Boise Homes For Sale

This is undoubtedly the best time in years to be buying a home in Boise, Meridian, Eagle, and Nampa Idaho to live in.  There are more homes for sale in Boise than ever.  One of the builders in Boise has over 500 homes for sale.  That is just ONE builder!

Still, in spite of the fact that there are more homes for sale in Boise than ever many buyers are frustrated making offers that end up failing.  Even though builder inventories are high, and in fact because they are high Boise area builders have to sell for as high as possible.  Lowering prices lowers appraisals and makes the market value of their homes drop.  Having an agent who KNOWS the builders and knows their strengths, weaknesses, needs and selling strategies is key to negotiation the best price for any particular home.  Just making low offers isn't the way to get the best deal.  I know people who have made up to 17 offers that have all failed to result in an accepted purchase agreement and have ended up so frustrated they just quit!  Other potential buyers are missing great buys because they find a priced right home, start the offer process and have someone else step in and buy their dream home out from under them.

Here are some tips to get the BEST PRICE on the BEST HOME for YOU:

1. Use a buyer agent specialist.  We specialize in working with buyers.  We do not seek listings.  We have no vested interest in selling you any particular home.

2. Determine what monthly payment fits your budget.  Not what you qualify for!  We want to know what monthly payment you can make comfortably without compromising your life style.  From that we can help you determine your price range.

3. Talk to us BEFORE you get locked in to a lender.  Different lenders have different loan products and especially now it is important to choose the right one for you.  Some areas qualify for Rural Development loans, like Kuna, Star, and other areas.  Most lenders will not tell you about these loans because they CANNOT do them.  We can get you to who can.  Other buyer's may be better with FHA, Conventional, or IHA loans.  We can help you understand loan charges which may very a lot.

4. Get set on an automatic search to first get all listings that fit your criteria and then all new listings and changed listings.  Then you will not only see everything that might be YOUR house but you will see the market.

5. Have your agent set up another search for SOLD homes in the area where you want to buy with similar criteria, size, asking price etc.  Then you can determine the ratio of asking price to sold price.  You can see how long homes took to sell and other information that will help you and your agent make a strategic offer.

6. Have your agent do a professional market analysis that can be presented with your offer to the seller to show them why you are offering what you are.

7. Consider closing costs in your offer.  They add up to a few THOUSAND dollars in most cases.  You may want to have the seller pay them, but then you can't expect them to cut their price as much. It may work better to put that in your loan if possible.

8. Have your agent get a listing package so you know recorded deeds of trust.  Often we can find out how much your seller owes, how much they paid for the home, how long they lived there and other things that will dictate there ability to negotiate.  We find as much as we can about WHY they seller is selling and what they need so we can collaborate and make the sale work.

9. Determine what the home you are buying is worth to YOU. 

10. DON'T talk to the listing agent or home seller directly.  Often people think they can negotiate themselves.  Some can but most cannot.  Anything that you tell the selling agent will be told to the seller.  He or she will learn a lot more about you than you want to be known if you are not very careful.  The listing agents DUTY is to get the best deal for the SELLER.  Sometimes, especially first time buyers don't realize that it costs no more to have your own agent instead of using the listing agent.  It is not legal for the listing agent to change commission unless it is clearly stated in the listing on the MLS that the rate is variable and it is very rare that it is.  Dealing directly with the listing agent is usually not in your best interest as a buyer.

11. Using a large agency does not mean you will get more information, more listings or better service.  In fact, each office has one designated broker.  A small office usually means your agent has a close working relationship with the Broker who has time to help and can be the key to unlock some obsticles both during the offer process and the many things that have to happen to turn an accepted offer into a closed sale.