I received a call recently from a frustrated buyer.  It seems she made an offer on a house eight days previously and still had not received an answer back from the seller.  She believed that since a deadline was placed on her offer the seller was obligated to answer her within that deadline.

That is a common misconception.  In fact many Realtors also believe the same myth. 

The only thing the deadline on your offer does is limit the time for which the offer is good.  If the seller wants to accept your offer just like you wrote it he must do so before the deadline.  If he accepts your offer after the deadline, then it still isn’t a contract unless you agree in writing to the extension.

It is common courtesy for the seller to respond within a reasonable time frame, but there is no legal reason why they need to respond at all.  If they completely ignore your offer, then your offer expires after your deadline and you are free to offer on another house or make a second offer on this one.

There are a couple of caveats to the above comments. 

• First, the seller’s Realtor is obligated by law to present the offer to the seller as soon as is reasonably possible. There are times that it isn’t possible to contact the seller.  If this is the case, the seller’s Realtor needs to communicate this situation to the other party.
• Second, If the offer is for the full price and terms as stated on the Valley Board of Realtors listing agreement, the seller IS obligated for something.  The seller is obligated to pay a commission even if the offer is not accepted.  This particular fact is usually not communicated effectively, if at all, to sellers. 

If you have more questions about this, leave a comment.

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If you need to move from Anchorage to Wasilla, or from Wasilla to Anchorage, you face a catch-22 situation. You need to sell your current?home before you can buy the other one.

You basically have three options.

• 1. You can sell your home and move into a rental while you look for your next home.? This option entails a double move.? You need to move into your rental after you sell your home and then you will move into your new home when you eventually find it.? But?this is the best choice if you are easily frazzled.? You will avoid all the hair-raising scenarios in the next two options.? And, you will most likely be able to sell your home for more money and buy the next home for less. You will sell your home for more because you won?t be pressured to accept any old offer that comes in.? You can wait until an acceptable offer arrives and negotiate without any time constraints.? Then when you go to purchase your new home you will be a very strong buyer who can negotiate for a lower price.? You will have the cash from the sale of your home, you won?t have the contingency of selling your home, and you won?t be under pressure to move because you are in a rental.
• 2. You can put your home on the market, and when you finally get a buyer under contract you can go out and find your next home as quickly as possible.? This has the advantage of knowing that you have a sale on your home.? In addition, your offer on the purchased home will be stronger because you will be able to show them an accepted contract and closing date.? A stronger offer means you can negotiate a lower sales price.? The BIG downer to this is that you are under extreme pressure to find a home to purchase if you want to avoid the double move of option one. So you may settle for less of a home than you wanted and you may pay more for it to boot.
• 3. You can take the scariest?and most common option.? You can put your home on the market, and then go shopping for a new one.? You can go into contract on the next home contingent on the sale of your present one.? Then you go back and spruce up your current home, lower the price, hold open houses, and practically beg your realtor to get your house sold.?? You will most likely have to pay through the nose for your next home because sellers generally don?t like contingent offers unless they are VERY attractive.? You will have to get your house sold in a hurry so that you can meet the contract date of the newer home.?

There are so many nightmare scenarios in option three that I could write a book about them, in fact, that?s a good idea!? I think I?ve seen most of them by now.? I expect to see the seller/buyer break down and cry, or throw a fit of rage at some time in the transaction.? You pay more in cold hard cash and in frayed nerves by taking this option.? But?most people go this way because they want to find the right house before they sell their own, and they want to avoid the double move.? I say, think again.

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Here are the statistics from the MLS system for this week.  As you can see, things are cooking right along.  There is a slight increase in the amount of pendings and closings.

The one thing to notice this week is that days on the market is going down.  That would indicate a more active market.  It can also be the result of people giving up after trying for many months to sell.

They have either left the market entirely or re-listed their home with someone else.  Hopefully if they re-listed it is for a lower price.  It is mainly the price that sells a home.  You can market and stage your house all you want, but if the price is to high, it won’t sell.

I use both the Anchorage and Valley MLS systems to do this analysis.  I notice quite a disparity among the two.  For example, this week there were 48 new listings in the Valley MLS and only 38 new listings in Anchorage. 

When I compared to determine which listings the Anchorage system was missing I  was startled by the fact that both were quite different.  There were actually 22 listings that were either not in the Anchorage system or the Valley system.   The Valley was missing 6 of Anchorage’s and Anchorage was missing 16 of the Valley’s.

This is caused by two problems

• 1. Many Anchorage members are not members of the valley and vice-versa.  So their listings only appear on their own MLS system.
• 2. Many Realtors are just not keeping up with their listings.  They may have it on one and not the other.

Bottom line: Buyers should use both the Valley MLS system and the Anchorage MLS system to search for homes.  If they don’t, they aren’t getting the whole story.

Any thoughts?  Make a comment.

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In the Wasilla and Palmer areas we currently have a higher inventory than we have had in the last few years.  This gives the buyer more choices. It is important to determine what you want and need and then go out and look for it.

I recently showed a couple more than 25 homes before they settled on the one that fit.  They are really happy with their new home and are settling in nicely.

After you have pre-qualified, and determined your needs and wants, it is important to look at enough homes to make you feel comfortable that you have seen what the market can provide.  If you buy a house too soon, you will get buyers remorse and need some buyers remorse pills.

You want to find a Realtor that will help you find just what you need.  You don’t need anyone asking you canned lines like, “If we see the house that meets your needs are you prepared to put an offer on it TODAY”.  You know you will receive pressure from that person.  I decided when I first started in real estate that I wanted to help people with their real estate needs, not SELL them anything they weren’t sure they wanted.

We currently have about 800 listings on the market, which is almost twice the amount of two years ago.  Demand has remained steady so we are still selling about the same amount of houses.  That allows buyers more choice.  It doesn’t mean that buyers will be able to talk a seller into a lower price because it does not appear that prices are dropping.  In fact it seems that prices are continuing an upward trend. in Wasilla and Palmer.

So shop till you drop, but don’t pass up the good one when you see it.  We are still seeing multiple offers on houses.  In the past 3 weeks I have been involved in 4 multiple offer transactions.  If you see a good one, grab it now or someone else will.    

If you want to know about the houses when they come on the market send me an email.  I can customize a program that will send you listings as soon as they hit the market.  If you only want 3 bedroom ranches under $200K I can set that up for you.  If you want a nice setting on some acreage I can do that as well.  You will receive the listing in your email as soon as it hits the MLS.

Click on the contact link above or call me at 907 232–7900.

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Houses?have become an investment these days instead of a home.? Many years ago your house was home.? It wasn?t purchased primarily as an investment.

Today, most people still purchase their house because they want a home of their own.? However, because mortgage interest is tax deductible, and because newer mortgages have allowed people to buy more expensive homes for less money down, and because real estate?appreciation has out paced inflation, houses have become an investment as well as a home.

Before you begin your home shopping spend sometime talking to yourself. I know others will?wonder about your sanity but do it anyway.??

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Way back in January I wrote about the five steps to buying the right house in Palmer or Wasilla, and I said I would follow up on each of the five steps.? The first was to pre-qualify and then I dropped it?so I?m following up with the second step.

You have already pre-qualified for a loan since that is the first step.? You know about what the payment will be and should have decided your top dollar that you will pay for a house.

Now you need?to decide what you really need.? What is it that you really want in house?? Do you have a growing family?? Do you need a newer home with fewer allergens?? Are you tired of walking up and down stairs and want a single story home?? There are all kinds of possibilities and you need to sort them out.

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It’s -1 degree this morning in Palmer.  Wasilla is reading -15.  Forecasts today are for winds to 20 mph with gusts to 40.  That Matanuska Wind really magnifies the cold.  Hey, it’s clear and beautiful outside! There is always a bright side.

I don’t mind the wind or the cold until it gets really cold, like -20 or more.  There are some advantages to being built like a walrus.  The cold and wind remind me that we haven’t tamed everything, and that’s a good thing.

Since people often say they like Palmer but don’t like the wind, I thought I would tell you how to live in Palmer and stay out of the wind.  But first let me say that the wind blows in Wasilla too.  If it’s gusting to 60 mph in Palmer, the gusts are probably hitting 40 in Wasilla.  So just because you don’t buy a house in Palmer doesn’t mean you are avoiding the wind.

And, the wind doesn’t blow as much as people imagine.  It’s just that you remember it so well when the roof blows off.  We have serious wind storms only a few times a year.  I’m going to guess 5–8 wind storms that last 3 days or so.  I’m no geophysicist so don’t hold me to that.  I’m just giving my best guess after living here for 35 years. 

OK, where can you get away from the wind.

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The last few years have seen increases in residential home values at about 10% a year or more in Wasilla and Palmer.  Other parts of the country had appreciation as high as 33% per year, but the Mat-Su Borough had a more reasonable rate of increase.

It was generally possible for about 3 years to buy a house in January and make money on it by June.  In fact, with some new construction homes, between the time the contract was signed to build the home and the time the home was actually finished, the buyer could immediately sell it and make money.  That is because the price was locked in with the builder some months before hand.

Here are ways to make sure you buy smart:

• 1. Buy in a good location.  Remember, 35% of our population commutes to Anchorage for work.  If you buy in a bad commute area, you are eliminating 35% of the buyers when you sell.
• 2. Practice due diligence.  Check that house out before purchasing.  Have it inspected, look at the well and septic information.  Paying for unexpected repairs after purchasing makes it hard to make money on a house.
• 3. Plan ahead.  How long do you expect to stay in the house.  If you only plan to stay for two years or less it may be better to rent.  You may feel that you are throwing money away, but hey, that’s better than losing money.
• 4. Check out the neighbors.  If  the neighbor has a pig farm and you are from Iowa it might smell great!  But your future buyers will only drive by.
• 5. Don’t over pay.  Look at enough houses to feel comfortable with your purchase.  Talk to your realtor about the price.  Compare the price to similar homes.  You must do this yourself.  Almost always the appraisal will meet or exceed the purchase price.

Check out  Deals Of The Week  for some good prices.  Also see Wasilla Real Estate Statistics. 

The cabin in the photo is for sale on five acres.

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Homes in Wasilla and almost everywhere else in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough did not receive building inspections until 1992 when the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation required them for financing. Since that date, most homes are inspected during construction. The city of Palmer required building inspections and permits previous to 1992.

During the real estate boom of the early 1980’s , Wasilla was one of the fastest growing cities in the country.  Builders were selling houses as fast as they could put them up. As a result, they tried to to find ways to build homes faster.  One bottle-neck in the process was the lack of concrete workers to put in the foundations. Contractors found a way around this  by building wood foundations.  About 1/3 of the homes built between 1980–1985 had wood foundations. 

These foundations generally have a concrete footer on the very bottom.  Almost any experienced construction worker can build a concrete footer, but a concrete block foundation wall requires special skills.  These wood foundations used treated wood so that it doesn’t rot.  I suppose it may eventually disintegrate but I have never witnessed this. 

It is completely legal to use this type of foundation and it can also be structurally sound as long as the work is done correctly.  However, most of the foundations erected during the early 1980s have since been modified to make them more structurally sound.  Hardly any new homes are built this way today and there is a reason for that.

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I did some research last August to see how many unsold new homes were on the market. At that time there were 254 new homes in the Mat-Su area that at least had a foundation in the ground and were waiting for a buyer.

That was a lot of homes. Just a year before it was very difficult to find a new home for a buyer. They always had to wait for one to be built. It was obvious that the builders had gotten a little ahead of the buyers.

Just yesterday I attended a closing on a new home built by Ron Kuzina. What a fantastic home! The price was $242,000 for a 1,550 square foot ranch on a 1 1/2 acre lot and it had upgrades and quality galore. To find this home, the buyers and I looked at between 25-30, (I lost track), brand new homes in this price range. These homes were all finished or close to finished and most of them were one story ranches. That really drove home the point that there were a lot of new homes on the market. It also really drove home the value of the one the buyers chose. It was obvious when we walked in. That’s the house still under construction in the upper left…click on it to expand.

So, what’s it like today? As of today there are 154 new homes on the market. We have bitten off a 100 home chunk. That’s better, and going into spring I expect we will erase most of the remaining unsold inventory. But it does point out a quandary for builders and home sellers alike. You have to compete with those unsold homes already on the market. I’ve looked at a lot of them and there are some real nice homes for real nice prices on the market.

If a builder does not currently have a model he is competing with all the unsold brand new homes already on the market with “pie in the sky”.  It’s still possible to sell that way, but much more difficult.  Buyers have a hard enough time looking past the bare studs of an unfinished home, let alone one that is only builder’s mind.  It’s really hard to sell a home with only photos and plans.

And home sellers also have to compete with those new homes.  Even though buyers realize they will have to plant a lawn, pave the driveway etc., the allure of a new home is tough competition.  Existing homes need to be priced significantly under the new home market in order to complete. 

Drop me a line for more info.

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