I'm often asked about how to buy a house; believe it or not in this vast information age, people still don't know how! It is not driving around looking at homes. It is not calling each agent's sign and asking how much, how long has it been on the market, and how many bedrooms. Buying a house is an investment in a process that must be followed for a win/win result! You will see by this list that it is a step by step process that will get you across the threshold of your new home! 1. Pre-approval– Get Pre-approved for a mortgage and know in advance exactly how much house you can afford. C ompleting this step will also increase your negotiating power since you'll be viewed as a “cash buyer”. 2. Documentation– Paperwork supporting the application must also be submitted. Information commonly sought includes pay stubs, two years tax returns, and account statements verifying the source of the down payment, funds to close and reserves. 3. Choosing and Agent– Yo...

When trying to market your home for sale, you may hear that marketing doesn't matter "put it in the MLS and let it sell." When I have my consulting sessions with my Albuquerque home buyers , I will sit down at my office, in front of my TV monitor, and we go through the Multiple Listing Service directly, together - to see what is on the market. I start out with all of the homes on the market, and then we start adding in criteria that my buyers need in their home search. Their price range, their favorite locations, home features, home styles. When the home choices come up on the screen, I then open up the photo slide shows and that's where the fun really begins! We will get to some properties for sale, and see dark photos, sideways photos, photos of toilets (open), photos of a counter top - and not one photo that shows the true personality and features of the home! My clients will waive those properties off, and say "No way, if they can't get a good en...