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The Big Bear Skinny

The Big Bear market info minus the fat

Real Estate Advice for Newlyweds in Big Bear

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By on February 22nd, 2012
Categories: Big Bear Buyers
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The wedding and the honeymoon are joyous times, celebrating with family and friends. As you move into daily life, home buying becomes one of the largest decisions you make together.

Planning and communicating will save you time and reduce arguments later. Define how long you expect to live there and whether this is where you will begin to raise a family. This will impact what you need in a home.

1. Deposit Considerations
Prior to considering your amount for deposit, be sure you have at least three to six months income set aside for emergencies. A larger down payment will reduce your monthly payment and the time terms.

2. Check Your Credit
Check your report for any discrepancies and deal with them immediately. We can’t stress how important it is to clean up your credit before entering the market. If you need to, take your time and pay things down. Do everything in your power to improve your score. Once you begin the process, make no other large purchases until you close escrow.

3. Choose Your Lender
You can apply for pre-approval on your loan. The pre-approval letter is good for 60 to 90 days, locking in interest rates and speeding up the entire process.

4. Choose Your Real Estate Agent
A real estate agent will save you time and money, especially when it comes to negotiating. We also suggest you find an agent that knows the neighborhoods and amenities.

You’ve defined your dream, planned your finances and are pre-approved. Make a list of homes within your budget and consult your agent. Patience and proper planning will help this purchase become a great investment for your new family.
More About Real Estate for Newlyweds;

Home Selling Tips

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By on February 18th, 2012
Categories: Big Bear Sellers
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Photo: East Big Bear City, Baldwin Lake Neighborhood

You’ve picked your listing agent and your home is priced right. The show is on! Here are a few helpful suggestions about showing your home.

The Lock Box Option

These are not for everyone, but they increase your home’s marketability. It makes your home available to prospective viewers seven days a week. Most Agents will give you several hours notice. If you’re interested, ask your listing agent to set this up for you.

Try not to be home

It’s not always possible, but if you can, it is best. Give perspective buyers a chance to view your home on their own.

 As you leave your home, turn on all of the lights, even in the daytime. Studies show lighting can add to a feeling of coziness. Take the trash out with you and head to a coffee shop. If you can’t leave, you will want to remain out of the way.

Take care of your pets.

Don’t allow the family dog to greet your agent and buyers at the door. Pen them up in an out of the way area.

Keep your home tidy.

Remove as much clutter as possible from your home. Make counter space in the kitchen, tidy up the living room and make the beds. Give people viewing your home “room” to see it as theirs. You may want to also add a plant or flowers in the main area. Studies show this can evoke an  emotional response, which can be helpful.

Presentation is everything. Taking time to remove clutter and making your house sparkle will bring positive financial reward.

More Home Selling Real Estate Advise;

Real Estate Neighborhood Tours – Fawnskin

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By on February 13th, 2012
Categories: Big Bear Buyers, Big Bear Neighborhoods
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You may recognize the Fawnskin area from the Eddie Murphy movie, ‘Dr. Doolittle’. We love this area because it’s heavily wooded and backs into some of the Valley’s best hiking and mountain biking trails.

Fawnskin was originally an artist’s community, and is steeped in history. It was the beginning of the main coach road through the mountains. It’s best known as the gateway into Holcomb Valley, where southern California’s largest deposit of gold was found.

Fawnskin was also home to loggers and hunters. The Pederson Sawmill was the main staging area for loggers. Some of the wood came from Holcomb Valley, while some of the logs were cut trees from Big Bear Lake (left over from the creation of the lake).

Real Estate Neighborhoods

Fawnskin is divided into two real estate neighborhoods; East and West. The East side is mostly National Forest, with Highway 38 following the shoreline. The Big Bear Discovery Center, built by the US Forest Service and the San Bernardino National Forest Association is on the north side of the highway. It’s a perfect base camp for hiking and getting forest maps and permits.

The West side is located along Grout Bay. It is the commercial center of the area and home to several restaurants. There’s also a fire station and a small park.

Residential homes in this area can range from modest to spectacular. The average home price is $200,000 (Zillow). North Shore Elementary School is a 15 minute drive.

A drive up the side streets from North Shore, can afford some spectacular views of Big Bear Lake and the San Gorgonio Mountain Range.

More about Home Buying;

  • Home buyers are out there and looking! – When it comes to potential home buyers doing their best to assess theLas Vegas real estate market, “conventional wisdom” can be more than a little misleading.
  • First Time Home Buyers – A Guide For First Time Home Buyers – All Topics; Home; Real Estate; Buying Real Estate; First Time Home Buyers – A Guide For First Time Home Buyers
  • First Time Home Buyers – New Homes – If you are looking to buy your first home, there couldn’t be any better time than now. The selection of available homes can’t get much better, interest rates are low, home prices have dropped all over the country and the government is offering an …

Cleaning Up Your Credit – Big Bear Real Estate

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By on February 8th, 2012
Categories: Big Bear Buyers
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Having a good credit score is more important than ever. It can mean the difference between qualifying for your Big Bear dream home or missing out on a great opportunity. Savvy buyers have been snatching up well priced Big Bear real estate within days of coming on the market. The key to having a strong negotiating position is to be pre-qualified and ready to move when the right property becomes available.

The first step in the process is to get the hard, cold facts. There are several places to obtain your score such as www.annualcreditreport.com, www.freecreditscore.com and www.equifax.com. Once you have your report check it thoroughly for identity theft, errors, and omissions. If you find something contact all three reporting agencies to have your information updated.

When you’ve confirmed that the all your information is correct and up to date it’s time to start the repair process. Make sure no new inquiries pop up by resisting the urge to purchase anything on credit. Even an upgrade to your cable TV or cell phone service can cause an inquiry to show up. Wait until you’ve closed escrow on your new property before you buy new furniture or a new car. The lower interest rate on your new mortgage will be your reward for all that self-control. Above all else, do not make any big purchases during the escrow and loan qualification process.  That can sometimes make the difference between getting the loan and not.

Now it’s time to pay down the balances on your credit cards. High balances greatly reduce your score. Your lender will advise you on how much debt needs to be paid off. The next important thing to remember is never pay late. You may need to set up payment reminders but find a way to pay on time and stick to it.

Timely payments and responsible spending are the way to build credit. There’s no quick fix to credit repair so be wary of credit fixing scams. Just do the hard work and pay down your debt. Before you know it you’ll be well on your way to achieving the American Dream – owning a home in beautiful Big Bear.

More about home finances;

  • Don’t Let A bad credit score Prevent you from Finding a Good … – Don’t Let A bad credit score Prevent you from Finding a Good Personal loan · January 27, 2012. When you are looking for ways to a loan you already know that there are various with details that happen to be considered to determine you may …
  • The Correct Way to Pay Off Personal Debt: The Debt Avalanche – Setting and achieving these short term goals influences the same area of the brain (the mesolimbic system) as the act of paying off the first credit card and are similar enough to provide the same motivational results. Quick wins may help to motivate debt reducers to continue along the path, but the real win comes in knowing you’ve made the smarter choice. If you need help in ….. So that experience taught us that real estate is volatile and that equity isn’t a guarantee. So we decided to …
  • How To Build Good Credit Score With Essential Financial Habits … – Your credit score in some ways is meant to be a snapshot of your overall financial habits – especially your habits surrounding debts and other financial responsibilities. Developing some good financial habits can help your credit score by … With the tighter credit situation and property values going down, it has become more important to keep your house and get the cheapest mortgage on it. Refinancing can help to reduce your interest rate and monthly payments and …

 

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