Over the past year or so, “pocket listings” have become a more mainstream option for quietly marketing a home. If you haven’t heard this real estate term before, you probably will. This Zillow Article goes more in-depth into pocket listings, but here are the basics. A pocket listing is an unofficial, off-market listing Pocket listings are growing in popularity Pocket listings let sellers test the market Pocket listings have...

Pending sales of existing homes rose to their highest level in nearly two years in March, according to the National Association of Realtors’ latest Pending Home Sales Index. “First-quarter sales closings were the highest first-quarter sales in five years. The latest contract signing activity suggests the second quarter will be equally good,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, in a statement. “The housing...

Last Thursday was Take Your Kid To Work Day, so my 8-year-old daughter, Jade, came with me.  Other than the big breakfast of eggs, bacon, and rye toast with lots of butter, I asked Jade what she thought of the day.  Jade said, “Dad, you work with a lot of stubborn people”.  I laughed, as I never thought of it that way. One example was a meeting we had with clients on an offer we had on their home. My reply to Jade was that the people...

Coast to coast, a much higher percentage of listings are (a) selling, period (b) selling, fast and (c) selling at or above the asking price than they have during any spring in recent memory. Pristine and staged. Photos should look like something out of a home decor catalog or design magazine — like no one lives there, even if someone does. Low prices. When buyers see a beautiful home listing online for less than they’d expect...

A select group of struggling mortgage borrowers are about to get an offer that sounds too good to be true. Executives at Bank of America say they will begin mailing 200,000 letters offering certain customers mortgage principal reduction. “If people get these things and toss them, they won’t be eligible,” says Ron Sturzenegger, the Bank of America executive charged with providing solutions to borrowers in need of mortgage...

With the Santa Fe Real Estate Market possibly making a turn for the better this year, now may be the time to start searching for your new Santa Fe home. To help avoid make the same missteps many home buyers made before the bubble burst here are a few tips to help prevent foreclosure. Buy a home you can afford: This may seem obvious, but it’s always a good idea to go over the numbers and make sure that your housing costs are no more...