Semper fi, dad. We remember. Pay your Memorial Day respects in Coeur d'Alene. - 05/31/10 10:55 AM
This memorial day dawns soggy and gray in beautiful North Idaho.  You can shake the doldrums if you take the opportunity to pay your respect to those in our armed services who devoted themselves to the protection and preservation or our liberties, and the liberty of countless others around the world.
My sister Kerri is an accomplished photographer as well as award winning writer of local newspaper print and online columns.  Her columns are rich with glimpses into the lives and faces of our local neighbors.  She posted an alblum to Facebook this weekend full of her snapshots of local veterans throughout the years.  It … (5 comments)

RainCamp Bellingham, a couple of days well spent! - 05/29/10 12:39 PM
Ah, RainCamp!  I agonized about taking the time off, after having just returned from two weeks away and being buried with much that needed my attention.  But, with the support of my husband and wonderful associates who agreed to take care of some things for me, I joined a group of 13 agents from my office and headed out.
I'm glad I made the time to go, and my business and clients will be better off for it!  My intent was to post updates and snippets throughout the day for all of you, but alas, the wireless network didn't work at all, all … (4 comments)

High ho, high ho, it's off to RainCamp I go.... Again! - 05/26/10 09:09 AM
Last October I dropped what I was doing at a particularly busy time to dash over to Seattle to attend the first-ever RainCamp.  WOW!  It was awesome in terms of knowledge, education, networking, FUN, and ramping up my online business presence.  I can't say that I have become the online Mayor of My Town yet, but I do have a grassroots campaign strategy for that office, and I have no doubt it will come with time.  But even better, I have closed MANY transactions as a direct and indirect result of blogging. 
THAT'S what it's all about!
At RainCamp Seattle I sat … (5 comments)

Kristen's AMAZING Quest to Cast her FIRST Ballot and make it COUNT! - 05/25/10 11:18 AM
It's Primary Election day in Idaho and today my nephew Steven will be casting his first ballot.  In honor of Steven, and all the incredible youth coming of age and exercising their right to vote in this great country of ours, I am reposting this article I wrote about my daughter Kristen casting her first vote in 2008.
My spectacular 18 year old daughter, Kristen, left home in Colorado last June to start her college career in Utah.  In July, my shrinking family and I pulled up stakes and moved to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. 
Because I am one of those "creepy, … (9 comments)

Do you know YOUR absorption rate in Kootenai County? - 05/23/10 10:55 AM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Homes for Sale
If you are trying to sell your house, one of the pieces of information that should be factored into your pricing strategy is the absorption rate for homes in your specific community and PRICE RANGE. 
Absorption rates vary WIDELY from town to town and neighborhood to neighborhood, and also from price range to price range within those communities.
An absorption rate will tell you, based on current market activity, how many months, or sometimes years, it should take to get your house sold in our current market.  The … (6 comments)

Community First Bank in Post Falls Idaho SIZZLES with their summer BBQ's! - 05/22/10 07:36 PM
In the summer Community 1st Bank in Post Falls, Idaho holds a customer and community appreciation BBQ on the third Friday of the month. They added a little "girl power" to the Celebrity Chef line up in May, inviting Chamber President/CEO Pam Houser and Post Falls City Councilor Kerri Thoreson to do the grilling honors. 
My celebrity chef sister Kerri gave me a grillside phone call inviting me to come on over for lunch.  It sounded like a nice diversion from putting out fires all morning, so I headed on over to join in the fun.  The rain was holding off and the … (1 comments)

Tie up the loose ends in your purchase contracts or it could come back to bite you! - 05/20/10 10:28 PM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real Estate
Yesterday I spent a good chunk of my time working on a counter to a ridiculous and insulting low ball offer on a high end home for sale in Coeur d'Alene Idaho.  That bit of info aside, I was astonished at how many blanks were left in the purchase contract!
In addition to countering the purchase price and seller carry terms, I had to tie up a long list of loose ends.  I have always been taught to NEVER leave any blanks. It's either None or N/A, depending on the … (6 comments)

How I overcame the big NEGATIVES to get the house SOLD in Coeur d'Alene! - 05/18/10 09:35 PM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Homes for Sale
When you have any kind of defect that you KNOW will be a huge turnoff the minute the buyer discovers it, you need to spin it around to a positive BEFORE the buyer stumbles upon it. 
I had a house listed where the seller took all, I mean ALL appliances, thinking the buyer would just want new ones anyway...  Not just the stove and dishwasher pulled out of the cabinets, but even the microwave hood fan over the stove... Same house had a slider in the informal dining … (16 comments)

FelonSpy.com seems to be a hoax. Update on "Do you know your neighbors? I mean REALLY know your neighbors?" - 05/12/10 04:42 PM
Back in March I wrote a blog post posing the question, "Do you know your neighbors, I mean REALLY know your neighbors?"  It featured a website, Felonspy.com that will pinpoint on your neighborhood map the location of convicted felons.  What a great idea for us all to be armed with that information. 
I got a few comments at the time that made me wonder about the legitimacy of the site, but being busy I never did make the time to look into it and then it was old news.  After receiving a new comment today questioning the site, I did a … (5 comments)

What's with the misplaced hostility towards my buyers??? - 05/12/10 02:51 AM
I have some wonderful first time homebuyers who made a full price offer on a short sale back in January.  Their offer put a halt to the foreclosure sale, which was just a week or two away at that time. We began the waiting process as I educated them to the hard facts about short sales.  The offer was finally accepted in April, in time for them to qualify for the tax credit.  Then we found out that the seller was demanding certain things of the third party creditor and the deal was in danger of self-destructing.  Uh oh.
Next we learned that … (9 comments)

The absurdity of short sale negotiations... - 05/11/10 09:39 AM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Homes For SaleShort Sale and Foreclosure Resource Specialist
The absurdity of short sale negotiations... 
One thing is for certain, my job is never boring.  I have been working with a seller client for nearly a year in an attempt to sell an investment property.  It is worth much less than he paid for it a few years ago and he is upside down on his mortgage.  Because it is an investment property, he doesn't qualify for a loan modification.  He can't lease it for enough to cover his payments.  He can't … (43 comments)

More reasons to avoid foreclosure than just your credit rating - 05/10/10 10:09 AM
Janna Rankin Scharf, Coeur d'Alene Homes for SaleShort Sale and Foreclosure Resource Specialist
I read a great article in Realty Times by Carla L Davis, Considering Short Sales.  It's a nice article that defines, in simple terms, the differences between a foreclosure and a short sale.  But she also brought up some statistics that are worth taking a look at.
An increasingly growing number of Coeur d'Alene homes for sale are distressed properties of one kind of another.  When homeowners are in default on their mortgage, after attempts at loan modification fail, a short sale may be an option.  But often homeowners simply … (1 comments)

Coeur d'Alene Lake Waterfront Homes Real Estate Activity Report - 2010 - 05/08/10 03:58 PM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Lake Waterfront Homes for Sale 2010 Market Report
Spring is here and waterfront listings are blooming along with the lilacs all around Coeur d'Alene lake.  I decided to do an activity report of waterfront homes for sale on Coeur d'Alene Lake.  This report gives us a snapshot of how the Coeur d'Alene Lake waterfront market has performed between January 1, 2010 and April 30, 2010.
A statistical analysis shows that in the 4 month period ending April 30th there were:
62  Active listings 3  Pending listings 4  Closed listings 23 Expired listings 4 Canceled listings … (4 comments)

Win a brand new ENERGY STAR® Home in the Really BIG Raffle! - 05/08/10 01:46 AM
 WIN A HOUSE...CAR, BOAT and More!  Grand Prize Home is being built at 2880 Marceille Drive, Coeur d'Alene
This year's theme is GREEN! The 2010 raffle home will be ENERGY STAR® qualified and a certified Green Home! The home showcases construction methods and green materials that support energy efficiency and sustainability.  The house is really taking shape!
The first open house is scheduled for next weekend.  Click here for the open house schedule and directions to the Really BIG Raffle house.
May 31 is the Early Bird Prize deadline. Don't forget to buy your ticket on or before May 31st to automatically qualify for two … (3 comments)

$8000 and $6500 tax credits extended another year for qualified Armed Services members - 05/08/10 12:32 AM

Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real estate
It's been a week now since the popular tax credits have expired. $8000 for first time homebuyers, and $6500 for repeat buyers.  But qualified service members have another entire year to cash in on the credit.
Uncle Sam defines a "qualified service member" as a member of the uniformed services of the U.S military, a member of the Foreign Service of the U.S., or an employee of the intelligence community.
Another modification of the credits for service members is to the repayment contingency if a buyer moves out before three years.  … (5 comments)

How about those Interest Rates! They've fallen below 5% again! - 05/07/10 11:47 PM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR - Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real Estate
After creeping up above 5% for a few weeks, the average interest rate has slipped below 5% again!  I received an update of current rates from my friends at Wells Fargo today that were pretty impressive.  It's anybody's guess what the rates will do over the coming months. The general consensus is that by the end of the year they will be approaching 6% again.  One thing's for sure, they can't stay this low forever!
Conventional: 30 year: 4.875%15 year: 4.25%10/1 arm: 4.25%  5/1 arm: 3.5%  FHA:  30 year: 4.875%15 year: 4.5%5/1 arm: … (2 comments)

New listing in Coeur d'Alene Idaho, but you already missed the boat on ths one! - 05/07/10 07:00 PM
I just entered this listing into the MLS last night, remotely, from Colorado where I am pulling grandma duty with the two most darling tiny girls that ever there was!
Soon as I uploaded all the info, I sent out an email blast that said they better hurry, this is a GOOD one! 
Today I took the rug rats to Chick-fil-A for lunch and a romp on their play structure.  With all the other paraphernalia I was lugging along, I managed to leave my phone behind.  When we got home for a diaper change and naps (yeah, right!) I had a … (3 comments)

WOW, that fence went up FAST in Post Falls, Idaho! - 05/06/10 02:00 AM
Last week I was showing property out by the Spokane River in Post Falls.  Driving to meet my client, I passed the home on the corner of 1st Street and Ross Point Road.  A crew was constructing a shop, and I thought to myself that it looked like a BEAUTIFUL shop, as far as shops go.  On my way home, I noticed that the Custom Sheds, Inc. crew had set out a sign, and a hand made sign, at that.  I smiled and had the thought that those guys, who were doing a great job of building a quality shop, were … (5 comments)

Another Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real Estate Success Story - 05/06/10 01:28 AM
Janna Rankin Scharf, GRI, CLHMS, SFR ~ Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real Estate
I have written a few times in the past about how lately there seems to be a happy side of the closing table, and a not so happy side of the closing table.  Sometimes, usually when representing a distressed seller, I find myself representing clients not really in a celebratory mood on closing day.  Other times, usually when representing a buyer who has scored big time with a screaming deal, I am on the happy side of the closing table.
This time, for the first time in a long … (3 comments)

 
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Janna Rankin Scharf

Coeur d'Alene, ID

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Keller Williams Realty Coeur d'Alene

Address: 1450 Northwest Blvd. Ste 301, Coeur d'Alene, ID, 83814

Office Phone: (208) 667-2399

Cell Phone: (208) 651-9700

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Coeur d'Alene Idaho Real Estate Blog By Janna Rankin Scharf of Keller Williams Realty is a Great Place For Real Estate Agents and Potential Buyers and Sellers to get to know more about Coeur d'Alene Idaho as well as other parts of Kootenai County and North Idaho.
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