Heard the market is slow, no one is buying and that we are all doomed?  I have good news and the proof to show you that 37 home sellers in La Pine Oregon are felling a lot different right now.  It is a buyer's market and buyers are certainly in the driver's seat, but they are buying.January is over, although there may be a few listings still showing pending that have actually closed escrow a quick search of the Central Oregon Association of Realtors MLS shows that there are 37 homes that either have an offer on them or have closed escrow. Prices vary and so do the style of homes, most of the sold properties did sell for less than listed for and many of these homes had multiple price reductions before finding a buyer... but they did find the buyer and the buyer did buy.Click here for the... 02/03/2008

Buyer's listen up - have you noticed all the negative print and media ads about how tough the real estate market is?  Don't you find it unusual that when the prices of Central Oregon Homes were skyrocketing, homes for sale were getting multiple offers and so on everyone thought real estate was booming?They have you scared; they have you thinking this is the wrong time to buy.  What is so wrong with buying today versus buying a year or two ago?  A year ago interest rates were low but prices were high and inventory of homes to buy was lower than it is now.  Many of you had to offer higher than list price to even have a chance at an accepted offer.Today, there are homes on the market ripe for the buying.  Many sellers are offering to pay part or all of your closing costs.  Mortgage rates a... 02/01/2008

One of the reasons I love La Pine is the sense of neighborhood.  Growing up in a small town has a ton of advantages, although as a kid I could not wait to leave as many that are growing up here are probably thinking too.  Funny thing is we all come back.  As a member of the first class of La Pine High School years ago, most of us left for greener pastures and big city lights.  20+ (ok almost 30) years later most of the 36 of this class are back in our wonderful home town of La Pine.This has been a tough week, Mother Nature has been keeping our area looking clean and white... lots of white.  This morning schools were cancelled due to snow and road conditions not something we experience often.  Snow yes, school closures because of it no.  I headed to the office and knew as the snow contin... 01/31/2008

Are you tired of the doom and gloom so many real estate professionals and professions that are real estate related are putting out there?  If so, stay tuned... Central Oregon REALTORS® Association, Central Oregon Mortgage Association, Central Oregon Builders Association, Central Oregon Visitors Association and most of the Chambers of Commerce of the are joining forces and plan to make a difference.We are all focusing on exposing the good news stories for our area; you know the ones that the media rarely talks about.  We are all ambassadors of the good news... This is the BEST Buyer's Market in 20 Years for Central Oregon.Prices are low, interest rates are low and there are a lot of great mortgage options out there.  In La Pine there are over 150 homes (see list here) on the market under... 01/31/2008

It's very nice to meet you, my name is Heidi Webb and I have  been a La Pine residence for 24 years. I started kindergarten and graduated from La Pine High School. I then moved to Boise Id. for a few years then family and friends brought me back to the area.      I then went to COCC and started teaching for La Pine Head Start ( I have an endless amount of patients:)). I'm married to Bruce and we have a 14 year old daughter Samantha who attends La Pine middle School. She is a active 4-H member and participates in the Horse and Swine projects. I and another parent have been the horse leaders and have been active parents for the last 4 years. I enjoy being a 4-H leader here in La Pine and representing Deschutes County. It's great to see the our members be so dedicated and focused and for u... 01/29/2008

Central Oregon is a place of beauty and an area that is often shared with a wide variety of wild life.  Most of the wild life in Central Oregon is harmless and beautiful to look at, enjoyed by all and often the talk around the water cooler.  Who saw a heard of elk, or a deer crossing the road and so on?  Today reality set in for some, a home I sold about 2 years ago came into the news.  The home owners live in this cute little home with their children and a dog.  They started their day as they typically do.  One of the kids went to the back door and let out the family dog, turned to go put on his jacket and go play with the dog.  Dad apparently looked out the door or window prior to the child going out to see a cougar chasing the dog.  The homeowner was able to get the dog in the home b... 01/22/2008

Thinking of moving to La Pine - what a great idea!  La Pine is a small city in fact it is one of the most recently formed cities in Oregon.  Located just 30 miles south of Bend, Lapine offers an easy commute to a larger city and a lot of great outdoor activities.  Some people only have the opportunity to do while on vacation, here you can enjoy the outdoors year around.La Pine has 3 schools, one elementary, one middle school and a high school.  Land has been set aside for an additional elementary school to handle the growth of Central Oregon and the La Pine area.One of the biggest attractions to home buyers looking in the LaPine area is space.  Lapine may be a city, but the actual city is small in comparison to the area referred to as La Pine.  Most of the homes for sale in what is call... 01/20/2008

At first thought, selling your house by yourself might seem tempting. After all, how much work could it possibly be to sell a house anyway? You just plunk a sign out in the yard, run a couple newspaper ads, park yourself in the rocker on the front porch for a while and wait for the buyers to start showing up, literally at your doorstep. I'll admit that perhaps that particular strategy has worked, and may still work on that rarest of rare occasions... at least getting the buyers to your door, that-is. The problem is that even if that was the extent of your Marketing strategy, there's still some major hurdles to be cleared before you've got signatures on the dotted line and have actually closed the transaction. But we'll talk about all the paperwork and other hassles later. For now, lets ... 12/14/2007

I'll never forget what I did that first time I purchased Real Estate.  I actually sat on the ground of that property and, just like a kid, played in the dirt.  I just had to feel the ground, dig down into it with my hands and let my fingers feel the rocks, sand, sticks and mud of this tiny piece of the earth that had somehow, incredibly, become mine.  I looked around at the trees blowing in the breeze, and yes, I admit it, I had to run up to a couple of them and give'm a good squeeze.  How could I not have?  Tree hugger or not, to own your own land is a feeling like none other.  I don't know, maybe it's a guy thing, but I doubt it.  To this day I still occasionally walk around my humble little property and marvel at the still seemingly impossible notion that it could actually be mine. B... 11/12/2007

Here's a topic that's almost guaranteed to bring some heat.. the now classic question (or argument) with regard to which type of building construction is better to purchase.. "Stick Built" (classic on-site framed construction) or a home that has been, for the most part, "Manufactured" at a remote site and assembled, at least partially, on-site.  There's a lot of strong opinions out there so let's see if we can sort it out.Ironically, one of the classic arguments, for both systems, is the notion of Strength of Construction.  Those that favor frame construction will argue with great gusto that there is simply "no question" that a frame built home is, by its very nature, a more sturdy and better constructed structure, better suited to endure the rigors of time, weather, and well, just life... 10/22/2007

Yesterday I wrote about the market for first time home buyers in La Pine and Three Rivers South, Oregon. I was a little surprised to have a few locals chime in and basically disagree with me about the current market. The numbers do not lie - La Pine and Three Rivers South are showing signs of a down market - which I did not dispute, but what I did find is that neither are in a "declining" market.A declining market is when the sales prices fall below previous sales. La Pine and Three Rivers South are showing a slow market but not a declining market.The proof is in the numbers - check out these CMA's and you will see - we are doing a lot better than a lot of markets across the country.La Pine Homes Under $200,000La Pine Homes From $200,001 to $250,000Amerititle Report of Third Quarter of ... 10/19/2007

There is a lot of talk about the Real Estate market, mortgage issues and so on, most of it negative. I wonder, why? Rates are low, the real estate market in La Pine and Three Rivers South has a lot of inventory to choose from and homes are selling. Maybe not in record numbers but they are selling.Lenders have multiple programs that are very suitable for first time home buyers. Rick Grand a lender in Eugene recently wrote an article about one such program called P.A.L. Rick states that some borrowers can receive up to $10,000 towards the purchase of their new home.Currently La Pine and Three Rivers South have a lot of different types of properties that qualify for many different lending programs. There are sellers that are motivated and willing to pay for closing costs or really negotiat... 10/18/2007

If you've never owned any Real Estate before, you might think that buying a home is completely out of your reach, especially with all the talk in the news about the so-called Real Estate/Lending crisis.  The fact is however, if you've had a job for at least a year, and have kept your credit at least reasonably clean, you are probably still eligible to buy your own house!I know what your thinking... You're thinking that's all fine and dandy but you'll never be able to save up enough money for a down payment.  Well, to that I've got good news.  Believe it or not, if you're a first time homebuyer, there are ways to get you into a house legally, ethically and without much fuss and frustration, with little or no money down!What's the catch?  There is no catch.  100% financing is still availa... 10/16/2007

Since I've been hanging around with a bunch of Realtors I've noticed an interesting corollary with respect to each of my colleague's choice of transportation.  If you're looking for a Realtor, and can't quite decide on whom to use, you might want to check out their ride.  I'll tell you why in just a minute.In La Pine, usually about twice a month we all get together for what we call an "Agent's Tour."  It's an interesting little exercise where we first meet in a central location, (way too early in the morning,) gobble up some coffee and other goodies that one of the Title Companies usually brings (which we love) then we all go and actually see the listings.. together, in a Caravan of our respective vehicles.  Even though we usually perform this exercise carpool style, there's always a ni... 10/11/2007

Yesterday we posted a market analysis for the "state of real estate in Sunriver".  Today, we are going to look at the outlying areas of Sunriver.  MLS identifies the entire area between Sunriver proper and LaPine as Three Rivers South.  Included in this area of Three Rivers South are the resort area of Caldera Springs, as well as the gated communities of Crosswater and Vandevert Ranch.  The real estate markets in these communities tend to trend similar to that of Sunriver.  We will analyze this area known as Three Rivers South, as well as the newest city in Oregon - LaPine.  The areas of Three Rivers South and LaPine are very diverse.  You can run the range of unbuildable (RV lot only) to a multi-million dollar home with views - and be within shouting distance of one another.  Much of t... 10/02/2007

The other day I was in the middle of planting a "For Sale" sign on some land I had just listed when a guy pulled up in his truck, leaned his head out the window and hollered something to the effect of "Are you a Realtor?"  To that question, the wise guy inside of me was tempted to reply with something on the order of me not being a Realtor, but in reality, some kind of sign vandalizer caught in the act, but no, of course my reply was much more polite...  "I sure am.  What can I do for you?" I said.  "I need to get my house listed."  He said plain as day...and to that I literally dropped everything and immediately started walking up to his car window with a hand extended while saying, "Well sir, lets just go get your house listed!"  True story.   Boy was I glad to have kept my inner Wise... 09/24/2007

If you've ever been to the circus you might have seen the act where they see how many clowns can stuff into a Volkswagen.  Until recently, that's how our office has felt for the last year or so; too many agents and not enough desk space.  With a whopping  384 square feet including a bathroom and storage space, our "main office" was a marvel of efficiency while maintaining a certain cozy feel.  Cozy or not however, the idea of "sharing a desk" took on a completely new meaning in as it meant not only that a desk might be "shared" by more than one person, at any given time, but a single desk would often be shared by more than one person simultaneously.  As a matter of fact, my poor Principal Broker's desk was often occupied by not one, not two, but more often than not, three people at once... 09/19/2007

Not long ago, a young woman walked in to our Real Estate office and wanted information about a house she had seen with our company's "For Sale" sign in the front yard.  After talking to us briefly and getting the information she had wanted she said she was in a hurry to go.  She explained that in order to get the information that she needed by the end of the day about the two other houses she was interested in, she would have to get moving because they were "with" other companies.  Wondering why she was going to all of this work on her own we asked her if she was already being represented by an agent, and to our surprise she said "Yes."We realized at that moment that our new friend neither understood about how the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) worked, nor what should have been the prop... 09/19/2007

At first thought, selling your house by yourself on the open market without the assistance or the cost of an Agency representing you, might seem tempting. After all, how much work could it possibly be to sell a house anyway? You just plunk a sign out in the yard, run a couple newspaper ads, park yourself in the rocker on the front porch for a while and wait for the buyers to start showing up, literally at your doorstep. I’ll admit that perhaps that particular strategy has worked, and may still work on that rarest of rare occasions… at least getting the buyers to your door, that-is. The problem is that even if that was the extent of your Marketing strategy, there’s still some major hurdles to be cleared before you’ve got signatures on the dotted line and have actually closed the transact... 09/18/2007

So, you think your local Realtor® is making piles and piles of money?  Depending on the market and that broker's actual sphere of influence, he or she just might be doing just that.  More than likely however, that agent and/or broker is making far less than you might suspect.  The Real Estate business is a tough field in which to operate over the long haul, where the Darwinian notion of "survival of the fittest" is most definitely the name of the game.  Unlike what many might believe, Real Estate for the vast majority of professionals is often a world of short periods of feast, followed by brutally long episodes of famine, with no mercy for the weak.The vast majority of Real Estate professionals are not paid a salary and live purely on commissions generated by sales represented by that ... 09/18/2007