Anchorage Alaska Real Estate 907-720-4663: August 2011

The Alaska State Fair

The Alaska State Fair, once known as the Matanuska Valley Fair Association, located at the entrance of Palmer, AK, is the main attraction as fall approaches. The initial purpose for the origination of the fair was to populate the Matanuska Valley (and was successfully accomplished) has become the annual festival for locals. This year the fair will open on August 25^th and will continue until September 5^th.

You can find many activities at the fair for all ages. There are rides, foods, entertainment, contests and shopping.

Rides will spread in one area of the park and will be segregated by ages. There is enough to keep the children entertained, with ticket prices not too high and adult rides not too far away for the teenagers that have a bit more of the edgier side.

The foods range in variety. If there is a time to see what Alaskan can cook up, this is the time and place. From potatoes, fresh cut, whisper-thin and fried crisp, turkey legs, hot and drippy with barbecue sauce, tamales, buttered corn, pork chops, elephant ears, crispy on the outside and elastic on the inside, gritty with cinnamon-sugar and peach pie. This is almost the main reason most locals come to the fair.

There is always live music playing, whether is a bit cloudy or even raining outside. Year to year they host live performances such as, the heritage native dances, school talent and pretty much open acts to a variety of talents. The stage is set over green grass where you can lay a beach towel and just hang loose or if you are more into participating there are all sorts of contests.

There is the 16^th Annual Cabbage weigh off, 3^rd Annual Legendary Karaoke Contest, Alaska’s Got talent and much more.

And as you roam through the Green, Yellow, Purple and Red trails…you may find yourself trying a variety of foods, shopping at all of the local stores located right in the fair, stopping to relax to great music and entertainment, or even collecting the 1^st prize ribbon, these are reasons to be sure to keep you coming back year after year.

If you or anyone you know are looking into moving to Alaska, please visit my website: www.HomesByVanna.com

Vanna Siackhasone

Keller Williams Realty

www.HomesByVanna.com

Shopping for a Home Loan

There are thousands of mortgage lenders across the country, each with many different loan products. There's a mortgage product for just about everyone.

Banks

One place to check is your local bank. This can result in a reasonably good deal for the qualified customer. In many other cases, the bank will not have a program that fits your needs, or you may fall outside the guidelines of its lending ability.

Once you have visited your bank, look in the real estate section of your local paper for the rates at other banks.

The Web

The Web lets you comparison shop, right from the comfort of your own computer. Not only that, but you don't have to hunt down a hundred different banks -- certain aggregator sites have done that for you. In fact, you might check out the loan services provided by our Home Center sponsors. Each of these companies can help you shop for the lowest mortgage rates.

Real Estate Agents

You might well find the cheapest rates in town (or in the country) on the Internet. If, however, you end up working with a real estate agent, you might feel more secure with a lender that has a relationship with your agent. The idea is this: The agent brings business to the lender, so the lender has some sense of responsibility toward honoring commitments with that agent's clients by providing the client with all options available.

When should I shop for a mortgage?

Ideally, you should find a lender and get "pre-qualified" for a mortgage before you ever start looking for a house. Not only will you feel more confident knowing that you'll have a certain amount of money (which can also narrow down your price range for potential houses), but you'll be a more serious candidate to sellers.

What information should I get from the mortgage company?

There are many questions to ask prospective lenders. Don't be afraid to ask any question, even if you think it may sound ridiculous, you are going to pay them a lot of money for a very long time. They serve you, not the other way around. If you feel the loan does not suit you don't be afraid to express this and have them find another option.

Finding a Real Estate Agent

Finding a good real estate agent / broker is essential to enjoying a painless real estate transaction. The question is how can you find a good real estate agent? The best agent for you doesn't necessarily work at the largest brokerage, close the most transactions or make the most money. The best agent for you is an experienced professional who will listen to you, conducts herself in an ethical manner and knows your market.

1. Real Estate Professional
An individual who provides services in buying and selling homes. A person licensed to negotiate and transact the sale of a property on behalf of the owner.

2. Referrals
Most real estate agents stay in business because satisfied clients refer them to friends, family, neighbors and coworkers. Ask the people around you who they have used and ask them to describe their experiences with this real estate agent. Successful agents make customer satisfaction their number one priority and put their customers' needs before their own. Try to find an agent who goes above and beyond her responsibilities.

3. Search Online for Agent Listings

There are plenty of Web sites that will refer agents to you. Google real estate companies in your area, go to those Web sites and look up profiles of individual agents at offices near you. Agents who are experienced will tell you but newer agents might have more time to spend with you. Look for customer testimonials.

4. Attend Open Houses

By going to open houses, you can meet real estate agents in a non-threatening working environment and interact with them. Collect business cards and make notes on them. If you're thinking about selling your home, pay attention to how the agent is showing the home. Is she polite and informative; appear knowledgeable? Does she hand out professional-looking promotional material about the home? Is she trying to sell features of the home? Or is she sitting in a corner reading a book, ignoring you?

5. Track Neighborhood Signs

Pay attention to the listing signs in your neighborhood. Make note of the day they go up and when the sold sign appears. The agent who sells listings the fastest might be better for you than the agent with the largest number of "for sale" signs. Results speak volumes.

6. Using Print Advertising

Real estate agents run real estate ads for two purposes. The first is to sell specific real estate. The second is to promote the real estate agent. Look in your local Sunday newspaper for ads in your targeted neighborhood. Then look up the Web sites of the agents who are advertising. These agents could be specialists in your neighborhood. Call and ask them about their experience.

7. Recommendations from Professionals

Ask other real estate agents for referrals. Agents are happy to refer buyers and sellers to associates, especially if the service you need is not a specialty of the agent who is referring you. Some agents specialize in residential resales while others work exclusively with new home builders. Other agents sell only commercial or investment property. Mortgage brokers are also a resource for agent referrals as many brokers have first-hand knowledge of exceptional agents. Pros tend to refer pros.

Tips for House Hunting

As a real estate professional, we understand that when it comes to deciding on the right home, it can get a bit frustrating. We can provide you with all the resources and knowledge but deciding on which house you will decide to call your home lies on your hands. Here are some tips to help you make every minute worth it when you are house hunting.

1. Location counts. Location is crucial. How far are you really willing to commute to your place of employment? How good are the local schools, shopping centers, public transportation, seniors’ services and other public amenities? Will your new home be next to a vacant lot or a commercial property?

2. Make a list. Do you know what you need and want in your home? You'll save yourself many hours of shopping if you make a list ahead of time. Zero in on the features you must have, would like to have, definitely don't want and would prefer not to have. Your goal is to find the right home for your family without falling in love with one that doesn't suit your needs. Tip: Start compiling your wish list by thinking about what you like and dislike about your current home.

3. Do your homework. Today, a lot of information is available on the web such as home sales prices, market trends, homes on the market, neighborhood statistics and the home-buying process. Go surfing. Get educated. Become empowered. Having a real estate professional can also lessen this research.

4. Get preapproved for a mortgage. Rather than guessing or estimating how much you can afford to spend, ask a lender or mortgage broker to give you a full assessment and a letter stating how much you're qualified to borrow. The true amount may be much more or much less than you think.

5. Use a checklist. Touring multiple homes is a confusing experience for most people. After hours, days and weeks of looking at numerous homes, your mind will start to confuse one home for the other. Rather than relying on memory, make notes about the homes you visit. Turn your priorities into a personalized home-shopping checklist and use it track the features of each home.

6. Wear comfortable clothing and sturdy shoes. House-hunting can be tiring, especially if you're relocating to a distant community and want to see a dozen homes in one day. You don’t want to be uncomfortable to the point that it will lessen your desire to enjoy this experience.

7. Be prepared to make an offer. House-hunting can also be frustrating, especially if you know in your heart you're not really emotionally or financially ready to buy a home. If you're not ready, don't put yourself through the exercise. If you are ready, go through a blank purchase contract ahead of time so you'll know what decisions you'll face when you make an offer.

8. Relax. Granted, buying a home is a major life-altering event. But it's not worth making yourself insanely crazy or super-duper stressed. Save time at the end of your house-hunting expedition to unwind, calm your thoughts and emotions and keep the whole experience in perspective.

Vanna S.

Keller Williams Realty

www.HomesByVanna.com

Short Sale vs. Foreclosure

Because you can’t foresee the unexpected, occurrences such as serious illness, a major accident, divorce or job loss can result in losing your home to foreclosure due to inability to keep up with your monthly mortgage payment. Most people have to resort to foreclosure, which is something that can keep affecting you long after you lose your home by devasting your credit score. So it’s a good idea to understand the available alternatives should the worst occur.

Of all available options, foreclosure is the worst

The results of a foreclosure is the lender taking your house. You will lose your house and the lender can get a judgment against you for the arrearages you owe plus his costs for the foreclosure action. Your credit report will be in terminal condition for many years to come, worsening an already bad financial situation and making it very difficult to obtain any other kind of credit. There is no upside to foreclosure. It should be avoided at all costs.

Consider a short sale when foreclosure seems inevitable

A short sale is a popular option for homeowners with financial problems. In this case, you would sell your home for less than what you owe your lender; the biggest problem you will face is getting your lender to agree to a short sale. In many situations, they will not. Experts advise pursuing this option as soon as you realize that you are falling behind in your payments and most likely won’t be able to catch up. The longer you wait and the greater the amount you are in arrears, the less likely it becomes that your lender will even be willing to discuss a short sale.

short sale has disadvantages too

While a short sale will save you from foreclosure, it will also have a negative effect on your credit score, frequently lowering it by as much as 200 points but this can be overcome more quickly than the black mark of a foreclosure, especially if you manage to retain one or two credit cards and keep them current.

Almost any option is better than foreclosure

Simply stated, do everything you can before foreclosure occurs and do it as quickly as soon as possible. Don’t sit back and keep thinking, "What can I do?" Instead, consider that short sale and check with your lender before your options become more limited.

The One Best Tip I Can Give You: Don’t Do This Alone

Facing foreclosure is a scary thing to figure out on your own but having a real estate professional will help you through the process, lessening the stress and helping you through the process of another option.

You Need An Experienced Short Sale Agent!

If you are someone you know is having difficulties making your mortgage payments, please visit my website at www.HomesByVanna.com or call me at (907) 720-4663.

There may still be time for you!!!

Vanna S.

Keller Williams Realty

(907) 720-4663

www.HomesByVanna.com

A Summer Stroll-Downtown Anchorage

Alaska, known for the cold, dark winters is worth the while when summer arrives.

When the days are bright and sunny there are various activities located in downtown Anchorage that will be sure to entertain adults, children and will sure impress the tourists. From live bands that brings rhythm to adults and children by offering free music in the park, food, that will be sure to keep everyone full as they explore.  

On the weekends, during the summer, there is a local flea market that will offer a variety of Alaskan culture. There are fresh produce, different types of food and of course a taste of Alaskan Native wardrobe.

Alaska never forgets about the visitors. There are plenty of convenient souvenir shops, restaurants and shops as you enjoy the beautiful scenery either by foot or by a horse carriage.  

If you seek the night life, there are many venues that will offer dance music, drinks and plenty of memories. Well known clubs of Anchorage are located only blocks from each other downtown, making it a wonderful excuse to park your car and enjoy the walk from one venue to another.

You may dread the winter season because it’s cold and dark but the anticipation of the end will leave you with a bonus with what is to come during the summer.

If you are considering a move to Alaska please visit my website:

Vanna S.

Keller Williams

www.HomesByVanna.com

(907) 720-4663

10 Reasons to Hire a Real Estate Professional

With so much information readily available online, it almost seems quite simple to buy or sell a home on your own without representation. Some do OK, many don't. So if you've wondered the same thing, here are 10 reasons why you might want to consider hiring a professional real estate professional.

1. Education & Experience

Hiring a real estate professional will lessen the stress to need to know everything about buying and selling real estate. For the most part, they all cost about the same and finding the right person for you is usually the trick.

2. Agents are Servers

Agents will make arrangements for property showings and visits without the stress for you need to be there. If you're a buyer of new homes, your agent will help you with information you need and want to know and also it is also very helpful to have an agent to help understand real estate lingo when speaking to seller’s agents. If you're a seller, your agent will help attract buyers by holding open houses, using online resources and help try to induce serious buyers to immediately write an offer.

3. Neighborhood Knowledge

Agents either possess intimate knowledge or they know where to find information about your neighborhood, such as, pointing you in the direction where you can find more data on schools, crime or demographics.

4. Price Guidance

With buyers and sellers, agents will help you understand the sale amount of a home. Buyer’s agents will help consumers understand why a home in one side of town that looks very similar to a home on the opposite end of town has a drastic price difference. Seller’s agents will help guide through the deciding factor of how much to list a home for. Selling agents will ask buyers to weigh all the data supplied to them and to choose a price. They can identify comparable sales based on market supply, demand and the conditions, the agent will devise a negotiation strategy.

5. Market Conditions Information

Real estate professionals have the accessibility to find information such as market conditions, average per square foot cost, median and average sales prices, average days the home as been on the market and ratios of list-to-sold prices which will be provided to you to help make your decision.

6. Professional Networking

Real estate professionals network with other professionals, many of whom provide services that you will need to buy or sell. Agents may provide you with a list of references with whom they have worked with in the past and allow you to compare competitive pricing, efficiency to help give you the best for your buck.

7. Negotiation Skills & Confidentiality

In order to present their client’s case in the best light, agents are able to remove themselves from the emotional aspects of the transaction. As part of their job description, they agree to hold client information confidential from competing interests and use their skills to obtain the biggest gain.

8. Handling Volumes of Paperwork

Today's purchase agreement run 10 pages or more. Most real estate files average thicknesses from one to three inches of paper. One tiny mistake or omission could land you in court or cost you thousands. It’s definitely a bonus if you have a professional on your team to help make sure all required documents are signed and disclosed, someone who can also help you understand what it is that you may be signing.

9. Answer Questions After Closing

With the excitement of closing sometimes even the smoothest transactions that close without complications can come back to haunt. A good agent will stand by ready to assist you with their knowledgeable resources. In most cases, an agent will not turn you away just because the transaction has closed.

10. Develop Relationships for Future Business

The basis for an agent's success and continued career in real estate is referrals, which gives agents strong incentives to make certain clients are happy and satisfied. It also means that an agent who stays in the business will be there for you when you need to hire an agent again.

Vanna S.

Keller Williams Realty

www.HomesByVanna.com