Author - The Durango Herald

It's a seller's market, but getting a good deal can still take some work

The housing market is hot, especially for sellers. Many people trying to sell homes find that an increase in home prices, combined with a limited inventory of homes for sale in pa...

DATE: Sep 5, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

Stable supply of water coming to the county’s Dry Side

Recently, I had the opportunity to see a presentation from the La Plata West Water Authority. As we all know, water is one of the most critical resources, and the water authority ...

DATE: May 30, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

How buyers can compete with multiple offers

In some areas of La Plata County, there is a severe shortage of inventory involving certain home types and price ranges. Buyers looking for a home with one or more of these chara...

DATE: May 23, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

5 homebuying mistakes you should avoid

Buying a home is a fairly complicated process involving negotiations, legal and contractual issues, lender requirements and obtaining clear title. Here is a guide to some of the b...

DATE: May 16, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

Knowing the ABCs of home appraisals

Acquiring a home appraisal is always an important part of buying a home as well as a requirement for getting a mortgage. Major changes have taken place during the last decade regarding the w...

DATE: May 9, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

Figure out who will pay which closing costs

Buyers and sellers customarily pay certain closing costs in a real estate transaction. The buyer’s costs can be paid at closing by the buyer, seller or the lender. Buyers should d...

DATE: Apr 18, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

5 things to do to prepare your home for sale

The sellers top five list is a check list for being successful in selling a home. In the marketplace, we often see homes that are not ready to be sold. Here are some ideas to assure a positi...

DATE: Apr 11, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

Is your home in a flood plain?

When considering the purchase of a home in a flood plain, make sure you are informed about all that is implied by that designation. Just because the home is in what is considered ...

DATE: Apr 4, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

Buying a home after losing one may be possible

Have you or one of your family members suffered through the foreclosure of a home or negotiated a short sale of your home during the Great Recession? There may be good news for yo...

DATE: Feb 28, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

What’s the right sales price for your home?

Determining an asking price for your home can be tricky. Highly priced, you could risk not being considered by potential buyers. If priced too low, you “leave money on the table” – something...

DATE: Feb 21, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

Demographics of first-time homebuyers

The National Association of Realtors has published the latest data on the demographics of first-time home buyers nationwide. The biggest headline of the study was that the charact...

DATE: Feb 14, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate

The ins and outs of title insurance

When purchasing real estate, a buyer generally requests that the seller provide title insurance. The first step to obtaining title insurance is for a title company to do a title s...

DATE: Feb 7, 2015 | CATEGORY: On Real Estate