave it a thumbs up. I was impressed with the service which was courteous and fast.  It’s open 7 days a week, 11 AM -8 PM.

There appear to be a lot of Mexican restaurants in the Valley.  It’s just a sign of the growing population here.  Don’t look for restaurant reviews on this newsletter often;  I’m not an authority on restaurants in the valley.  However, you will see occasional off subject articles like this about our local community. 

Feel free to suggest any others, email me or call at (907) 232–7900

Bookmark this article!

You have made the decision to buy a house, it’s time to ACT! Let’s go look at houses!  Whoa!  Let’s put the snow hook in and stop this runaway team before we get all tangled up. 

Look at the reasons to talk to a lender before looking at a home.

• You will receive a good faith estimate.  This is a piece of paper that itemizes all your costs of purchasing the home.  It also states your interest rate and the monthly payment.  Most lenders will be willing to give you several good faith estimates based on different loan amounts and different types of loans. 
• You will get a head start on paperwork.  Your lender will always need some extra documents that will require some time to track down.  You will need bank recent account statements. You may need tax forms. A letter from your employer will be required stating that you actually work where you said you did.  Many times these documents take some time to track down and you can get them done early.
• Your offer to purchase will be stronger.  When you write your offer on your home the amount that you offer is only part of the equation.  The seller wants assurance that you can actually complete the purchase.  If you have pre-qualified, the lender will write a 90% letter to include with your offer that will  make the seller more comfortable even if your offered price is lower than the asking price.
• You won’t waste time and effort. If you fall in love with a home only to find that you can’t qualify to purchase it you will be disappointed.  Not only that, all the other homes you look at will seem dingy and small compared to the one you can’t have.  Save yourself the drama, put first things first.

Wasilla and Palmer have many qualified lenders that can help smooth out the bumps in the purchase process.  If you are buying a home in the Valley, I recommend using a valley lender.  There are many intricacies of valley real estate that they will know.  An out of state lender, or even an Anchorage lender may cause your loan to take longer to close just because they are not as familiar with the Mat-Su Valley. 

Bookmark this article!

Why is the Mat-Su still growing by healthy margins while other population centers in the state are actually shrinking?  I asked myself that after sitting through Neal Fried’s presentation on the Mat-Su economy.  For the “outsiders” Mat-Su is short for the Matanuska-Sustitna Borough which encompasses the 24,000 square miles that make up the Susitna and Matanuska River Valleys.  Most of us locals just call it, “the valley”. 

There are all kinds of reasons so many people want to call this area home.  I’ll touch on just a few attractions for now and add more later.

Mountains Galore.  The Chugach Range runs along the southern edge while the Talkeetna Mountains run right through the middle of the borough.  The Chugach Mountains are a vast wilderness area.  Most of the center part of the Chugach is one huge glacier with fingers stretching down the valleys all around.  The ice is the result of an average annual snowfall of 600 inches a year!  The Talkeetnas are also huge but easier to access.  There are many trails leading up into the Talkeetnas and even a few roads. The mountain photo above is from Doug Lloyd’s Photography and is only one of many beautiful photos of the Mat-Su Valley.

Lakes and Rivers The valley is literally dotted with many beautiful lakes.  Rivers run all through the Mat-Su Borough.  From the two large namesakes to the Deshka, Talkeetna, Yentna, and Chulitna they provide access to the outer edges of the mostly road-less borough with power boat in the summer.  Just the names of many of these rivers cause wilderness lovers to squirm. And there are hundreds of other streams and rivers teeming with fish and visited by bears, eagles, and moose.

Lots of Space The borough is the size of West Virginia.  And although it is growing faster than anywhere in Alaska, it still has a population of only 75,000.  Many residents can literally hike or ski from their back door with the assurance of not seeing anyone at all on their jaunt.  Pure wilderness is no further than a 20 minute ride at the most from anyone in the valley. 

Hatcher Pass This is one of my favorite destinations.  The fact that one can drive from Palmer right up into the Talkeetnas and end up not only above timber line, but almost above the alpine tundra is what makes it such an adventure.  It’s also a great place for snow sports in the winter. Accomodations include Hatcher Pass Bed and Breakfast at the bottom and Hatcher Pass Lodge on top.

Other cool places are the Musk Ox Farm, Reindeer Farm, Matanuska Glacier, and the Iditarod Trail Headquarters.

Bookmark this article!

It’s 17 degrees below zero at my house right now, and I’m in Palmer, the banana belt of Alaska.  I just checked  weather underground and the forecast for Fairbanks is a low of -40 tomorrow.  This is coming off about 2 weeks of snow every day.  I think Anchorage currently is ahead of their record snowfall.  At least the sky is clear and the mountains are pretty

At this temperature you don’t need an infrared camera to tell where your house is losing heat.  Just go outside and take a good look.  Do you see collections of frost in different areas?  Those are causes by either air leakage from inside your house, or by warmth leaking out of the house because of insufficient insulation.  Either way you are contributing to global warming by warming the outside rather than the inside of your home. 

Take a good look at those frosty spots.  If they are just under an eave of a cathedral ceiling, or just around the outside of a door or window that means air is leaking at those spots.  You need to seal those areas with insulation, foam, or caulk.  If you use foam around a door or a window make sure it’s not expandable foam or it could cause the frame to deform.  All that warmth going to the outside can be quantified in dollars spent on your heating bills.  Air leakage can also cause moisture to collect inside your walls since it usually starts condensing before actually hitting the cold outside air. 

Read the rest of this entry »

Bookmark this article!

• Neal Fried was in Wasilla today giving a great presentation regarding the Mat-Su economy to the Valley Board of Realtors. Neal is an economist for the State of Alaska. He has a talent for making statistics seem interesting.   He is excited about research.  I was excited about his statistics. All the charts are courtesy of Neal Fried, click on them to enlarge.

Here are some of the highlights:

1. The population in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough continues to grow even though other population areas are shrinking.  The chart to the top left illustrates that.  The valley continues to show healthy growth even though Anchorage actually experienced negative growth.  The state as a whole also saw negative growth as the yellow column shows.
2. Job growth in 2006 was slower, but still healthy.  The four years previous to 2006 showed job growth of over 1,000 new jobs per year but 2006 saw only 646 new jobs.  Fried’s guess is that 2007 will be similar to this year in job growth.
3. Housing affordability has decreased. This has been the case nationwide.  Prices of homes have increased to the point that it now takes 1.9 workers at an average Valley income to afford the average home in the valley.  However, since Anchorage wages are higher it only takes 1.4 Anchorage workers to afford that same home.  That is the reason we have so many Anchorage workers living here.  In fact, 35% of our work force commutes to Anchorage.  In addition, another 10% work elsewhere in the state. 

   Read the rest of this entry »

   Bookmark this article!