Idaho

This is what I saw on my way to Starbucks this morning. That's Schweitzer Mountain Ski Resort in the distance with a skiff of snow showing. I'm constantly awed by the beauty here in Sandpoint, so I never go anywhere without my camera. As always, the camera really doesn't do it justice.

It wasn't long after this shot that "the storm" came through and dumped 12" of snow at Schweitzer Mountain.

Well it looked like another good turnout for the 8th annual Zeitgeist Half-Marathon run around The Hidden Springs community in The Boise Foothills at the North-East end of The Boise Valley! While the registration numbers pushed a thousand it was hard to tell how many showed up but It looked like several hundred anyway! This is just one of the many foot races run through Hidden Springs each year. Include the many bike races and the "Bicycle Friendly" Community Designation and you have one of the most active communities anywhere in the nation. Moving here several years ago was the best "quality of life" decision our family has made. Our neighbors are a rare blend of caring and fun! Let me know if anyone out there has any questions concerning Hidden Springs or The Boise Valley for that matter!

Sandpoint Idaho has once again received incredible recognition in the latest issue of 'Where to Retire', a magazine that is available in every airport in the country.

This article talks about Sandpoint being 'the next great place' to not only retire, but also to live and enjoy the four season outdoor lifestyle and the many cultural events, so unique to such a small town. A fellow Sothebys agent and friend of mine, Gary Lirette, was one of several people interviewed and highlighted in this article.

The article talks all about Schweitzer, Lake Pend Oreille and the beautiful natural amenities we have. It also goes on to discuss the many festivals and cultural attractions. And it touches on the real reason that my family and I chose Sandpoint over so many other outdoor/ski towns...the fact that so many of us have come here for the same reasons, the old fashioned values, neighbors caring for one another, and a place where you are free to be an individual and are accepted for who you are, no pretension.

Finally the article discusses the relatively low prices of real estate, when compared to other towns that share even close to the amenities and quality of life that we enjoy.

To read the entire article follow this link:

http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/pdf/WhereRetireNov2009.PDF

To see more press on Sandpoint:

http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/sandpoint.html

Dover Bay Waterfront Resort has selected a core team of Real Estate Agents to represent most of its property sales, including Bayside South condos, Parkside Bungalows, Cabins in the Woods, Cottages at Dover Meadows, Bayside North and Reedwalk Homesites. This new team is comprised of myself, PJ Nunley, Carrie LaGrace, and Brian Harvey, all with Jeff Bond's team at Tomlinson Sandpoint Sothebys International Realty.

TSSIR has and will continue to be the Listing Broker for all Dover Bay real estate transactions. This change has simply reduced the number of Listing Agents on the Dover team. And rather than having two agents responsible for different neighborhoods, the four of us now form a core team sharing equally in the responsibility for all listings.

What this means for the customer and for Dover Bay property owners ...

1) Easier to form relationships with the Dover sales team, as all of us will have our primary offices at the Dover Discovery Center

2) A team approach means we all work together to help our customers. So if one of us is unavailable there should always be someone to help out at the time the customer wants assistance.

3) We are all experts on Dover Bay and all the real estate products offered. This eliminates the need for a customer (or another Agent) to be passed along to several people to get the help they need.

Any outside Real Estate Agents, Property Owners, or interested parties will also be able to call on any of the four of us for help with all of the above listings. We will work closely together to ensure an excellent experience for anyone interested in Real Estate at Dover Bay.

To meet the new Dover Bay team, stop by the Discovery Center at the entrance to Dover Bay or call our office at 208-265-0627.

For the latest information on Dover Bay, visit the Dover website at http://www.DoverBayIdaho.com as well as my site at http://www.SandpointResortRealty.com.

I am of the mind that if you agree to pay someone (even a bank) an amount of money for something, you should pay. That being said I also believe that consumers do agree to terms that are unfair at times because they do not know any better. And we had a bunch of Mortgage brokers writing loans that were not good for the consumer and with no regard for the actual ability for consumers to repay. The mortgage brokers got their money when they resold the loan. Even the banks that purchased these loans from the brokers repackaged and sold the loans to investors and made money even if the loans were toxic. OK, so even people that know nothing about lending understand enough to know that the system is pretty messed up.

Foreclosures hurt us all.Every one of us that have been paying our mortgage through this crisis has been losing equity in our real property. There is too much incentive for Short sales. Banks are forgiving barrowers, and some are speculative investors that built crap. Don't get caught up in the feeding frenzy. As Realtors© let us do our job. Let's protect home values as best we can. When not in a short sale situation try other tactics before asking the Seller to compete on price alone.

•· Educate Sellers on how to properly present their properties

•· Do not try to compete on price alone. If you have a property with unique offerings, highlight and market what sets the property apart from the masses

•· Be sensitive to the sellers time line

•· Perhaps it will take longer to sell a home

•· Perhaps for some, selling their home should wait till the short sales are absorbed

•· Be more concerned with your sellers needs than your own, sure we need to feed our families, but let's not do it at the cost of driving prices to the basement. (Here in Teton Valley we can eat potatoes and venison).

I am aware that in some areas the price of Real Estate had become so expensive that owning a home was out of reach for a lot of people. A correction in the cost of home ownership was needed.

And the more I learn the less know.