The great little home would be perfect for a first time home buyer or as an investment property

7742 Arlington
MLS # 98406601

This super clean Nampa, Idaho home went under contract almost as soon as we listed it.  Well it's available again.  The buyers canceled their contract two days before the lender issued the approval letter.  We have the approval letter in hand and this is a steal at 85K with concessions approved for FHA and VA loans.

Call for a private showing.

This is a short sale and final approval from the lender is required.

SOLD! - 2892 Kandice, Meridian, Idaho

Delivering results is what this business is all about.  We managed to get this house under contract in 7 days!  My client was able to relocate without haveing to worry about supporting two households.  Hassle free and happily we handled all the details remotely and closed on time.

Hearing the relief in her voice when I called to let her know we had funded and recorded was a great feeling.

I was recently asked by an agent if they could outbid my current offer on a short sale that had been submitted to the bank. 

The agent got very huffy with me when I explained that I was only going to submit one offer at a time to the lender and that it wouldn't be fair to the current buyers for me to simply let them be out bid after patiently waiting for me to get a short sale approved. 

His reply was "You're not going to submit it to the lender even though the law requires you to present all offers?" 

To which I informed him that Idaho State Law requires me to present all offers to my seller which I will gladly do.  However, the lender is not a party to the contract so I'm not required to submit it to them.

Since there is not a whole lot of set standards for dealing with short sales, here's my stance, a buyer who wants to submit a higher offer is welcome to and should the lender counter back at a higher price and the first position buyer doesn't want to accept the terms, the second place offer will be submitted.  

You're welcome to disagree but I prefer to work with integrity and give the buyer who has put in the time to get a fair shake at having their deal worked.  I don't agree with the agent mentality to shop short sale offers to drive up the price.  It might not be illegal but it sure feels unethical.

Contractually, depending on what addendums you have, you might not be able to just bump buyers will nilly whenever a higher offer comes in.  

I want a buyer's agent to feel comfortable in submitting offers on my short sales and know that an accepted offer is going to be worked until it's approved or dead and only then will I go looking for other options.  If you were the buyer in first position wouldn't you hope the same courtesy was being extended to you?

Namp, Idaho home for sale in Camden Heights Subdivision

74 S Newberry Street
MLS #98419975

Uniquely simple Corey Barton floor plan with a huge upstairs master bedroom with 2 equally spacious main-level bedrooms. Living room with vaulted ceilings & a ceiling fan and it's open to the kitchen. Plant/decor shelving throughout. Great back yard here with a patio, garden space off to the side, and maturing trees - sprinkler system in place and fully fenced! Well maintained home with cute curb appeal in NW Nampa!

This is a short sale and final approval from the lender is required.

There's a lot of information surrounding foreclosure in Idaho.  Separating fact from fiction is not always so easy.  We created a site dedicated to helping Idaho homeowners understand the foreclosure and short sale process in Idaho. 

Start here with common myths about foreclosure in Idaho

For more inforamtion about short sales and foreclosures in Idaho visit www.HopeForIdaho.com.

Idaho short sales - 7 Mistakes to Avoid in Pre-Foreclosure

For Idaho homeowners at risk of losing there homes to foreclosure, a short sale can be a win-win for both owner and lender.  There are, however, some common pitfalls that can be detrimental to avoiding foreclosure in Idaho. 

Here are seven mistakes to avoid:

1. Waiting too long to do something.

2. Choosing to spend thousands of dollars to have an attorney file bankruptcy assuming it will make a foreclosure go away.

3. Choosing to sign away your Deed to your home to a third party and to give your home away

4. Choosing a lender Forbearance (payment plan) and not taking it. As long as you can—do it!

5. Choosing to "just walk away" and thinking "They can’t come after me after the foreclosure.”

6. Working with a person who is not experienced in the foreclosure process.

7. Not taking action now.

For a more in depth explanation of these please visit www.HopeForIdaho.com.  This is a free site for Idaho homeowners looking for information regarding short sales and foreclosure.

Idaho short sales - 6 Keys to successful short sales in Idaho

As a listing agent handling a fair amount of short sales in Boise, Idaho, these general guidelines tend to increase the likelihood of your short sale success:

1. Only accept realistic short sale offers.
2. Work with a qualified short sale agent to negotiate with the lender on your behalf.
3. Avoid inexperienced agents and scams.
4. Save time, hire the right person to represent you the first time.
5. Maintain the home and make it as appealing as possible to potential buyers.
6. Be proactive in doing your part of the short sale process.

While there is not guarantee a lender will accept a short sale in Idaho, you can start with these guidelines to increase your odds.

Idaho short sales are complex transactions and getting the right information is key.  For more information on short sales and foreclosure in Idaho visit www.HopeForIdaho.com.

You always hope a rivalry game is just that, a game.  While the Boise State Broncos did move up a spot in the latest BCS polls, the Vandals didn't offer much of a fight.

Either way it's still fun any time this game comes to town.  We got to enjoy watching the game (post technical difficulties) in a beautiful cabin in Cascade, Idaho.  Even though some of our good friends are Vandals fans (Matt and Cassie if you're reading this, sorry for your loss), we set aside our differences and we had a great time.

Onward to a BCS bowl boys!

If you represent yourself as a buyer in an Idaho short sale purchase, can you demand the bank pay you a commision?

First and foremost, the money you think you're saving by doing this is not worth it.  These are complex transactions and having an experieced agent to help you navigate it is worth far more than you're going to save.

If you're not an agent, I would say it's highly unlikely you'll get the lender to give you the commission. This is probably an instance where representing yourself is not going to net you anything extra.

In a short sale situation, the lender is going to look at the HUD and in the section that details who the commission is going to, they are going to see only one brokerage listed. They will in all probability cut the listing agents fee significantly since both sides are being paid to one brokerage.

The lender does in fact take into account the commissions on a short sale. They take into account any fees that reduce the net below what they have determined to be acceptable. At that point they will start making cuts, and commissions are usually one of the first line items they go after.

Technically, the fees for a listing are an agreement between the listing agent and seller. The listing agent and seller agree in the listing contract what percentage or amount they are going to offer the selling agent. If you are representing the seller and are not a licensed agent, you are not a party to that contract and are not considered the selling agent.

Do you know how your are being represented in the purchase and sale agreement? If you let the listing agent fill out the purchase and sale agreement and used one of our association's forms you are most likely being represented as either a limited dual agent without an assigned agent or the brokerage is acting as a non agent on your behalf.

In this case the listing agent is also the selling agent.

Bottom line is demands usually fall on deaf ears with lenders in short sale situations. They are going to do what policy mandates.

Are Ada County, Idaho tax assessed values accurate representation of my home's value?

This really depends on the area. For certain parts of Ada county, the market value of homes is worth more than the assessed value and in other parts of the county the actual market value is lower.

The tax assessed values have traditionally lagged market values. In Ada county for instances it took them two years to catch up with market values and by that time the market was already moving backwards and they were assessed above market value. Needless to say, I don't envy assessors, they can never win.

Bottom line, your best determination of value is going to be through an appraisal. That is what the lender is going to base their decision off of. If you're a cash buyer, it still may be worth having an appraisal done.

If you're just trying to get an idea of value, your agent can pull the most recent comparable home sales for the area and should be able to give you a pretty good idea of what market value is.