April 2012 Issue

Privacy Listings

Page 3

Boise Housing Charts

Page 4-6

New Const. Forecast

Page 9

Boise Shadow Inventory

Page 7

Private Listings

Page 11

Boise Home Reviews

Page 14

PRSRT STD

US Postage Paid Boise ID

Permit #649

Brought To You By: Front Street Brokers Luxury Home Sales & Investments Ph 208.740.5000, Fx 208.441.0292 877 W Front Street, Boise Id 83702

Front Street Brokers Luxury Home Sales & Investments 877 Front Street, Boise Idaho 83702 Office 208-740-5000

Front Street Brokers.com

89.9FM

Boise Real Estate Radio Show Fridays 12-1pm

Boise Housing charts & Stats

How to sell your home “Privately” The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index for the month of January recently showed home prices falling in most major metro cities. Down 3.8% year over year in

their 20 City Index, and down almost 1% in

January from the previous month.

As with any bad news this got a lot of press, in part because housing news in the first quarter of 2012 has been fairly positive and

encouraging.

So what caused the price drop? With home sales increasing and inventory levels drop-ping across the US, why would we see fur-ther decline? I spent some time investigating the causes of these recent declines in home

prices and this is what I discovered:

First, not all cities are down. Many larger metro cities did see some recent declines in home prices, but other, smaller metro areas like Boise, Idaho have seen a recent upturn in home prices. Boise’s February home pric-es were up 11% higher than January’s. One reason smaller markets are rebounding more

quickly is due to low levels of inventory of homes on the market in comparison to the

numbers larger metro markets are showing.

Another reason many cities are experiencing a new dip in home prices is due to the price

range in which people are buying. A lot of the recent increases in home sales have been in lower priced homes, especially with more investors trying to buy properties priced at the bottom of the market. Whereas typical home buyers tend to purchase in the summer months, investors tend to be very active in winter and therefore, home price statistics

often dip in Jan-April. As market home pric-es are determined by an averaging of all homes being sold in a month, this concentra-tion of activity in the lower price ranges skews the median homes price stats down and gives the impression the market is get-

ting worse.

Boise appears to be ahead of the curve on recovery, primarily because it has burned through the majority of the foreclosure in-

ventory in the lower price ranges. Other markets are not so lucky and will likely see further declines in

2012, with many buyers focusing on homes priced at the bottom

of the market.

PRIVACY LISTINGS Boise Agents Who Sell Homes Off The MLS

Having the whole world know your home is for sale has its share of problems and an-noyances, therefore, Front Street Brokers (a Boise Real Estate Company) specializes in

what we like to call ―PRIVACY LISTINGS‖, where we can market your home for sale privately to our list of qualified buyers, to agents who have qualified buyers, and get

your home the exposure it needs to sell, without having a sign in your yard, a lock box on your door, nor do you have to rush to clean and leave your home due to random agent

calls. A ―Privacy Listings‖ are not for everyone, but if you want to go that route then do it right.

Use agents who are well connected, have a large database of qualified buyers, and have the reputation in town that causes other real estate agents to call and see what they have

available that they can’t find on the MLS. Your agent should also do private listings on a regular basis. Front Street Brokers is your solution.

See Page 3 For more details on Privacy Listings

US home prices fall while Boise surges

From the Editor: In the five years or so since what was known as the

―real estate bubble‖ burst, I’ve been asked a question

pretty often.

“Do you ever wonder if it was a mistake to stay in

the real estate business?”

Sometimes, it seems as though still being in the business should speak for itself. If you think being in the business

you’re in is a mistake, you should get out. Many real

estate agents HAVE left the business – thousands and

thousands – since 2007. Those who have stayed in it

have to have demonstrated some success, so it would

probably be difficult for us to describe what we’re doing

as a mistake.

Is it hard sometimes? Sure. But just because some-

thing’s hard doesn’t mean that doing it is a mistake. In

fact, maybe just the opposite is true. NOT doing some-

thing that’s hard, just because it’s hard, might be the

mistake. If you avoid doing hard things, you don’t allow

yourself to grow to your fullest potential. Likewise, if

you don’t do something because you’re afraid to make a

mistake, you’re not developing to your full potential

either.

For some real estate professionals, leaving the business

probably was NOT a mistake. If you weighed the risks,

did some true self-analysis, examined your business and

thought ―I’m just not going to make it,‖ then getting out would be logical. But getting out because you fear fail-

ure, or fear making a mistake, that doesn’t make much

sense to me.

In fact, some people are so fearful of making a mistake that they turn it into a self-fulfilling prophecy. Being

afraid of the mistake, being obsessed with not messing

up, actually leads them to make mistakes and mess up.

You sometimes hear that in sports, when you play to

avoid getting injured, that’s when you end up getting

injured. Do you want to avoid injury? Of course, but

consciously trying to avoid an injury changes what it is

you do best. Same with playing to avoid mistakes.

Nobody is perfect. Nobody who attempts anything

worthwhile ever does it perfectly. Mistakes happen. It’s

probably good that they do.

A young child, for example, learns how to do just about

everything through trial-and-error. Kids put things they

shouldn’t in their mouth, fall down a lot and touch

things that are hot. If they don’t learn the lessons that

come with those outcomes, then they don’t develop.

But the same is true of adults. A lot of what we do is

trial-and-error, too. Like little kids – at least hopefully –

we learn from our mistakes and get better at whatever

the endeavor is. And while making mistakes is actually

helpful, fear of making them is really harmful.

If you are afraid of making mistakes, you are likely go-

ing to be pushed into inaction. Action-oriented people

are not afraid of making mistakes. True, the leap-before-

you-look approach will bring with it mistakes, but those

mistakes are something to learn from and that sure beats

never, ever leaping.

There are look-before-you-leap folks out there who

spend their whole lives looking and never leap. Their

fear of failure, of making mistakes, prevents them from

accomplishing all that they could.

This is not to say that you should be careless or reckless.

That’s not the case at all. But don’t be forced to the

sidelines by a fear of making a mistake. The old phrase

is ―err on the side of caution,‖ but the phrase itself still

allows for error!

Back to real estate. Will it be something I look back on

and say ―That was a mistake‖ someday? Maybe. But

right now, I don’t see it as a mistake, although I hope I

am making enough mistakes along the way.

The real estate market isn’t the same as it was five, six,

seven years ago, and it has made many people – home-

owners, investors, builders, bankers – adjust. A lot of

what we’ve been through is unprecedented. When that happens, mistakes will be made. And any business own-

er will tell you that making mistakes, and learning from

them, is part of what makes the business stronger.

So while I don’t think it’s a mistake to be in this busi-ness, I won’t worry about it or any other ones that might

come along. The biggest mistake is to be afraid of mak-

ing them.

Hear Us On The Radio—Fridays at Noon

Boise Real Estate Radio Hosted By Mike Turner and Jared Cozby of

Front Street Brokers

Get the Lowdown on What is Happening in the Boise Real Estate Market.

Tune in to Boise’s Only Non-Commercial Real Estate Show

89.9FM

Listen Live at 89.9FM or on the web at:

RadioBoise.org

How To Sell Your Home OFF The Open Market

Exclusively by Front Street Brokers – Boise’s Luxury Home Seller

The odds are that many of you that are reading this

have a home and have SOME desire to sell your home, so you can…

…Buy one of the awesome homes we share with you every week

…Downsize to reduce your overhead

…Travel more

…Move closer to the kids

…Reduce the amount of work it takes to maintain your home

…Build the home you really desire

We all have different reasons for selling, but most of us who still own a home

Don’t NEED to Sell, but would consider it, if we got the right offer.

The Solution: Having the whole world know your home is for sale has its

share of problems and annoyances, therefore, Front Street Brokers has developed a great

alternative way for you to sell your home, that we like to call ―PRIVACY LISTINGS‖,

where we can market your home for sale privately to our list of qualified buyers, to agents who have qualified buyers, and get your home

exposure it needs to sell, but

you don’t have to worry about…

…Having a sign in your yard to alert your neighbors and friends

…Having your home on the MLS, which causes random

agents to call and knock on your door at all hours of the day

…Having to hire your family member who is an agent (sometimes hiring family is just too problematic)

…Having people from your work find out your home is for

sale and start irritating rumors of why you are moving

With our PRIVACY LISTING you get the full power of the Front Street Brokers market-

ing systems to sell your home, without having all the normal hassles of listing your

home. If we find someone interested in your home either through our brokerage or

through another agent, we make sure they are well qualified and your home definitely

meets their criteria before we call you to set up a private showing.

Very few agents could pull off a PRIVACY LISTING effectively.

An Agent needs to be well connected, have a large database of prospective buyers, and have the reputation in town that even real estate agents at other companies think to call this agent to see what they have available that they can’t find on the MLS. Front Street Brokers is perfectly designed to provide a ―Privacy Listing‖ for you. Our database of

buyers is likely twice as large as any other brokerage in town, and we use different marketing techniques to sell our homes that most agents haven’t even heard of. Some of

our privacy listings sell within a few days, due to already having a large database of able buyers looking. We have also been able to obtain higher prices on our privacy list-

ings due to the home always remaining at Zero days on the market, buyers are less likely to lowball the seller, like they do when they see a home on the MLS that has been

listed for over 3 months. If a “PRIVACY LISTING” sounds like a good fit for you, don’t hesitate to contact us for more information.

Call Us Today: 208-740-5000

SOLD

PRIVATELY

PRIVACY LISTINGS Boise Agents Who Sell Homes Off The MLS

The Problem: Most Sellers fear the hassle of having your home listed

for sale on the open market. Nobody likes…

…Having to clean constantly for the random and unexpected showing request from an agent …Worrying that someone will miss-use the lockbox the realtor has put on your door

…Having your neighbors bother you with 50 questions on why you are moving

…Having unqualified buyers asking to see your home

…I could go on and on

+ = +

If you’ve been looking to buy a home in the Boise area lately, you’ve probably experienced some

frustration in not finding what you want amongst the record low number of homes available. Our

inventory of homes for sale in 2008 was so high that it dropped prices dramatically, and consumers

started rapid purchasing–especially of the foreclo-sure supply. Since that year, our inventory has

continued a steady drop by 1/3 each year (refer to

chart and video).

This progressive decline of houses for sale to be-low the ―healthy‖ 6 month supply was a key com-

ponent in Boise being named by several national studies as one of the top metro markets to see sig-

nificant real estate turnaround in 2012. Low supply coupled with increased demand serves to drive up

home prices and get new construction moving

again, too.

Ada County residents are not the only ones to ben-

efit from the rapid decline in home inventory. Can-yon County has also seen nearly 1/2 of its supply

of available homes bought up–a 43% decline since

last year alone.

Because so many of Boise’s foreclosures came on the market and were purchased so rapidly, it puts

our market nearly 2 years ahead of most of the nation in real estate recovery. And because we

have seen these trends continue for the last few years, we can trust this momentum is not a ―blip

on the screen‖ but a true market pattern certain to bring with it measurable results in home price

recovery in 2012 and beyond.

Rapid Reduction in Housing Inventory

Home Inspector Davin Strand

Bent Nail Home Inspections

208-869-5557

―Davin has been our recommended inspector for our real estate firm for years for good reason. He is the best.‖ - Jared Cozby, FS Brokers

Watch This Video at: http://frontstreetbrokers.com/video-4121

Boise Rental Management Matt Rubio

208.473.2418

―I refer my clients to Boise Rental Management. Not only is Matt the kind

of guy you want in your corner, he is all business with tenants and helps you

keep your investments profitable.‖ - Mike Turner, FS Brokers

National Home Inventory

Boise Home Inventory

Why Boise Home Prices

Fell Further Than The

National Average

(Too Much Inventory)

Boise’s housing recovery is on a 2 year head start from

the National Average. Boise’s extreme drop in prices has

lead to a buying spree that has dropped the inventory

levels below normal for the last 2 years. This long term

trend will help Boise home prices recover faster.

2yr Gap = Faster Recovery

PAGE 5

The last of the 2011 data for Boise’s real estate market keeps rolling in, and for the most part things are looking

up in the Treasure Valley.

Recently I mentioned how Boise, Idaho was in the nation-al spotlight, named as one of the few U.S. metro areas that

should see a home prices increase in excess of 4% percent this year. Economists might actually be right on this pre-

diction as the year over year home price data shows Boise up 3% in January and up 11% in February. I’m adding my

prediction that the market bottom for Boise will be named

January or April of 2011–nearly a year behind us. So, at

least we are off to a good start.

Other good news from the 2011 data shows home sales are

already up 13% year to date, and pending home sales are up 17%–reflective of the growing demand for Boise area

homes.

Another bright spot is new construction pending sales are

up 54% compared to January of 2011 and up 75% for Feb. This is probably the statistic I am most excited about

since an increase in new home sales means more jobs for

local contractors. However, what is really setting the Boi-se market apart from other cities across the nation is our

extremely low inventory of available homes for sale–a number that keeps shrinking. Currently, Ada County’s

supply of homes for sale is down 61% since the peak. Similarly, Canyon County is down 68%, which means 2/3

of the market has been bought up. Buyers are scrambling to get to what is left of the lower-priced homes, aware that

this ―comeback year‖ may just be the end of the buyer’s

market we’ve had over the last several years.

2012—The Year of the Comeback

83% Drop In Foreclosures

Since The Peak

18 months ago

Homes For Sale in Canyon County

ADA CANYON

Supply Drop Has 62% Since The Peak

Supply Drop Has 65% Since The Peak

-THE DAWN OF HARP 2.0- - By Front Street Brokers—Boise Realtors

As of February 2012, the Boise real estate market experienced a 42% jump in residents who refinanced

their home mortgage, compared to the previous year. This increase in refinances is largely attributed to the

new HARP 2.0 program that is finally available for

homeowners that have underwater mortgages.

HARP stands for Home Affordable Refinance Pro-gram, and has been around for a few years. The prob-

lem is the first version of HARP, let’s call it HARP 1.0, pretty much failed. Myriad restrictions, such as

capping the amount of negative equity in your home at 25% (when, on average, the market had fallen by

40%), caused two out of every three people that ap-plied for it to be denied; and it was especially unhelp-

ful to places that were the worst hit by the real estate

crash, such as Boise, Idaho.

So, back in the fall of 2011, President Obama by-

passed Congress and ordered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to overhaul the HARP program. Five months

later, we now have HARP 2.0 available, and it appears

to be the answer for a lot of homeowners.

Some industry professionals say that HARP 2.0 may

equal an average savings of $375 a month for house-

holds, or the equivalent of getting a $4,500 pay raise.

Part of the eligibility requirements are that you must have been current on your mortgage for the last 6

months, have a loan less than $417,000 (for Treasure Valley residents), and your loan must have been ac-

quired before June 1st, 2009.

I’m not a mortgage lender, I’m a real estate agent, but

I can tell you that HARP 2.0 and low interest rates will not be around forever. Take the time to invest 15

minutes this week to contacting a lender to discuss HARP 2.0. The amount of money you could save is

definitely worth the time investment.

Boise Home Prices Jump 11% in March By Front Street Brokers—Boise Realtors

Boise’s home prices saw an 11% jump in March, and it has a lot of people talking

about why. One theory is that the price increase came due to an increase in de-

mand for new homes, which is certainly a

part of the equation, but not all of it.

First, there were fewer sales in the under $120,000 range, meaning purchas-

ing activity of the lowest priced homes couldn’t pull down the medi-

an home price the way it has been.

The next big change was in homes

priced at $200-250,000 which raised from 20 to 47 sales for March (more than doubling

in activity).

Finally, there was another upturn in home buying activity in the $300-400,000 range,

going from 14-25 sales.

Both an increased demand, and the price range of home that demand was for, aided in

the impressive double-digit raise we saw, which will certainly go a long way to continue to improve consumer confidence and help the Boise Real Estate Market on its way to

recovery.

Watch Videos About Boise Home Prices http://frontstreetbrokers.com/video-4122 http://frontstreetbrokers.com/video-4123

Boise Hot Tub Cleaning

Spa Clean 208-473-4415 (Mention Ad For 15%

Off Your Next Service)

If you own a hot tub, it definitely needs to be cleaned and scrubbed to get the full enjoyment and to avoid health is-

sues. Spa Clean deep cleans the hot tub (including the jets), so it will stay clean much longer, so you use it more often.

Shadow Inventory: To Fear or Not to Fear?

It seems when I discuss any positive real estate

news there is still a lot of concern from consum-

ers and even industry professionals about the

threat of a large number of back-logged foreclo-

sures they’ve heard is destined to crash the mar-

ket at some point in the near future.

This threat of back-logged foreclosures and other

distressed properties that haven’t hit the market

is commonly known as Shadow Inventory. It includes homes that are significantly delinquent

but on which the banks haven’t yet filed a notice

of default, or properties the banks have taken

back but haven’t yet put up for sale.

According to Corelogic, there are an estimated

1.6 million homes that make up shadow invento-

ry as of Oct 2011, which is about 5 months sup-

ply for the US. Although those numbers are

down from 2010 when shadow inventory was at

1.9 million, representing 7 months of inventory,

numbers that large are bound to negatively im-

pact the market in some way.

However, I would argue that shadow inventory

represents a significant threat in just a handful of

states around the US.

Corelogic reports that 3 states represent 33% of

the total shadow inventory back log: California,

Florida, and Illinois. 6 states have over 50% of

the total shadow inventory, which includes New

Jersey, New York, and Texas. So, you can see

that bulk of the shadow inventory issue is cen-

tered in just a few states.

On the other hand, the Boise, Idaho real estate

market has experienced foreclosure sales in ex-

cess of 50% for 2010 and 2011. While this did

lead to further price declines, it also helped shield the market from future shadow inventory

because it allowed banks to unload their negative

assets very quickly compared to states like Cali-

fornia and Illinois.

Therefore, it is my position that shadow invento-

ry is a big, ugly mess that will continue to affect

the housing market for another several years, but

the damage will be primarily focused in a few

states. Markets like Boise that have far less of a

back log of foreclosures stand to recover much

faster as threat of any new foreclosure invento-

ries flooding their market is significantly re-

duced, thus should not be feared or anticipated.

By Front Street Brokers—Boise Realtors

By Front Street Brokers—Boise Realtors

A foreclosure start occurs when a homeowner falls more than 3-4

months behind in their mortgage payment, and the mortgage compa-

ny files a notice of default with the county. Foreclosure starts don’t

always end in foreclosure, but they’re a good indicator of how many

foreclosures will eventually end up on the market. Boise foreclosure

starts dropped sharply compared to the national average–down 34%

from 2010-2011. That still leaves us at a level nearly double what it

was before the 2007 market crash, but also represents steady,

healthy recovery.

And where are the foreclosures happening in Boise, ID? 87% of

them are on properties priced below $200,000, and 75% on proper-

ties below $160,000. These include shorts sales, bank-owned prop-erties, homes slated for auction, and HUD-owned houses. These

distressed sales still accounted for about half of the monthly home

sales on average for the Boise Market in 2011. However, foreclo-

sures in such a low price range have created an entire under

$100,000 market that simply didn’t exist in Boise 3-4 years ago.

With that much foreclosure sales happening below $100,000, the

median house price of all homes was bound to get pulled down and

did in 2011.

These extremely low-priced homes are being bought up rapidly. The

inventory of foreclosures has dropped 71% in Ada County and 81%

in neighboring Canyon County. As we continue to purge the lowest

price homes and work through these necessary steps–including fore-

closures and their subsequent purchases–we will see home prices

begin to rise slowly but steadily again in 2012, mostly due from the

lack of available homes to buy below 100K, and therefore will force

up the Median Home Price Statistics.

IMPACT OF FORECLOSURES

Watch Video at: http://FrontStreetBrokers.com/Videos-4124

PAGE 7

Your own little piece of Tuscany

~ 3218 N. Ballantyne Lane, Eagle

Seize this once in a lifetime opportunity to join a co-op viticulture operation and winery. One of five, five acre lots in Vigne d’Aquila. Build your Tuscan-style dream home, take in unobstructed mountain views, and enjoy a close community of other passionate viticulturists. Water shares and building plans included in purchase price.

Great opportunity for a custom build. This lot is NOT on the MLS.

Offered at $299,000

5.25 Acres in the Heart of Eagle’s Wine Country

JARED COZBY ~ 208-830-3715

GOOD NEWS

FOR

FRONT STREET!

By Staff Writer

We’ve always thought our office had a pretty sweet downtown location at 9th and Front—lots of foot traffic, always something interesting going on in the Grove, sharing the space with swanky Aspen Lofts, and close to great down-town eateries—but our location is about to get even sweeter! Ground is finally being broken for the much antici-pated JUMP park, right across 9th street from us. JUMP is short for Jack’s Urban Meeting Place, in honor of famed Idahoan and agricultural pio-neer, J.R. Simplot.

Step one is taking down the old Comp-ton Warehouse in preparation for build-ing the underground parking garage that will be part of the 7.5 acre park. The park will also house a 57,000 sq ft building complete with five interactive studios for cooking, creating and in-venting, multimedia, movement, and innovation. A large meeting room with a catering kitchen large enough to serve 500-700 will also be available for community fundraisers and events.

We can’t wait to share “our corner” with such a dynamic and innovative (not to mention pretty!) space as this. So, if you’re downtown taking a look at the park’s progress, stop in and say hello. We’d love to meet you!

YOUR BUSINESS SHOULD BE LISTED HERE! Boise Real Estate Newspaper, an extension of Front Street Brokers, works to develop thriving, interac-

tive, and ongoing relationships with our readers, and to educate about the Boise Real Estate Market, com-

munity news and houses offered in an informative, entertaining manner. Published 6 times a year. Read by a varied demographic of professionals, homeowners, homebuyers, and those just curious about the real estate market. Live link on Front Street Brokers website with an average of 50,000 monthly hits. Print copies are postage mailed to over 10,000 local households. Emailed out to over 10,000 online subscribers. Available at free distribution points around our prime 9th and Front office location (BoDo District). Distribution grows with every issue.

REACH THIS AUDIENCE TODAY! Limited time Spring Break rates *Variety of plans to help you work within your budget and marketing

goals * Call for rates and details today! Mike Turner, 208-340-8399 Or send email inquiries to info@FrontStreetBrokers.com

2012 is shaping up to be a big rebound year for new

construction home sales in Boise, as evidenced already

in the 29% median price increase over the last 18

months. Why this increase is in part due to the price

raise in building costs, there are more factors at work.

1. The tax credit which was offered in February-June

of 2010 was a huge price influence. It encouraged a lot

of consumers, most of them first-time home buyers, to

purchase a large group of homes in the lowest price range (―starter‖ homes), therefore driving down the

overall median home price. The You Tube chart shows

how the market price corrected itself after the credit

expired, and how prices have continued to steadily

climb afterwards as the buyer pool for new homes now

consists of more move up- and higher end-home con-

sumers.

2. The number of building permits applied for in Ada

County hasn’t been this low since 1988 meaning there

aren’t many new, unoccupied homes (―spec‖ homes)

available. That, coupled with already low existing

home inventory, creates a scenario where buyers with

little to select from will likely choose to build instead.

3. The number of build-

ers currently working in

the Boise area is down

75% since the housing

bubble of the mid-00′s, with only about 150

active. More new home

demands will greatly

benefit these active

builders and hopefully

get more back up and

running, and creating

jobs.

In short, home supply

has been decreasing for

the last six years while

home demand has been

increasing for the last

three, creating a gap

that looks like 2012 and new construction are

perfectly poised to

close.

2012 New Construction Rebound

While the nation holds its breath on whether or not the

2012 housing market will finally climb out of the dol-

drums, Boise, Idaho is quietly surging ahead with,

amongst other things, an explosion in new home

sales. As of February 2012, pending new home sales

were up over 75% compared to last year for the Boise

metro housing market.

This sudden uptick in new home construction is taking

many by surprise, and has been fueled primarily by the

number of interested buyers but lack of available exist-

ing homes for sale in the Treasure Valley. Currently the

supply of homes for sale in Ada and Canyon County is

near decade record lows, forcing buyers to look at new

construction for the first time in years.

New construction home sales in Boise had been falling

for 6 consecutive years, but appears to have finally

reached a tipping point with home shoppers in the ar-

ea. With a 75% increase in residential new construc-

tion, one has to conclude that this translates to more

jobs and money being pumped into the local economy.

Builders appear to be racing to meet this new demand

by providing affordable home options distinctively

different than the foreclosures they are competing

with. A low cost, brand new home that is walk-in ready

is proving to be popular with more and more home

shoppers who are discouraged by the dwindling fore-closure properties on the market that often need a sub-

stantial amount of repair or improvements. Buyers

often can’t finance the improvements they want to

make to a home when buying a foreclosure, so building

a home becomes an attractive alternative in this ever-

changing housing climate.

New Construction Sales Soar in Feb

2012—Up 75%

Pending New Home Sales Soar in the Treasure Valley

Watch video on all recent New Construction Stats and what

our Boise market forecast is for new home sales in 2012

http://FrontStreetBrokers.com/video-4125

You’ve probably seen at least one of the-

se corrugated plastic signs around town.

―We Buy Houses,‖ they vaguely an-

nounce. Or ―Stop Foreclosure. Call

Now.‖ By design these signs create more

questions than answers. So who are these

shadowy home buyers who are wealthy

enough to buy so many houses, and yet

tacky enough to pepper the roadside with

cheap perishable advertising?

This exposé will take you behind the cur-tain to reveal

the truth. It’s

all very simple

and unfortu-

nately it in-

cludes no inter-

national in-

trigue.

But with some

degree of cer-tainty, I can

report that

those signs are

posted by a

different shad-

owy group.

They are called

Real Estate

Investors. ―But

how can they

buy so many

houses?,‖ You ask. ―Are they

super rich or

something?‖ Many investors operate in

roughly the same manner. There is the

point man, or the dealmaker. It’s his num-

ber on the sign. When you call the num-

ber he will ask you about your house,

what you think it’s worth, what you owe

on it, and when and why you want to sell.

He then takes this information and does a

preliminary evaluation on the value of your home and talks about it with one of

his funding partners.

Depending on the number of homes they

want to buy at any given time, most in-

vestors have several funding partners

whose money actually ―buys‖ the house.

The investor will call you back, or meet

with you to present an offer, sometimes in

as little as a few hours from the initial

call. Here’s a sneak peak: The offer will

be low. They have to make the offer low-

er than market price because they are in

business to make money. Either they will

spruce up your house and resell it, or they

will keep it as a rental. Both situations

require that the investor get a good deal

on the house.

But is it a good deal for you? It depends

on why you are selling, and how fast you

want to get it done. As a general rule, a

low offer price will be fast and painless.

They won’t ask you to do any repairs.

They will probably do an inspection just

to make sure there are no hidden defects,

and then give you your money and you’ll

be done with it. If your house is severely

damaged or you just want to get rid of it

as fast as possible this may be an okay

solution for you. If you have some time to

wait and your house is in good shape, taking a low cash offer may not be your

best deal.

Statistically and in actuality, you will get

the most money from the sale of your

house by listing it with a Realtor®. The

biggest variable in getting top dollar is

time. If you really want to maximize your

gain you may have to wait a little while,

but you also need to know, starting right

now, that no one is going to over-pay for

your house. A licensed agent can help

you find that sweet spot in value that will

get you the most money in an amount of

time that is acceptable to you.

There is another common type of person

who calls these signs. It’s the person who

wants to sell their house but owes more

than the home is worth. Readers of this

newspaper will know that all the infor-

mation you need to know about Short

Sales is available at BoiseShortSale-Help.com. But for

the uninformed, they

may not know where

to turn, so they

sometimes call these

signs and hope to

find help.

For the most part,

lenders these days

are requiring home-owners to list their

properties with a

Realtor® in order to

be considered for a

short sale. Because

many investors are

NOT Realtors®, I

highly recommend

that you find a li-

censed agent to dis-

cuss your short sale.

(Is it too obvious at this point to mention

that you should call

me? It is? Okay, sorry, carry on.)

Can I trust these investors? Is this legal?

These are critical questions. As to the

legality, I am not an attorney and this

paragraph is not legal advice. In very gen-

eral terms, a person can buy a house from

another person without having a real es-

tate license. Unfortunately, these transac-tions can quickly enter gray areas. If the

investor puts your house under contract

and then tries to find another buyer before

they actually close on your house, that is

questionable. There are many scenarios

that can cross over into violating the law.

You should seek professional guidance

for your own information and protection.

Never pay someone an up front fee to

have them buy your house. As obvious as

that sounds, people ask for a lot of stuff

just to see what they can get away with.

Also, if you are unclear about any docu-

ments you are being asked to sign, don’t

sign it until you are.

Beyond that, one way to have the most

confidence is to work with a licensed real

estate professional. They have defined

standards they are bound to uphold. Plus

they usually have an office that you can

go to and find them when you need them There is just a greater sense of transparen-

cy, responsibility and competence that

you can expect from a licensed Realtor®.

I was an investor for six years before I got

my real estate license. I know many of the

local investors. For the most part, they are

good people who do what they say they

will do. Sadly, I have also heard terrible

stories from people who were taken ad-

vantage of and left in worse condition than when they first made the call to the

innocent looking sign on the side of the

road.

As a licensed real estate agent I am held

to a higher standard than non-licensed

investors. And as an agent with Front

Street Brokers many of my clients are

investors. So if you need a fast cash offer

for your distressed property, I can help

you with that. If you need to do a short

sale, but don’t know where to turn, I can help you with that. And if you want to list

your house to get the best price in a real-

istic time frame, I can help you with that,

too. So the next time you see a sign that

say’s ―We Buy Houses,‖ call me instead.

(And help me pass the word around, will

you?)

Gavin McCaleb, 208-890-0591 Gavin@

frontstreetbrokers.com

Find out all about Short Sales at BoiseShortSaleHelp.com

“W E B U Y H O U S E S !” The Story Behind the Sign

PAGE 11

Property Details:

2.5 acre lot, beautifully landscaped (over a hundred trees planted). Unobstructed views

of the Owhyee Mountains. 5+ Bedrooms, 7,650 sq ft, huge drive-through shop and

other amenities too numerous to list. Home is in Wilder, a scenic 35 min drive from

Boise. Small subdivision (there are 3 or 4 houses on this street). There is even a small putting green, and

grape vines. Perfect country family home or empty

nester spot. Original owners put a ton of money in

this place, and had it on the market for $1.29 million,

so the current $525,000 price the sellers have it at is

awesome. Read more of Mike’s review at: http://frontstreetbrokers.com/Wilder-Home

Property Details:

3443 N. Triple

Ridge Pl. Absolute-

ly ideal family home

in a desirable Eagle

location. Five irri-gated acres (water rights) with horse set up including barn and pasture. 6 huge bed-

rooms with Jack-and-Jill bathrooms and a spacious master suite. 4,374 sq ft. Year

round sunroom with fireplace. Two furnaces and two water heaters ensure whole-house

comfort. Open kitchen with granite counters. Listed at $625,000. Call me to have a

look at the property today: Sandi Rubio, Front Street Brokers, 208-850-3681.

Huge Shop & orchard

Owner Financing is possible with a minimum down payment of 15%. Contact

Front Street Brokers for more details about this property and/or terms about the owner financing option. Property Details: Price:

$425,000, 4 Bedrooms, 3 Baths, 4 Car Garage, 3430

sqft, first class landscaping, located in Bear Creek

Subdivision in Meridian. Great family neighbor-

hood with large park inside the sub, and quick prox-

imity to Roaring Springs, the freeway, shopping and

schools. Striking living room off kitchen with wood

timbers and other warm, inviting elements through-

out. See more at:http://frontstreetbrokers.com/Meridian/2011

Property Details:

5806 Duxbury Pier.

If you want all the

attention to detail and

top-of-the-line finish-es you’d find in

a luxury home BUT don’t need a ton of space, then this is the perfect place for

you! Enjoy carefree townhome living in the Ulmer Lane Townhome Subdivi-

sion, a gated community. 1,806 sq ft , 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, plus office. Great

outdoor entertaining spaces with mountain and water views. Priced at $336,000.

Call me to schedule a showing: Sandi Rubio, Front Street Brokers, 208-850-

3681.

Owner Will carry

Private Listings

** Interested in having your home privately listed?– No yard sign, No short notice showings from

random agents, No nosey neighbors, No commitments. Maintain your privacy!

Contact Front Street Brokers at 208-740-5000 for more details.

Eagle Horse property Luxury tOWNHOME

MILLION

DOLLAR

HOME

REVIEWS

~ Not everyone can afford

a million dollar home, but everyone can enjoy

looking at them! —-

Sign up today for our weekly million dollar luxury home report. We’ll put a little something pretty in your

inbox and let you see how the ’other half’ lives.

Go to:

FrontStreetBrokers.com and click on the

*Idaho's Coolest Million Dollar Estates and Mansions* link

on the right hand side.

Picture Perfect Window Cleaning

WindowCleaningBoise.com 208-401-6265

Residential Window Cleaning, Commercial Window Cleaning,

New Home Construction Cleaning, Scratched Glass, Hard Water Cleaning, Glass Restoration, Screen Cleaning

Screen: Rescreening/Repair/Rebuild, Gutter Cleaning

Gutter Protection, Pressure Washing, Awning Cleaning/Sealing Providing quality work since 1988.

Short Sale Foreclosures

Have Dropped 45% Since

The Peak 18 Months Ago

Short Sale Foreclosures

Have Dropped 38% Since

The Peak 18 Months Ago

April / May

SUN MON TUES WED THUR FRI SAT

APRIL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Ballet Idaho presents

Cinderella at the

Morrison Center

8 9 10

Idaho Job and Career

Fair at the Boise Hotel

and Conference Center

11

Boise Chamber:

Unplugged Series with

Jim Everett

12 13 14

15 16

Poetry Slam deLux at

the Neurolux

17

18 19 20 21

22 23

The Cabin presents

Scott Simon at The

Egyptian

24 25 26 27 28

An Evening with

David Sedaris

at The Egyptian

29

Experience Idaho

Expo at Expo Idaho

30

Story Story Night at

The Rose Room

MAY 1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9

Opening Night of The

King and I at the

Morrison Center

10 Rodney Carrington

at the Taco Bell Arena

11 12

13 14 15

Boise Chamber of

Commerce: Chamber

Expo 2012

16 17

Jerry Seinfeld at the

Morrison Center

18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

BoDeans at the

Knitting Factory

27 28 29 30 31 JUNE 1 2

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

The Writers’

Block 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

12-1pm

Real Estate

Radio 89.9FM

Free cone day at Ben and Jerry’s Downtown

Buy Idaho Sunday Market, Linen Bldg.

Discovery Center Adult Night, 6pm

Boise Philharmonic: Don Quixote at the Morrison Center

Home Makeover Show, 10am, Boise Centre

Zoo Daze,

10 am at

Zoo Boise

Happy Easter!

International “No Diet” Day (it’s true!)

Idaho Writers & Readers Rendezvous

PAGE 13

Eagle home reviews

At: FrontStreetBrokers.com | Independent Reviews of Eagle ID Homes

6730 N. Conagher 3726 W. Houseland Ct. 185 Salina

1850 S. Travertine Way

Luxury Home Foreclosures

At: FrontStreetBrokers.com | Independent Reviews of Idaho Luxury Home Foreclosures

BOISE HOME REVIEWS At: FrontStreetBrokers.com | Independent Reviews of Boise ID Homes

Group One—Eagle Windermere/Richard B Smith Keller Williams Boise

Syringa Realty Keller Williams Boise

4611 Torridon Way 620 E. Orion

2280 Bluestem 4847 Skyline

Front Street Brokers is a Boise Real Estate Company

that specializes in Luxury Home Sales and Investments.

We provide independent and honest reviews of Boise

area homes for sale. Please note that homes we review

are often NOT our listings. We rather like to give you unbiased reviews including research on the property

you won’t find on a MLS listing. Home reviews are

only available for our clients and prospective clients, so

you will need to register on our website to access this

secure information:

Go to:

http://FrontStreetBrokers.com/Exclusive 2280 Bluestem

PAGE 15

OWN A Sweet McCall Cabin For Only $68,000

CONTACT JARED COZBY FRONT STREET BROKERS

208-740-5000

Monday Feb. 20 was President’s Day in the United

States – a national holiday meant to honor those who

have served the highest office in the land.

Every year, the holiday seems to spark articles about

the presidency, and this year was no different. One that

was particularly interesting was a 24/7 Wall St. article

that compared presidential hopefull Mitt Romney to

past presidents in terms of the wealth amassed.

It’s true that Romney comes from a wealthy family, but

he has said that he inherited no wealth from his parents,

who gave money to charity and grandchildren when

they passed away. He attributes his wealth-building

instead to building businesses, the most prominent one

a private equity firm that held stakes in some major

corporations. He’s got an MBA from Harvard, and

Romney has put it to good use on Wall Street.

In fact, according to the 24/7 Wall St. article, if elected,

Romney would be the second-wealthiest president ev-

er. The article took the estimated wealth of all the U.S.

presidents throughout history and translated their

wealth into today’s dollars.

It might surprise you to learn that George Washington,

the first president in the country’s history, was also the

wealthiest.

What may or may not surprise you is what made old

George – as well as some of the other early presidents

– so wealthy.

Unlike Romney, Washington wasn’t a Wall Street

wheeler-and-dealer. The article estimates that his worth

was about $525 million, and it pretty much came from

one thing: real estate.

Washington, it’s reported, owned five separate farms

on a total of about 8,000 acres. His wife, Martha, con-

tributed to the couple’s fortune after inheriting even

more property from her father when he died. No ques-

tion, the first First Couple was wealthy because of their

property holdings.

The second-wealthiest president, according to the arti-

cle, was the nation’s third president, Thomas Jefferson.

His estimated $212 million net worth could be attribut-

ed largely to his 5,000 acres.

In fact, if you go down the list of the wealthiest presi-

dents, most of them had large real estate holdings. And

not all of them were among the founding fathers. Theo-

dore Roosevelt, the 26th president, was third on the list

with about $125 million, and although he came from a wealthy family, he did own hundreds of acres of valua-

ble Long Island land.

It would seem that even among those presidents who

didn’t necessarily MAKE their fortune with real estate, most of them nonetheless wound up with considerable

real estate portfolios.

There is a caveat to the list, too: John F. Kennedy, who

was assassinated in 1963, never received his family inheritance. Had that occurred, he would have gained

an estimated $1 billion in today’s dollars, which would

have made him the wealthiest president of all time.

There might be a couple of lessons in all of this, how-

ever, I am not certain I know what they are. One could

be another strong example of the power of owning lots

of real estate. But regardless if there are any lessons

learned, I found this history of our past presidents very

interesting.

Which US President Was The Wealthiest?

FREE REPORT

LUXURY HOME FORECLOSURES

Homes that have been discounted up to 65%

IdahoLuxuryForeclosures.com

Get Monthly Market Reports and Weekly Email

YOUR BUSINESS

SHOULD

BE LISTED HERE! Boise Real Estate News is read by

professionals, homeowners, and those in the market for a new home.

Reach this audience today!

(SPRING BREAK SPECIAL = LOWEST PRICES OF THE YEAR)

For a price sheet and circulation details

CALL 208-740-5000 Or send email inquiries to info@FrontStreetBrokers.com

Levi Phillips

208-941-4280

―Levi has been helping my clients with their roofing needs

for years. Definitely give him a call for an estimate on your

roof repair or replacement.—Mike Turner, FS Brokers

Get A FREE Subscription To This Publication

Go To: http://BoiseRealEstateNewspaper.com