Custom Real Estate Blog

"Where have all the good homes gone ?"       Hundreds of homes may be for sale right now but there is an extreme shortage of really good ones!  Instead of getting what they really want, most buyers are forced to compromise in one of two ways.  They either settle for a somewhat move-in ready home OR spend much more than they intended to compete with other buyers for the one amazing home that hits the market every few weeks.  For buyers expecting this process to be simple & easy, it can be a big let down. But wait.. A third option exists!   And it's the one that will pick up that disheartened buyer and meet their romantic expectations for owning a truly amazing home.  All within a few short months! This example shows a beautiful "Santa Fe" look & feel while featuring a sister shade of the  Sherwin Williams color of the year, Cavern Clay .  Our client started with a vision, then we found a house that we could...

Imagine a world where you purchase your next home, THEN get up to 6 months to sell your current one...   That's right! On this planet, there is no selling then buying stress.  You don't have to feverishly search for your next home AFTER accepting an offer on your current one.   Sounds rough?  Just ask anyone who has done it! Skeptical?  I would be too! If you never heard of this before, it's called a portfolio loan.  They come in many shapes & sizes, but this loan type allows a buyer to be payment free for up to 6 months on their next home .  It's only available through the normal Fannie Mae conventional loan (sorry, no FHA/VA or USDA) and is structured so payments on your next home start AFTER your sell your old home.  This gives our clients the ability to have their cake and eat it too!  Carefully choose your new home and complete the purchase process... Then take your time moving out and selling your existing home....

In a Sea of Average Homes For Sale... Our blend of real estate and construction  gives  our clients more, for much less than retail. If you have ever shopped for a home...  At the beginning, very exciting.  After seeing 30 homes, starts feeling like a second job.  So many showings, so many wasted nights and weekends.  If your expectations were to get a home you would love, at this point a home you mostly like starts looking like a win. Should you compromise on your list  of needs & wants.... or   Get Exactly What You Want? Did you know that some sellers will allow a home buyer to include upgrades into the purchase price?  This isn't offered to the general public, but an expert real estate agent can negotiate that for you.  Real estate has many layers, with many buyers stuck with traditional ways to overcome the home shopping problems mentioned above.  What this means for you is that the amount of av...

What are the key ingredients for a great childhood? 1. One-on-One Time in the Kitchen . The time it takes to prepare a meal is the time we have some special moments with our kids .  Making cookies together is a sure way to get their undivided attention! 2. Neighborhood Pals.   Give your kids a safe place to play and develop the friendships that stick with us for a lifetime.  There is no better feeling than finding out one of your friends from school lives just a few houses down the street! 3. A Guest Room!   Give Grandma & Grandad a place to stay when they are in town.  Big breakfast with everyone sitting around the table, those are some precious moments! 4. Adopt a Family Dog!   Your new family member will love playing with the kids in the backyard or going on walks around the neighborhood.  Protection, companionship, puppy kisses... that's the good life. 5. Don't Pay for Storage Anymore! Put all the extra family "stuff" you...

It's not an exaggeration to say it, as we can consistently deliver on this based on our local housing market.  It's science, with some math mixed in.   Sooo let's dive into the adventure that is...Getting a Free Pool. Hypothesis:  Prove that it is MUCH CHEAPER to buy a pre-existing home that already has a pool, instead of buying a home then adding the pool.  Especially in the winter! First off... How much does a new pool cost? Well, I found a local company on Google that has an online calculator for quotes.  I stayed away from Angies's List, Home Advisor, etc who had pricing guides that were wildly inaccurate.  But based on the estimator at Custom Outdoor Trends in Rockwall, an average pool with a spa costs 50-70k based on the different choices I made pretending to be a pool shopper.  Let's use 60k as our verified plug and play number for the purposes of this exercise. The Buying Options We Tested: Fixer-upper that alread...

Stop paying for the convenience of living in an apartment. Break out of the box and find a real home for you and your family.   Plan Your Escape...Make the Leap! Step 1 See Into The Future Allow us to run a data based simulation of your must-haves.  This will give you a 360 degree look at what your ideal home will cost and where/when you can find it available. Step 2 Get Pre-Approved This is based on current market standards for tenant criteria to save time and money.  Also see how you rank against other prospective tenants!  We do this to limit potential surprises, so rest easy and enjoy your pathway to leasing a home you will love.  Step 3 Let's Go Shopping! See real homes that are currently on the market! Walking through actual homes is the last step on the way to boosting your confidence prior to making a decision to terminate your apartment lease.  We can even show you homes that aren't currently for lease....

Low Appraisal Worries?                                                        When you are selling your home, the winning bidder’s lender will have an appraisal done to make sure the house is worth as much as the loan.  If a home is deemed to be worth less than than the offer amount, the sale of your home would be in jeopardy.  The banks are loaning the money, so they want to be safe.  Let’s take Albert the Appraiser for example… He gets an email to go evaluate the value of the home you just put under contract after a massive bidding war.  To him, it’s one of three houses he is going to appraise today so he goes online to start finding similar properties for comparison.  There are 5 or 6 houses that have sold recently so he records the data on size, rooms and other amenities.  He reviews the pictures of...