homes: What Turns Off Home Buyers? - 12/31/15 04:07 AM

Wouldn't it be useful if you could understand what is most likely to turn off buyers when they view your home?
Although the statistics are from Europe, via an online survey commissioned by British insurance company Go Compare, it's totally reasonable to assume that their findings are a series of universal truths, as applicable to us here in America as anywhere else.
Let's look at the some of the most off putting aspects that would apply anywhere: -
"Damp patches, stained walls and ceilings." - This was actually the #1 objection, with over 70% of those questioned identifying these problems as a turn off. … (0 comments)

homes: Are You Hiring A Full Time Agent? - 12/31/15 04:04 AM

Looking through the online version of the Albuquerque Journal recently, we came across this very interesting article which tells readers to be sure to hire a full-time real estate agent.
Although quite a short piece, as you'll read if you follow the above link, the article does contain some really good advice.
In looking at it ourselves, we got to thinking how many people actually even know if their agent is engaged in real estate on a full-time basis?
It's a fair question and, we suspect, one that buyers and sellers often fail to ask when interviewing agents to represent them.
There are approximately two … (0 comments)

homes: Is it time to downsize your home? - 12/31/15 04:00 AM

It happens to a lot of homeowners. The kids have left home and suddenly that multi-bedroom, multi-acre home no longer has the appeal that it once did.
Sounds like you? Well it could be time to consider downsizing your home.
There can be many advantages to doing this, one of the most significant being that selling your home for much more than the amount you'd need to buy a smaller one potentially gives you a nice sum of money to invest in a retirement fund, or maybe to buy that RV you've always dreamt of owning, enabling you to get out and explore … (0 comments)

homes: Why it pays to buy a home as soon as possible in life - 12/31/15 03:45 AM

2015 will long be remembered as the year when the first time home buyer made a significant return.
We've taken up considerable blogging mileage this year explaining the merits of getting on the housing ladder and while it would be overkill to revisit them all again so soon, what we would like to emphasize today is the importance of buying your home as early as possible in your adult life.
While your retirement years seem so distant in your early to mid 20's, trust us when we say that they will approach much faster than you can ever imagine and, if you've just … (0 comments)

homes: Five Great Reasons Why Right Now Is A Great Time For Property Investment - 12/31/15 03:42 AM

However you slice it, the current Albuquerque area real estate market is trending positively in so many ways.
We've recently spent a good deal of time explaining to both current and prospective homeowners what a great time it is to either upgrade or get on the ownership ladder.
It's equally a superb opportunity to either start or grow a property investment portfolio and here are five key reasons why we say that:
Prices are rising - Refer to our recent review of Albuquerque area market conditions and you'll note the healthy growth of average sale prices in recent months. While there is merit in … (0 comments)

homes: Why Being Prepared Always Pays Dividends For First Time Buyers - 12/31/15 03:38 AM

We never tire of saying what a great time this is for buying a home. With mortgage rates still very low, plus other incentives such as low down payment home loans, it makes total sense to get on the housing ladder right now, before something changes.
In reality, of course, and for a wide range of reasons, you simply may not be completely ready to take the big step and are now targeting the New Year for your first foray into home ownership.
The good news is that there are things you can start to do now that will help you to achieve … (0 comments)

homes: 2015 - Year in Review 4: Low Inventory - 12/31/15 03:05 AM

Our look back at the key highlights in Albuquerque area real estate could hardly ignore one of the most defining factors in our local market this past 12 months - low inventory of available homes for sale.
Every month in 2015 we've delivered a summary of local market performance and low inventory has been a constant and has never really shown signs of significant recovery. If anything, it's been getting steadily worse, in real terms.
Perhaps what has been most surprising is that we've seen excellent growth in demand for homes during the year and yet many sellers have been slow to take … (1 comments)

homes: 2015 - Year In Review 3: 12 Blog Highlights of 2015 - 12/31/15 03:02 AM

It has been a another great year here at Everest Peak Realty.
We've again enjoyed bringing real estate news, views and advice to you throughout the year and thought it might be a good idea to go back over the past 12 months and pick out a key blog from each month that maybe you missed and which will be of use to you as a property seller, buyer or investor in 2016.
January - 20 Priceless Staging Tips for Albuquerque Area Home Sellers
February - 8 Sure Signs That It's Time to Change Realtor
March - How to Conduct a Final Home Walk Through
April … (0 comments)

homes: 2015 - Year In Review 2: Exceptional Buyer Sentiment - 12/31/15 02:58 AM

One defining characteristic of 2015 has been the exceptional buyer sentiment that has informed the real estate market right until the very end of the year.
Almost exactly 365 days ago, we were predicting that the first time buyer would make a very welcome comeback during this year, and so it has proved.
By May, first time purchases were accounting for 32% of all buying activity.
By mid-year, we were reflecting on a great start to the year that had seen first mortgages up by no less than 80% in the first quarter of the year, compared with the same time period in 2014.
The … (0 comments)

homes: 2015 - Year In Review 1: Mortgage Rates - 12/31/15 02:56 AM

With just one day of 2015 left, it's time for us to begin our look back on the key influences on Albuquerque area real estate during this year.
Given the momentous Federal Reserve announcement of a 0.25% rise in interest rates this week, it seems appropriate that we first reflect on mortgage rates, which have arguably been the single biggest influence on the excellent performance of the housing market in the past 12 months.
Although history suggests that a rise in the Federal Funds Rate is not closely tied to the fortunes of mortgage rates, this week's news has nonetheless provided an increased focus on … (0 comments)

homes: Renting: Storm Clouds Ahead Next Year! - 12/31/15 02:52 AM

Back in early October, we looked at a report from the Harvard Joint Centre for Housing Studies and Enterprise Community Partners that painted a very bleak picture for renters
The report predicted that the number of households that spend half or more of their income on rent will rise by at least 11% from 11.8 million to 13.1 million by 2025!
As if to give this forecast almost instant credibility, further evidence of even tougher times ahead in the rental sector have arrived today with a CNN Money article that says rents are expected to rise faster than inflation in 2016, increasing by … (0 comments)

homes: Guidelines for the First Time Home Buyer - 12/29/15 11:39 AM

The first time buyer arguably faces more challenges in the house buying process than any other type of home purchaser. This is largely due to inexperience and the difficulties of predicting the unpredictable in advance.
On the basis that forewarned is forearmed, here's a simple guide of what to watch out for on your home buying debut.
1. Make sure you completely understand your finances so you absolutely understand what you can afford, leaving a suitable buffer for unplanned costs. 
2. Don't forget that the home buying process also has a number of costs associated with it, including appraisal, credit report, escrow and notary … (1 comments)

homes: What To Do - and What Not To Do - When Your House is About to be Viewed - 12/29/15 11:13 AM

In our last blog we went through some really useful preparation tips that will help to sell your home. Today we're looking at the next, critical, stage, when a prospective buyer comes to view your home. This is the point when all the work we suggested you undertake in our earlier blogwill begin to pay huge dividends - but we're not done with great advice yet!
Below are four more important things to do before anyone arrives: -
Never stay in your house with house hunters: Avoid being present in your home when it is shown. The potential buyer will feel like an intruder and will hurry … (0 comments)

homes: Preparation - The Key to Getting Your Home Sold - 12/29/15 11:09 AM
Attention to detail is vital when selling your home. Remember how closely you looked at every aspect of your own home before buying? - that's the level of scrutiny you can routinely expect from prospective purchasers. The guideline notes below outline a relatively simple series of practical steps you can make to show your home in its absolute best possible light. The better everything looks, the quicker your home will sell and for the best possible price too!
First impressions are lasting: The front door greets the prospective buyer. Make sure it is fresh, clean and scrubbed looking. Replace door mats … (1 comments)

homes: The Ability to Repay Rule Explained - 12/29/15 11:02 AM
 
On January 14th, 2014 the new Ability to Repay, or Qualified Mortgage (QM), Rule came into force.
The Rule states that a borrower can't have a higher debt-to-income ratio than 43%. It also lowers the fee that can be charged by the lender to three percent of the loan's total amount.
Given that a lot of the practices the Rule bans have already disappeared from the mortgage market, the immediate impact on borrowers is going to be minimal. It is also very likely that innovative new mortgage products will launch to further ease the situation.
For many new borrowers, however, these changes will not have … (2 comments)

homes: What You Should Expect Your Realtor to Do for You - 12/29/15 08:25 AM

Hiring a Realtor for the critical job of selling your home is a really key decision. Get it wrong and there could be some serious consequences, in terms of a home remaining unsold for longer than you would like and/or not achieving its optimum price in whatever current market conditions happen to be.
It would be very accurate to say that not all realtors are operating in an equal way. Not by a long measure.
Your search for the right realtor for you will be considerably enhanced if you know exactly what you should be expecting your Realtor to do for you.
At the … (4 comments)

 
Manish Chanda (Everest Peak, Inc.)

Manish Chanda

Albuquerque, NM

More about me…

Everest Peak, Inc.

Address: 4801 LANG AVE NE, STE 110, ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, 87109

Office: 505-800-7150

Mobile: 505-750-0304



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