Next week I'm meeting with Barbara who's flown all the way from South Korea to see homes. (names have been changed to protect the innocent :)

She and her husband are moving to Colorado Springs for a Military Relocation. I'm excited to get her started, because up until now, they've just been viewing homes online and checking out the Military Relocation package stuffed with goodies that I sent them. Actually seeing them with the Rockies and Pikes Peak smiling at you is a whole 'nother story! :)

They started searching resales first (a real estate term meaning someone else has been living there.) After seeing what their options were, they wanted to see what new homes were available - see New Homes for Peterson AFB Real Estate Part I and New Homes for Peterson AFB Real Estate Part 2. It's a pretty savvy move for the area they're checking out because:

1. There's a ton of new building next to the areas they're considering

2. Builders have to compete with all the resales

3. They can end up getting a brand new home in a brand new community for close to the same price (good resale potential for themselves in this particular case.)

Now, new home shopping from South Korea presents a few challenges. Most notably that many home builders don't even have interior photos. Some builders have online virtual tours, like Classic Homes and Capital Pacific Homes. A good chunk, however, just have renderings (drawings) of the house from the front. These builders rely on people to come checkout their model homes. It's a practice that works pretty well for most of their target customers, just not for a Colorado Springs military relocation.

Also, there's no single website that has new homes accurately listed like the MLS. If you go look a many of the builders individual websites, they tend to be a little out of date (to be fair, it IS tough to keep currrent when you have so many homes selling.) All this means there's no way for an online buyer to accurately know what's available right now...much less what will be "move in" ready when they get here.

So here's what I did to overcome this challenge:

1. Called a professional (one I'm fortunate enough to call a friend) in the Real Estate Developing industry here to get a list of every current new development in the area they like.

2. Visited every development to get a list of current inventory homes (homes already built or scheduled to be completed by the time they got here.)

3. Photographed the homes that were missing online pictures.

After completing those three tasks, I put together another Colorado Springs Military Relocation package, this time for new homes, that included a builder and neighborhood packet for each development, a current inventory sheet listing all the new homes that are currently available and a CD containing photo files for the homes lacking them online.

Barbara comes into town next week to shop for them both (Dan had to stay in Korea for the time being.) I know they've really been able to narrow it down to their favorites. We'll go look at their top choices for both resales and new homes, as well as give her a driving tour of the area in 2 Days.

I'll let you know how the story ends!

If you want to know what to expect when moving here, start with the Colorado Springs Military Relocation FAQ.

Contact me if you'd like us set up your very own VIP Military Buyer Program.

Jamie Mades, REALTOR
Keller Williams Clients Choice
Office: (719) 535-0355
Direct: (719) 322-4645

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Jamie is a residential Colorado Springs real estate and Colorado Springs Military Relocation specialist, providing buyer and seller services for Peterson AFB real estate, Fort Carson real estate, Schriever AFB real estate and Air Force Academy real estate.

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