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Mt. Hood Real Estate Blog

Liz Warren

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Displaying blog entries 1421-1430 of 1921

Purchase Before September 7th!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010
by Liz Warren

If your purchasing in the Mt. Hood area it's a good idea to buy before September 7th, if you are using an FHA loan. New rules are coming down the road which will actually increase your monthly payment potentially making it harder to qualify. The "idea" is that FHA is trying to reduce the upfront costs of getting buyers into loans by reducing the Up Front Mortgage Insurance Premium (UFMIP) from 2.25% to 1%. This can be financed into the loan at the back end so there is really no "upfront cost". Technically this reduces your monthly payment slightly.

Meanwhile back at the ranch the MMI- the Monthly Mortgage Insurance Premium is getting raised from .55% to .85%-.90% depending upon the loan to value of the loan. This means your monthly payment will go up and you will be paying more for the same loan thereby potentially not qualifying for as much loan as you did prior to September 7th. With this rise in payment it essentially means a decrease in the loan amount by 4-5% to get the same monthly payment (a lower purchase price so the loan amount is lower).

Why is HUD doing this? To cover their operating costs and to cover anticipated losses. As a buyer, there are pluses to having an FHA loan. The main benefit is when you decide to sell your home these loans are assumable if the new buyer qualifies. This is an attractive prospect if they, HUD, doesn't increase the interest rate for the assumption. They seem to change the rules as administrations come and go. I'm not sure if this is a locked in guarantee or not!

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Monday Morning Coffee

Monday, August 9, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore."
~ Unattributed


ELIMINATE THE BOX!

It was refreshing to read the article entitled "Thirty Under Thirty" in the REALTOR(r) magazine. Thirty agents under the age of thirty talked about their approach to real estate, and most seemed to "think outside the box." They didn't appear to be bound by conventional rules of marketing conduct. Think back to when you were a young child. You were totally uninhibited by rules, so you weren't afraid to try new things.

Back then, there wasn't even a "box" to confine your thinking or actions. You did whatever worked for you. Then, you began to grow up and your parents, then your teachers, began building a box for you. "Stay in line, be quiet, don't touch this or that," they admonished. "Good little girls and boys don't talk back, eat snacks between meals, or chew with their mouths open. "The rules got more sophisticated as you got older, and you began to conform. Now you're all grown up, comfortable in the box the world built for you, and it's not so easy anymore to "think outside the box".

Not so for the newcomers - the youth of the real estate industry. They are enthusiastic, energetic, and with their "no rules" thinking, they're going to mop up on those competitors who are too comfortable in their box. If you've been in the business for more than ten years, you have one powerful advantage over the newbies - real estate wisdom. You're a survivor and know your way around the business. Now it's just a question of combining that base of knowledge with some of the unfettered new thinking of the under 30 crowd. Old dogs CAN learn new tricks, after all!

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New Timberline Lodge Chef On Board!

Thursday, August 5, 2010
by Liz Warren

There's a new chef in town up at Timberline Lodge, Jason Stoller Smith. He recently put together a great Northwest meal at the While House. Enjoy this news story on channel 12.

http://www.kptv.com/local-video/index.html?grabnetworks={videoid:4302506}

 

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Morning Coffee

Monday, August 2, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best."
- Epictetus


GIVE YOURSELF A LIFT!

Have you ever aspired to be deeply depressed? On your list of major life's achievements, have you included becoming an itinerant ne'er-do-well? Does your daily task list include hanging out at the local pub, gossiping over the back fence with nosy neighbors, or spending time with a loser who does nothing but grouse about how the world has dealt him a lousy hand?

Did that first paragraph seem to pull you down? Did you say, "Ridiculous! Who would want to do those things?" If so, congratulations, you've already received this week's message.

Now, let's give this message a lift.

Have you ever met someone with a bright inspiring spirit about them, and thought to yourself, "Wow, I'd like to know them better!" Have you noticed that when you attend a community education course, you leave with many fresh new ideas and a powerful boost in your attitude? A well-known quote says, "You are what you think about all day long." If you hang out with the losers, your thoughts are likely to be dark and depressing. Spend time with those who possess magic in their attitude and enthusiastic vitality in their work ethic, and your thoughts are likely to soar.

Take a close look at your list of goals for this year. Have you included the addition of positive new personal relationships in your work and play environment? Remember that "to have a friend, you must first be a friend." Consider expanding your sphere of contacts to include those who would inspire you to greatness!

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Timberline Mountain Music Series is Cancelled

Tuesday, July 27, 2010
by Liz Warren

Music lovers on the mountain are disappointed to hear the news that the Timberline Mountain Music Series of free concerts has been cancelled this season.

Guess what! The forest service has received 4.25 million dollars of stimulus money. Some of this money will be used to work on the infrastructure of Timberline Lodge. Some of this work will be done this summer at Timberline therefore halting the concert series due to construction.

 

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Government Camp Collins Lake Condos For Sale

Tuesday, July 27, 2010
by Liz Warren

Choices, choices and more choices! Government Camp has a great inventory of Collins Lake Condos current available for sale. Get ready for winter skiing and pick up your Condo now! Here's the inventory:

Government Camp Collins Lake Condos for sale

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To Buy or Not to Buy Mt.Hood Properties

Tuesday, July 27, 2010
by Liz Warren

The fact is, this is probably the best time in the past 80 years to purchase real estate. Swelling inventories and unbelieveable interest rates have created this opportunity. Not only is a house a home but what about the investment opportunities.

Here is how the housing values compares with the stock market over the past decade.

Mt. Hood Stock vs. Real estate

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Nationally Existing Home Sales Drop

Monday, July 26, 2010
by Liz Warren

Mt. Hood real estate sales for June 2010 hit  a whopping 15 sales. Here is the most recent chart from NAR-National Association of Realtors showing national sales for the month of June 2010. Is the Mt. Hood area bucking a national trend?

National Home Sales June 2010

Look at the number of sales in 05 and 06 compared to today's figures. As a general statement, the mountain sales have probably declined in numbers by two thirds at the height of the market in 05-06.

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Morning Coffee

Monday, July 26, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"You were born an original. Don't die a copy."
- John Mason


DUPLICATE YOURSELF!

Watch young children on the playground and you will notice them trying to duplicate each other. One hangs upside down on the monkey bars, and soon everyone is doing the same. Check out a pre-teen with a punky new hair-do, or a new style of "radical" footwear, and soon their friends are following suit.

It continues in high school too, with "tricked out" hot cars and cell phones. So . . . is it any wonder that we attempt to duplicate each other as adults as well? We look at our desk mate's approach to getting new business, then we do the same - regardless of the fact that said desk mate is getting no results.

Is there an alternative to this senseless copy-cat approach to life? Yes - but making the change may not be so easy. You begin by looking inside rather than outside. With all the distractions competing for your attention, this may be the most difficult step. Nevertheless, take a look inside to determine your best talents and skills. Ask yourself, "What do I do well? What are my strengths? What do I enjoy doing most?"

Next, write yourself a plan that incorporates your answers into a personal action plan. Remember, you were born an original, so put that originality to work. To help the plan work, avoid distractions from those who question your new direction, and learn to "duplicate yourself".

To avoid distractions, consider moving your desk, working from a home office, or avoiding the social scene at your office. Focus your time and attention on achieving your new-found objectives. To duplicate yourself, hire assistants to prepare direct mail or update your website. Avoid all tasks that you can hire someone else to do.

In short, live and act the part of the original you really are!

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New Welches Grade and Middle School Principle

Friday, July 23, 2010
by Liz Warren

The new principle, Alex Leaver is from Patton Middle School in the McMinnville School

District! Details may be found at the Oregon Trail Welches Website:

http://www.oregontrailschools.com/welcheses/site/default.asp

Welcome to the Mountain Alex Leaver!

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Displaying blog entries 1421-1430 of 1921

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