El Paso Texas Real Estate - Fort Bliss

Home Selling - Should I put my house on the market first?

Mike Alvarado — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 03:26:00 GMT

Mrs [name withheld] writes:

I am interested in purchasing a home in the Parkland Feeder Pattern (Franklin Village in the Northeast). We are looking to sell our home and then purchase. What steps do you recommend we take first? Do we need to start on the purchase while we are attempting to sell or should we wait until our home sells?

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Hi Mrs [name witheld],

Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to email me with your question. As you well know, we are smack in the middle of the biggest "buyer's market" that we have seen in decades and because of this, we just don't know how long your home will be for sale before you find a buyer. There are many things that you and your family can do to help expedite the home selling process like:

make sure that the house is always presentable - not as easy as it sounds when you are still living there
make it easy for REALTORS to show your home - you would be surprised
price, price, price - ensure that the price that you put on your home is the best price for the area but, will it sell in this market?
be ready to negotiate - today's home buyer expects (demands) to get the most out of their purchase
have realistic expectations - the selling of your home is an emotional process, think clearly.

Nowadays, it is not uncommon for a house not to sell for well over six months and up to a year. Surely, you have seen your neighbor's home go up for sale and not be sold for many months. It is my recommendation that you put your home on the market first and then, see about buying your new home.

Please do not hesitate to call me with your questions.

Mike Alvarado

Remax Associates

(915) 494-6637

email: alvaradoma@aol.com

www.HomesForSale-ElPaso.com

Compare Sales in Your Area - Free monthly eReport

Mike Alvarado — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 18:25:00 GMT

Curious About Today's Market

Wondering what that house down your road finally sold for? How does that sale compare to other recent sales? Just curious about the real estate market in your area?

Today is a new era in residential real estate and as strong as the market is in El Paso, the fact still remains that we are in the middle of a very strong "buyer's market". So what does this mean to the average home owner? Many homes for sale are not selling because of the pricing.

"But, the city appraisal office said..." Does not matter! Many homes are selling below city apprasal values. What matters is what is going on currently in your neighborhood and what is the right price if considering selling your home.

Free Monthly eReport - receive by email monthly activity reports around your area. Why do you need this report? There are over 4,000 homes for sale in El Paso County this week! The better informed that you are about pricing your home, the better your chances are of selling when you decide to put your house on the market.

Send for your eReport today

Home For Sale in East El Paso

Mike Alvarado — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 18:50:00 GMT

Seller ready to negociate

3bdr/2 bth appx 1,467 sq/ft single story home - MLS® $122,450 - Immediate Move In

East El Paso - Price reduced. Comfort at an affordable price in this east side home. Ready for immediate move in on this 3BDR/2Bth two story home. Come home and relax in your custom spa and sunroom or entertain your guests in your back patio. Minutes to Loop 375 and unto Fort Bliss. GOOGLE Maps may not be updated. Please call for directions.

See virtual tour today

Property information

visit www.HomesForSale-ElPaso.com for additional listings

Home For Sale in North East El Paso and minutes from Fort Bliss

Mike Alvarado — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:15:00 GMT

Minutes to Fort Bliss

4 bdrm 2 bth 2 story - MLS® $169,900 -

Northeast El Paso - Comfort at an afforable price. Located in El Paso's northeast side of town and within a few short minutes to Fort Bliss. Enjoy your two story 4 BDR/2.5Bth with refrigerated air and lots of space. Two spacious living areas with all bedrooms are upstairs is perfect for a family looking to enjoy the front and back landscaping. Gorgeous mountain views come free. Google Maps is not updated so call for directions today.

See Virtual Tour today

Your feedback is important to us. Please post today.

Property information

visit www.HomesForSale-ElPaso.com for hundreds more listings

Home For Sale in El Paso's North East side of town

Mike Alvarado — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:13:00 GMT

Minutes From Fort Bliss

3 bdr/2 bth appx 1,873 sq.ft "Huge loft upstairs " - MLS® $139,450

Northeast El Paso - Comfort at an affordable price. Located in El Paso's northeast side of town and minutes from Fort Bliss Texas. This 3 BDR/2BTH home welcomes you and has all bedrooms downstairs with a huge loft upstairs. See virtual tour today.

Your feedback is important to us. Please post today.

Property information

visit www.HomesForSale-ElPaso.com for additional listings

Fort Bliss real estate first time home buyers

Mike Alvarado — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 18:53:00 GMT

Many times, I get emails from first time home buyers that request additional information on home buying in the El Paso area. The following is an email with questions from an active duty soldier looking to relocate to the El Paso/Fort Bliss area and my response towards the end.

In a message dated 4/11/2008 7:21:50 A.M. Mountain Daylight Time, [name witheld] writes:

Good Morning Mr Alvarado-
We are diligently going through the homes on the website and other places to see what is available. We have made a short list of houses that we are interested in and are planning on making a trip to El Paso to look at some of them in May. We are interested in working with you to find our home. We have not gotten pre-approved yet because we're unsure about how long that approval will last and given the fact that my husband will be away at training until the end of July we were uncertain. We did have a couple of questions though:
1. How long does the typical pre-approval last? We have checked our credit reports/scores and right now we both have a 740. I'm assuming that might be acceptable given the current state of the market- or are we looking at a problem? We're would like to go with a VA loan-possible through USAA unless you have another suggestion?
2. If we find a home and want to put an offer in, is it possible to schedule the closing the end of July, when we'll actually be moving to El Paso?
3. Is there a list of bank repossessions or foreclosures? What are the advantages/disadvantages of purchasing one of these homes?
I think those are our questions right now. Thanks for your willingness to help us navigate the housing market as we make our transition to sunny El Paso!
Thanks,

Hi [name witheld],

Thanks for getting back to me so soon. In response to your email:

1) Your pre-approval is good for three months (depending of who you go with). The reason I like to get you pre-approved three months in advance is that your pre-approval gives us a very good "starting point" before initiating a home search. I can't tell me how many times I've had home buyers "settle" for a much smaller house that what they would have liked just because they did not qualify for the bigger house. Of course, you may go through USAA. I have worked with them in the past and am looking forward to working with them again. One thing that I ask, get a "good faith estimate" on your closing costs and let's compare with another mortgage company here in town. Ultimately, it is your choice who you go with. I do know for a fact that different companies will charge you different rates.

2) When we find you a home that you like, it is advisable that we put in an offer as soon as possible. The home buying process will take approximately thirty days to closing once we put in an offer so let us plan ahead. I have seen home sellers wait as long as forty five days towards their closing. I'm afraid that much more than that and they will not accept your offer to purchase. Think about it for a moment, they have to give additional mortgage payments and that reduces their profits from the sale of their home.

3) To keep up with the current lists of bank repos and foreclosures, I go to the bank's home site and that is where they are listed. Just so you know, banks play by their own rules and much of what I'm advising you does not apply.

Please feel free to email me back with any more questions that you might have.

Mike Alvarado

Remax Associates

(915) 494-6637

email: alvaradoma@aol.com

www.HomesForSale-ElPaso.com

El Paso Texas Real Estate - What is a Home Value Estimator?

Mike Alvarado — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 05:16:00 GMT

Home Value Estimate

Thinking of selling your home this year? You'll want to order a Comparative Market Analysis from your local real estate agent. For the most part, this analysis is free sevice from most REALTORS (R). This report consists of researching your neighborhood and finding out which homes have sold in the past six months in your area or are currently for sale as recorded in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) that all REALTORS® use. What is MLS? The biggest thing to remember is that this report is not a certified appraisal.

If you are looking to sell your house or, just want to know the value of your home, this is the place to find out.

Of course, every home is unique. That’s why having an accurate home evaluation is so important. Your home’s amenities – such as a fireplace or deck – can add value to your home. So can any new or remodeling work you’we done, such as kitchen renovations or a new roof. Find out just how much value these features add to your home by requesting your free Comparable Market Analysis now.

Please complete and submit the following Home Evaluation form. The more information given, the more accurate the evaluation. All information you provide is secure and will be kept strictly confidential.

To provide a more detailed Comparative Market Analysis, we would be more than happy to also assess your listing in person.

Start now by visiting here and filling out the quick and easy online form:

Selling Your Home - How Investing A Few Hundred Dollars Will Save Thousands At Closing

Mike Alvarado — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 20:51:00 GMT

By now, everybody in the United States knows that the country is in the middle of a major correction in the real estate market and the city of El Paso is no different. With news of price reductions in all major news channels, home sellers that have to sell expect the worst.

Most real estate markets have price reductions unlike we've seen in many, many years. Many times home buyers are seeing "instant equity" the day of their closing because houses are priced way below appraised value. Even with these changes in this market, home sellers still need to sell and home buyers still need to buy.

What to do? The more prepared home sellers are the better their outcomes. With literally thousands of homes for sale in El Paso County, the home seller must do everything possible to have their home stand out amongst a sea of MLS listings.

Whereas location, location, location used to be the single most important criteria for home buyers, the presentation of the home at the initial showing has taken over as the most important item:

Is the entrance to the front door free of debris from yesterdays sand storm?
Does the inside of the house need paint? Upon entering does the house look clean?
Was there a pet living inside the house? Does the house smell clean?

I can't tell you how many times my home buyers ask to see a house that is not in the area that they initially were looking at. Either because they drove by a house that "looked nice on the outside" or they saw a set of very nice photographs online along with virtual tours and great listing information. And yes, I end up selling them the better looking home.

Ultimatelly, what's going on inside the home buyer's mind is, "If I buy this house, what's in it for me?" Check with your listing agent and ask if he or she has any other ideas to placing your home listing in front of more home buyers and then, listen to his advise. It may cost you just a few hundred dollars to paint the inside of your home now but, it is almost guaranteed that you'll make up for it in thousands of dollars at closing.

Additional home seller information click here