buying a home in fort wayne: Should I Get A Sitter? Yes. Yes Please. - 05/06/12 04:45 AM
I'll never forget the day I met Jack and Jill and their two young hellions... I mean kids. The son was six, the daughter was four. They were both out of control.
It was cute at first. Then as the son knocked the vase off of the coffee table in the living room because he was practicing wind sprints, and then the daughter decided to stand on my feet, grab my pockets, and look up at me and scream bloody hell...
The cuteness quickly wore off. :)
This time around I was only showing them one … (78 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: You Snoozed. You Losed. - 05/03/12 05:57 AM
Okay. I know snoozed and losed aren't real words. I just wanted to get your attention. Story time.
I recently had some buyers that found the perfect home for them. It was a home priced under market value in South West Fort Wayne. The size was perfect, the area was perfect, and it had a pond in the back yard. Oh, and It was priced $20,000 less than the other homes I have showed them. Did I already say it was perfect for them??
Well... when I showed it to them last Thursday and saw how much they loved … (16 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: If You Find It... JUMP ON IT! - 04/28/12 05:59 AM
I am not a fan of pushy sales people. Not one single bit. When I walk through the mall (the two times a year that happens) I get so annoyed at the people in the kiosks trying to push things on to me. No... I don't want a massage. No... I don't want my eyebrows plucked. No... I don't want to try that skin cream.
When Amanda and I bought our home in Fort Wayne our Realtor was pushy. She tried to talk us into buying one of her listings that wasn't even close what we wanted.
What's my point? … (10 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: It Is NOT My Job To Get You Off The Fence And Push You Into Buying A Home... - 03/21/12 06:24 AM
I was reading a thread in a real estate Facebook group the other day. A handful of Realtors® were discussing different techiques of how they "get buyers off the fence."
"I tell them that with interest rates as low as they are, NOW is the time to buy. If they don't, they are really missing out!!" said Realtor® #1.
"I tell them that buying a home is cheaper than renting!!" said Realtor® #2.
"I tell them that with inventory being so high and prices being so low, they would be an idiot not to buy now!!" said … (9 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: I Can't Remember Who My Realtor® Was... - 03/15/12 04:39 PM
I can't believe how many times I have heard this from a new client.
"I bought my home a few years ago. I used um... uh... wait..."
"We were going to call the guy that helped us sell our last home, but uh..."
"Who did I used to use? Let's see... his name started with a P. Paul maybe? Phil? He worked with that one company over on W. Jefferson... You know what..."
I can't remember who my Realtor® was.
My competitive side wants to make a snide comment like "This is music to my ears!!" Instead, my … (18 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Step By Step Process of Buying A Home In Fort Wayne, Indiana. - 02/27/12 10:37 AM
Are you thinking about buying a home in the Fort Wayne area and have questions about the home buying process? Here is a quick breakdown..
1. Call A Fort Wayne Realtor®. Of course we want you to call The Christiansen Team so we can help you, but if you don't call us, call a local Realtor®. You need a professional to guide you through the process.
2. Get pre-approved with a Lender. It is very important that you know not only that you can qualify for a mortgage, but how much you can comfortably afford. We can … (5 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Pick Your Top 5 Fort Wayne Homes For Sale. - 02/21/12 07:59 AM
So you have decided that it's time to buy a home in Fort Wayne, Indiana. You are pre-approved and ready to go. Awesome!
You google "Fort Wayne Realtors" or something similar, and you find our website WeSellFortWayne.com and start your online search.
Looking at homes online is fun isn't it?
You see a really nice ranch in Southwest Fort Wayne that has an amazing kitchen. Save to favorites.
Ooh.. look at this one. It has a great deck and a pool!! Save to favorites.
Whoa. This one has a finished basement. Can you say MAN CAVE????? … (4 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: My Hairdresser Said I Should Offer 60% Of List Price. - 02/14/12 10:59 AM
After getting Deb pre-approved I showed her some homes in South West Fort Wayne. After four showings we found "the one". She asked if we could see it again the following day, and asked me to bring a purchase agreement because she was ready to make an offer.
I ran my comps and found that the home was priced pretty well for the area. Since we were asking the seller to pay for Deb's closing costs, a survey, and a home warranty, I recommended offering around 92% of list price. I thought that if we offered that we could … (95 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: No Pre-Approval? No Showings. Period. - 02/02/12 11:09 AM
That sounds so harsh doesn't it? I (Jared) said that in the nicest way possible, I promise.
The first six months of my career I would show homes to anybody that wanted to see them. I thought that was my job since I am a Realtor®. Plus it made the sellers happy to have showings right?
Wrong.
Well, the sellers were happy to have showings, but once they found out the buyer wasn't pre-approved and ready to buy, they weren't happy. At all. Boy did I hear about it too.
Imagine being the seller … (7 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Five More Reasons Why We Love Selling Real Estate In Fort Wayne. - 01/24/12 11:08 AM
This is part three of our series about why we love selling real estate in Fort Wayne. Part one can be found HERE, and part two can be found HERE.
Kim. She is a Facebook friend of mine (Jared). I had no idea she was in the market to buy a home until she sent me a message. She said that she saw this home online and wanted to see it ASAP.
We walked through the home pretty quickly and ended the tour in the kitchen. She looked at me and said "I want it." I told her … (3 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Buyer Consultations. Yes Or No? - 01/09/12 06:17 PM
Realtors®: Do you do them? Buyers: Do you expect them?
Over our three year career of selling real estate in the Fort Wayne area, we have been fortunate enough to work with a lot of first time home buyers. Most of them don't even know where to start the home buying process. (Glad they called us!!)
In 2011 we decided to start holding a buyer consultation with our first timers. We also offer it to our more experienced buyers, but most of them don't need it.
The consultation is usually 45 minutes to an hour long. … (86 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Some Things To Consider When Buying A Home In Fort Wayne. - 01/08/12 01:55 PM
So you have decided that it's time for you to buy a home in the Fort Wayne area. Cool. Here are some things to consider:
Price. Before you even get in your car to start looking you need to talk to a reputable lender to get pre-approved and see exactly what you can comfortably afford. (We can help you with that)
Just because you are approved for $300,000 doesn't mean that you need to spend that much if you aren't going to be financially comfortable. Being "house poor" sucks.
Location. Is the home in a … (6 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Buyer Loyalty. I Can't Believe What This Guy Just Did! - 12/13/11 11:53 AM
Last March Kent walked into our RE/MAX office. He announced that he was moving to Fort Wayne soon and was part of the local GM Plant transfers, and that he needed a Realtor®.
He sat down with my wife Amanda and they had a discussion about the local market, they looked at some homes online, and she sent him to our favorite lender. Shameless plug here: Metro Mortgage and Insurance. 260.436.8101.
Kent knew exactly what he wanted and what part of Fort Wayne he wanted to live in. There wasn't much out there that fit his criteria. They viewed … (11 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Is It My Job To Get My Buyer Off The Fence? - 11/29/11 01:16 PM
Amanda and I work with both buyers and sellers in the Fort Wayne area.
Most of our buyers are ready and raring to go. They have the down payment, they have done all of their homework, they are pre-approved and motivated to buy right now.
Some of them aren't.
Some of those that aren't ready to buy do have the down payment money saved up, they know they can afford to buy, they know that interest rates are low, inventory is up, and home prices are down...
They just aren't quite ready.
Some of them don't know if … (9 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: I Miss You... I Really Miss You. - 11/26/11 09:03 AM
The relationship begins.
"Hi Jared. We think we are ready to buy a new home, but we have no idea what we are doing. Would you be willing to help us?"
The buyer's consultation.
"Wow! We had no idea the home buying process was so detailed! Here is what we want and need in a home. We called the lender and got pre-approved. When can we start seeing homes?? We are so excited!!!?
The showings.
"Man... looking at houses is FUN!"
The ONE.
"THIS IS IT! We love it! It's perfect! Let's make an offer!!!"
The … (5 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: I Want To See This Home RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!! - 11/16/11 01:49 PM
Three years ago Amanda and I were just starting our real estate careers in Fort Wayne. During the first month I got a call on one of my broker's listings.
The "buyer" said that he was sitting in front of 123 Main Street and that he wanted to see the home right now!!! I tried to tell him that I would be available later in the afternoon and could show it to him then.
He said "NO. I want to see it now. If you don't show it to me right now I am going to call another agent that … (7 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Can We Look At Homes NOW??? PLEASE?? - 11/07/11 06:20 PM
So... you are ready to start looking for your new home in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Are you sure it's time to start looking? Are you really sure?
We got a call the other day from a potential buyer. He asked if we were available later this week to show him a few homes.
After asking our standard questions (Are you working with a Realtor®? Have you been pre-approved with a lender? How much wood can a wood chuck chuck?) and a few others, we determined that this guy was a legitimate buyer.
Then he asked us a question. … (12 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: You Aren't Buying A Home Anytime Soon If... - 10/05/11 05:22 PM
* You just filed bankruptcy last Friday.
* You don't have a job.
* You DO have a job, but you just started last week and hadn't had a job for the previous 5 years.
* You have 17 collections on your credit and your score is negative 8,000.
* You aren't a legal resident of the United States.
* You can't prove where the money came from for the down payment.
* You want to buy a $250,000 home for $100,000 because it's a "buyer's market in Fort Wayne right now."
* You can't sell your current home … (2 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Dude... Don't Buy This House. It's A Piece Of Crap. - 09/19/11 11:08 AM
Last year we made an appearance on a local Fort Wayne television show called "The Reality of Real Estate." It was just like House Hunters or countless other shows on HGTV. The plot was simple: We take the buyer from pre-approval to showings to closing and they film the entire process.
We narrowed it down to the buyer's top three homes and the filming began.
The first house was super nice and the buyer and I (Jared) had nothing but great things to say about it. The second house wasn't quite as nice...
Buyer: Man Jared, I do NOT … (41 comments)
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buying a home in fort wayne: Will Work For Chicken Wings... - 09/09/11 01:02 PM
I started showing Jack and Jill homes last fall. I showed them a few homes in Southwest Fort Wayne but nothing quite fit. We took a little break over the holidays and then started looking again in early 2011.
THEN WE FOUND IT!!!!
It was an A frame home on a few acres and they fell in love with it. We wrote the offer in January and then we waited...
And waited...
And frickin waited...
We finally got the home under contract at the end of March. They were so excited and happy that they took me out for some chicken … (16 comments)
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