It seems that for the longest time, first-time home buyers invested in a starter home – a smaller, more affordable property that they intended to live in for a few years before their growing family needed more space. Typically, starter homes might be one, two or three bedrooms, a single bath, and have a price tag in our area of $150,000 or less.Read more
Ask O: What’s the Difference Between a Real Estate Agent, a Broker, and a Realtor?
Dear Olivia,
I often see various titles after people’s names in the real estate industry, like broker, real estate agent, and Realtor. What do these titles mean?
Thanks!
Curious About Real Estate
Though people outside the real estate industry might look at the various titles we carry as being interchangeable, there are important differences between them.
Ask O: Can I Contact a Listing Agent if I’m a Buyer?
Dear Olivia,
I always see that for sale signs say to contact the listing agent for the home to get more information. But shouldn’t my Realtor get details on my behalf? What gives?!
Sincerely,
A Very Confused Buyer
What a great question! I’ve actually been asked this a lot by casual buyers who simply don’t know how to proceed with the home-buying process. And the answer to this question is that it just depends.Read more
Ask O: What Should I Know Before Buying My First Home?
Dear Olivia,
I’m thinking about buying my first home, and a friend told me that whatever I do, do not take out any loans or spend large amounts of money so my credit isn’t impacted. That makes total sense! I was wondering, though, what else should I know before buying a home for the first time?
Read more
Vlog: Don’t Be Afraid to Buy a Foreclosed Home
As many of you already know, a foreclosure starts with late payments, then the bank repossesses the home, and the property is offered for sale, usually in an auction at the county courthouse.
Typically, though, the bank that owns the property will list it for sale through a local brokerage.
As Katie and I discuss in this week’s Let’s Get Real With Real Estate, though foreclosures are certainly a bad thing for the previous owners that didn’t make their house payments, for buyers, a foreclosure can represent an excellent opportunity.Read more
Vlog: How the Government Shutdown is Affecting Real Estate
As the partial government shutdown continues on, you’ve no doubt heard how many federal workers are furloughed or working without pay.
Government shutdowns like this can have a number of impacts on the real estate market too, and on you as a homeowner or prospective homeowner as well.
In this week’s vlog, Katie Vroman and I take a look at some ways that the government shutdown is impacting the real estate market in Fremont County, as well as take a look at a number of real estate-related programs that are still up-and-running.Read more
Wind River Realty Asks “What’s Up Wyoming?” With Its New Alexa Skill
Photo by Andres Urena on Unsplash
It’s been forty years since Wind River Realty was founded. A lot has changed since 1979 – both in the housing market and in the way we use technology.
It seems like it wasn’t all that long ago that the internet wasn’t a thing and that hardly anyone had a cell phone. Now we have voice-activated robot assistants to do our bidding. Crazy!
If you have an Amazon Echo, you know how incredibly helpful they can be.Read more
Vlog: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Zillow
Though there are plenty of tools out there to help you find the home of your dreams, it seems as though Zillow is the primary choice of many prospective buyers in this area.
It makes sense, too – Zillow is easy to use whether you’re on a computer or if you’re using their app on your phone. When using the app, you can turn on notifications so you’re made aware of when properties come on the market that meet your criteria. You can even draw on a map to signify the area you’d like to live, and Zillow will let you know about properties within that area that you might be interested in.Read more
Buying a Home? Be Prepared for a Rollercoaster of Emotions
Though the process of buying a home can be long and stressful, the relief and happiness you feel when all the paperwork is signed is Read more
Vlog: Getting a Mortgage Doesn’t Have to Be Scary!
Credit scores. Debt-to-income ratio. Pre-qualifications. There’s SO much about getting a mortgage that can be scary, especially for first-time homebuyers.
But getting a mortgage doesn’t have to be scary!Read more