Now this is something I haven't heard of before.  What an outstanding idea, and intelligent way to take action.  I wish them wild success!

A new program offered by the Longmont, Colorado Police aims to help property owners and managers get rid of renters engaged in crime and certify properties as "crime free."  Property mangers then can advertise the "crime free" designation and, in some cases, may even see insurance rates drop. 

Under the Crime Free Multi-Housing Program, property owners and managers can earn a "crime free" certification for properties by completing an eight-hour training course and complying with all recommendations laid out after a property audit, known as "crime prevention through environmental design."

Read the entire newspaper article here.

With our news dominatedwith tales of historic high unemployment, layoffs, failing businesses, foreclosures and bankruptcies, it was a real breath of fresh air to come across a story about Dollar General.

It seems that shoppers have been flocking to discount stores during the recession as they look for ways to cut expenses.  Dollar General Corp. says it will open 600 stores and add 5,000 jobs over the next 12 months!  It already added 4000 jobs in 2009!

During the first three quarters of 2009, revenue rose 13% to $8.61 billion. 

It was so refreshing to read something POSITIVE! 

Even in rough economic times, people will still need to purchase.  Shampoo, cars, groceries, homes.  But what we are seeing is that whether they are buying a toothbrush or their new home, they are determined to get the biggest bang they can for their buck! 

More power to them!

More Home Owners Optimistic About Home Values

Another interesting survey in the news today.  It seem that the number of home owners who fear the value of their homes will fall in the next year declined to 15 percent in January.  This is the lowest level since early in 2007, according to a survey published last week by Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan.

That's good news and a big improvement over the first quarter of last year, when 26 percent expected the value of their homes to decline.

Home owners were less optimistic about gains in the value of their homes, with the average anticipated annual gain holding steady at a realistic 2.7 percent in January.

Why this is good news is that it is widely understood that KEY to the recovery of the real estate market is consumer confidence.  Buyers and sellers feelling comfortable to move around in the market again, without the paralysis of fear. 

Word has come in the form of an email from my friends at Wells Fargo that interest rates on 30 year conventional mortgages has dipped below 5% again.  Take a look at these spectacular rates!

30 yr Conventional - 4.875%

15yr Conventional - 4.25%
 
30yr FHA - 5%
 
5/1 Conventional ARM - 3.75%
 
5/1 FHA ARM - 3.75%
 
30yr JUMBO (over $417k) - 5.75%

This is like the perfect storm for buyers.  Decreased home values, historic low interest rates, motivated sellers and Uncle Sam offering tax credits for repeat as well as first-time homebuyers!  Anybody still sitting on the fence needs to hop off and get moving!

You have only 82 more days to be under contract on your new
home purchase  in order to qualify for the tax credits.  Call me today and let's get you moving!

I love this post by my friend Mary enough to reblog it here on my blog.  I am fortunate that all of the sellers I am currently working with DO care about dressing their house for success.  But from time to time I end up with what turns out to be a jammie pants seller.  What a fun way to explain the importance of keeping the house spiffed up for showings! 

An article in this morning's Coeur d'Alene Press stated what we already knew.  The rate of foreclosures is up, and rising.  According to newly-released data from First American CoreLogic on foreclosures for the Coeur d'Alene area, the rate of foreclosures among outstanding mortgage loans is 2.35 percent for the month of December, an increase of 1.27 percentage points compared to December of 2008 when the rate was 1.08 percent. Foreclosure activity in Coeur d'Alene is lower than the national foreclosure rate which was 3.16 percent for December 2009, representing a 0.81 percentage point difference.

In Coeur d'Alene, the mortgage delinquency rate has increased. For December 2009, 6.02 percent of mortgage loans were 90 days or more delinquent compared to 2.74 percent for the same period last year, representing an increase of 3.28 percentage points.  Page after page in each day's newspaper of foreclosure notices remind us daily of the trend.

Check out the full story on foreclosure rates in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho here. 

 The graphs and historical information show an increasing trend in rising rates of defaults and foreclosures.  What this means
is that short sales and foreclosures are going to be a fact of life here in north Idaho for a quite some time to come.

Renovation financing is available locally on both FHA and conventional loans. This is a wonderful tool for a variety of purposes, and I predict its popularity to grow as more and more folks become aware of it. 

Here's one scenario for which renovation financing would be ideal: you find a home in an area you like, but it needs work beyond simply cosmetic.  A new roof perhaps, or a furnace. Dry rot in the deck, rusted out water heater?  How about a home that is a little tight on space, and you need one more bathroom, or even another bedroom?

With renovation financingyou would enter into a contract with the seller to purchase it as-is for whatever you agree on as the purchase price.  However, your appraisal and loan amount would be based on the RENOVATED market value after the new roof, water heater, extra bedroom and bathroom were completed.  The money for those renovations would be escrowed at closing.  Typically the renovations would need to be completed by a contractor within six months of closing.

There are other scenarios where renovation financing would be valuable, and in fact could mean the difference between closing a sale or not.  It can be used for refinances as well as purchases.

I'm excited to be able to offer this as a financing option to both my sellers and buyers in certain circumstances.  For a booklet with complete renovation financing details, just give me a call or shoot me an email. 

I saw the announcement pop up that Idaho business Review has released its list of 50 honorees as the year's Women of the Year.

The article says the recipients come from a variety of professions and walks of life statewide, each embarked on her own exceptional journey to personal and professional accomplishment, simultaneously motivating those around them to strive for success as well.

Hmmmmm.  I looked through the list, interested to see who locally might have landed there.  It was easy to count, there was no one that isn't from southern Idaho on the list!  What was that business about statewide?

Wouldn't it be more accurately named Southern Idaho Woman of the Year?

Idaho is such a TALL state that few people realize that up here in beautiful Coeur d'Alene we are in fact CLOSER to Seattle, and even Portland, than we are to our state capital in the southern part of the state.  Often forgotten and overlooked by the Idahoans down south where famous potatoes grow and the state Capitol sits.

The map is a pretty good visual. Idaho is as tall as both Washing and Oregon on the west and Montana and Wyoming on the right.  There is no  interstate highway connecting the north and the south.  Lots of vast openness in between.  No wonder it's so easy to forget we're up here! 

So while I don't doubt that every one of this year's Idaho Woman of the Year honorees is a spectacular woman very deserving of the recognition, I can't help but mention that if the nominators would have glanced north, they would have found some equally magnificent women to add to the list!  Just sayin...

Correction: Another look at the list of honorees turned up a Sagle woman, Carol Jenkins.  So I guess that technically they can accurately claim that the honorees were selected statewide.  49 from South southern Idaho, and 1 from North northern Idaho.

Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CSP, CLHMS Coeur d' Alene Idaho Real Estate

How to find and buy a HUD bank repo in Coeur d'Alene Idaho

First of all What is a HUD home?

It is a home that is the result of a foreclosure action on a FHA-insured mortgage. In other words, it's a repo.  HUD paid the insurance claim and now is the property owner.  It is offered for sale to recover the loss on the foreclosure claim.

By definition, a HUD home can be a 1 to 4 unit residential property.  When first hitting the market, they are offered to owner-occupied buyers first.  After the initial offering, unsold properties are available to all buyers, including investors.

How Do I find a HUD home?

HUD repos are available to the public on the internet by management companies under contract to HUD. The bid to purchase must be made through a broker registered with HUD.  Any real estate commission earned is paid by HUD, and HUD will also pay 3% of the purchase price towards your closing costs.

On their site you can search by state, county, city or zip code.  Check the site frequently because you never know when a new home will pop up. 

What if I see a home online that I would like to look at, and possibly bid on?

Because my office is registered with HUD, I have a key available and will accompany you to view the home. The good ones go fast.  To increase your chance of success, you should be pre-approved with your lender for HUD home and be ready to get a bid in just as quickly as you can.  Be prepared and ready to pounce when you see a great home hit the market.  Often there will be multiple offer situations, speed is the name of the game!

To check out HUD Bank Repo listings in Idaho click here.

Find more detailed information on How to Buy a HUD Repo at this site:
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

The Poo Police - They're #1 in the #2 business in Coeur d'Alene Idaho!

A few days ago I was visiting a friend who was caring for her daughter's dog, and not too happy about it.  The conversation turned to the bottom line of caring for a dog - someone has to clean up all that dog poo!

Yesterday an associate of mine was venting about the neighbor adjacent to one of his listed properties.  The yard next door was FULL of disgusting piles of dog poo from multiple dogs.  Look out the window and it was staring you right in the face.  Step out in the back yard and well, run back inside to get away from it.  Ugh! 

Whose American dream of home ownership includes
living with copious quantities of your neighbors dog poo?

I had to chuckle when this morning I was going through some papers and came across a flyer for The Poo Police.  At some point, The Poo Police had visited my office and left flyers promoting their service!  And what a great service it is.  Touting to be #1 in the #2 business, the flyer asks the riveting question -

Are you tired of looking out for your little buddy's land mines in your yard?

All kidding aside, this is an awesome service with very reasonable prices.  They have a nice website with other services - dog walking for example.  Even some frequently asked questions and answers where I learned that most of the time they hang with the dogs while they pick up the poo.  What do they do with all that poo?  They deposit it in YOUR trash can before they leave.

Check them out here:  The Poo Police

As soon as I get this posted, I am forwarding a link to my associate who is fretting about how to get his listing sold.  Sounds like it's time to call The Poo Police!

Looking for answers about how to get your home sold fast, and for more money?  Give me a call!