Showing Off?

Are you Ready?  To Show Off?  Your house that is!

Is it time to make a move?  Take the time to stage your house.  Part of listing your house with Lisa Hogan is getting the home, "Parade Ready".

Parade Ready is having a pre-inspection, so you know what items need attention and staging the property so the house and yard show, not your possessions.

So, Are you Ready?  Call Lisa Hogan at 620/338-7474 and get your house "Parade Ready".

Tax Rebate!!!! Check it out!

I'm sure you've seen the headlines.  What does it all mean?

The $8,000 tax rebate for first time homebuyers (anyone who hasn't owned a home in 3 years is considered first time).  This is a tax rebate, it will not be available to you at closing or make your closing costs less.

The tax rebate is available to First Time Buyer's who purchase a home between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009.  There are income limits, but they will allow most of us to qualify.

If you have already filed your taxes and will close or have closed on a home this year, visit with your tax preparer and ask about filing an amended return to take advantage of the tax rebate now.

Call Lisa Hogan for more information.  620-338-7474

Are you Pre-Approved or just Pre-Qualified?

Today, I want to share some information about pre-approval and pre-qualification that a lender may give you.

Pre-qualification just says that based on what you've told the lender and your credit score and maybe they pulled your credit history, they will loan you an amount of money to purchase a property.  But beware, the small print will say, and I quote from a letter received by a customer, "Pre-qualification is neither a pre-approval nor a committment to lend."  In fact they repeat "This is not a committment to lend"

Pre-approval is the bank agreeing to give you a loan to purchase a property up to an amount they specify.  They do have conditions, i.e. the property must appraise and there must be verification of funds available to close and verification of employment.

The first step in the home-buying process is to find out what you can afford.  Call me today if you are ready and I can give you the name of several lenders, so you can get started on you way to home ownership.

You can reach me at 620-338-7474.  Have a Super Weekend!

REALTOR confusion?

Are you working with a Realtor®?  To find out check online at Realtor.com or ask the agent, "What Board do you belong too?"

To give you a brief overview, a person must take a pre-license class and pass.  The next step is to take the state exam and pass.  Finally they must hang their salesperson's license with a licensed broker.  If you are buying or selling in Kansas, the agent must be licensed by the Kansas Real Estate Commission.  To check the status of the licensee, online at http://kansas.gov/krec

Any questions?  email me at Lisa@DodgeCityHomes.com

By the way, I am licensed as the Broker of Dodge City Homes and belong to the Dodge City Board of Realtors® and Garden City Board of Realtors®.  I have over 10 years experience in selling homes in the Dodge City Kansas area.  See what's available in the Dodge City market at ISellDodgeCity.com

Are you on your own?

Did the agent offer you an opportunity to have representation?  Did you sign an agreement with the Realtor to work for you? 

If not they may be representing the other party in the contract or maybe the other party is represented by their Realtor and the person taking your offer is not giving you all the help you may want.  An agent only represents one party in a contract, by law.

I represent the Seller (a Seller's Agent) when I list a property.  If I don't have the property listed then I can offer my services to the Buyer to represent them (a Buyer's Agent).  As a Seller's agent all factual information is provided to the Buyer, so they can make an informed decision.  The best information a Buyer or Seller can use to determine the value of a property is to know what the market value is and the absorption rate for the area.

Let me know if I can help you determine the market value and absorption rate for your property.  Email to: Lisa@DodgeCityHomes.com