Jim Paulson (Owner/Broker)

I was very pleased during a conversation with a new potential buyer client of mine yesterday here in Boise, Idaho that was referred to me by one of my lender partners. This buyer has a better grasp of how to sell real estate than most Realtors I know!

Even though this type of client intimidates many Realtors, I welcome them and all their questions. I have found that this type of logical thinking client gains the respect of many of their friends and typically are my best future referral generators as past clients.

Here are a few of the great questions/comments they had yesterday as we were discussing buyer agency and how the real estate industry opperates:

• I couldn't believe the first Realtor we talked to wanted us to sign a "Buyer Representation Agreement" before they even established their value as a Realtor;
• Why doesn't the listing we found have more than one photo?
• Why is the single photo they have a three year old photo from the Tax Assessor instead of a current one?
• Why don't they have a virtual tour either? Are they trying to hide something about the house?
• I can see why that listing has been on the market a while since I don't care to see it if they are hiding something;
• If they aren't hiding something, they aren't representing their clients very well are they?
• Wouldn't this lack of proper cause fewer showing and make the seller think it is overpriced causing them to unreasonably lower the price do to poor marketing?
• I read the Realtor's Code of Ethics and it appears that agent isn't doing what they are suppposed to for their client.

It is a sad day in Boise today because Micron CEO Steve Appleton was killed in a plane crash this morning shortly after takeoff at the Boise Airport.

He was flying his experimental single engine Lancair which crashed around 9 a.m February 3, 2012. He was the only person onboard and was in contact with the radio tower requesting permission to turn around.

Steve Appleton done a lot for Boise since he graduated from BSU on a tennis scholarship. Micron has been a huge factor in the Boise economy. Shares of their stock were halted on the news.

Steve was fortunate to have survived a previous plane crash in 2004, but wasn’t so fortunate this time. Idaho lost another great pilot back in August of 2011 with the passing of Greg Poe.

Those two are probably already up in heaven doing stunts in the planes above the clouds.

I am always amazed at how many people that rent a home don’t stop to wonder why their landlord decided to buy a home only to rent it out. Simply put, it is because it is your landlord’s investment strategy to get their tenants to pay off their debt while they get tax deductions themselves! If that isn’t good enough, property values historically appreciate 3.8% a year so if you borrow the money from the bank (using other people’s money) the appreciation essentially even pays off your mortgage at today’s interest rates. Keep in mind the property keeps typically appreciating, while your mortgage (and interest payments) declines giving even better leverage!

Before most people begin buying investment properties, they start by buying their primary residence so they can fire their landlord. I have a complete system that sets buyer's on a "Path 2 Own" their own home. At least here in the Boise, Idaho area, there are multiple programs for 100% financing and sometimes below market interest rates for first time home buyers that are considered low to moderate income. Sometimes, it actually helps to make less money so you can get your share of the government stimulus money! I consistently have clients buy their own home for less than what they had in security deposit on their rental and their monthly payment typcially drops giving them more disposable income almost like getting a raise!

Here are the three main tax advantages you will potentially start earning when you decide to own verses rent your home:

1. Primary Residence Mortgage Interest Deduction. All the mortgage interest paid on a primary residence is a potential deduction.
2. Primary Residence Property Tax Deduction. Here in Idaho, we have the “Homeowner’s Exemption” so property taxes are considerably less on the same home if you live in it, plus it is a tax deduction. (lower taxes on the same property is yet another reason why owning can be cheaper than renting)
3. Residential Mortgage Point Deduction. This is when you buy the property and pay “points” on your mortgage.

As always, check with your CPA for specifics on how these might impact you and your specific situation! Now is a great time since you should be starting to complete your 2011 taxes and it is a great time to do a “what if analysis” with your tax preparer to see how much less you might have paid in taxes had you been able to claim these deductions instead of passing them off to your landlord!

I have owned rental homes in the Boise area for twenty years. If you have any questions on buying investment property or want to know about some of the government programs designed to help first time buyers acquire their first home, please call or email me @ GoOwnIt@gmail.com.

Jim Paulson, CRS, GRI, EPRO, SRES

Owner/Broker – Progressive Realty

Boise, Idaho

Today is a great day for skiers and snow boarders at Bogus Basin. Not only do they have incredible amounts of new snow, but they are opening the newly upgraded Superior Chairlift as a high-speed detachable quad lift! Old timers like me still call it Chair 3.

They will also be opening Bitterroot Basin (chair 5) and Pine Creek (chair 6).

Bogus went from one extreme to another with this year crushing an unfortunate record - their latest opening. We went from that to now having a 49” base thanks to this storm. On the 18^th, they got 10” of snow, another 14” on Thursday, three more on Friday and so far another 6” today.

Night skiing is slated to open on Wednesday, January 25^th, 2012.

Bogus Basin ticket prices are currently $38 for a day pass and $30 for the afternoon pass. If you still need an added incentive on top of the nearly three feet of fresh snow this week at Bogus Basin, stop in at your neighborhood Jackson’s convenience store and buy a 12-pack of any Pepsi product and you will receive a “Jackson’s Ski For Less Voucher” that will allow up to 4 people to receive $10 off an adult lift ticket, rental package, or walk in group lesson. Check with Jackson’s Food Stores or Bogus for any specifics on this program.

One of the things I love about living in Boise is the night skiing. I can have dinner with my family at 6pm, and still head up to Bogus Basin night skiing and enjoy about 10-14 runs before 10pm while I enjoy the city lights below and fresh air.

As a Realtor and Broker of Progressive Realty Corporation, I also enjoy taking my relocation clients up to Bogus to give them a personal tour.

I think I might be suffering from “altitude deprivation sickness”. The best cure is heading to higher altitudes to help cure your attitude! I hope to see you at Bogus and maybe we could take a few runs together some day.

It is almost impossible to know how accurate a website is when you are searching for homes online. Websites have different reasons for posting homes for sale and therefore you will find different levels of data and data integrity. Think back a few years ago when the various real estate booklets were popular (Harmon Homes, Homes and Land, Real Estate Book, etc) which had print deadlines roughly 2-3 weeks prior to printing then only published every month so you could have a listing sell even prior to publication!

Some websites require individual agents and consumers to upload and update their listings. Other websites get listings syndicated (sent from other sources). Some even resyndicate other syndicated listings. Some websites are tied directly to the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) so as properties are listed/sold/expired, they will be updated as often as the site interacts with the MLS. If you are looking for a home online, don't you want to know how updated the information is?

Think about the intent of the website. The MLS is only interested in conveying current homes for sale since they sell their accurate data to local Realtors and Appraisers (not the consumers). Public portals like Zillow, Trulia, Realtor.com, etc., sell advertising so they just want people to come to their sites for potential advertising revenue!

I have been talking to our local CEO of our Intermountain MLS to have them adopt an "MLS Certified" brand that they can put on any of their web partner sites to at least show the consumer that the site with their "Certification" is being updated at least every ___ days or hours! For example, our MLS rules and regulations require a broker to update the listing status within 3 days because we want data integrity! We want people looking for homes online to know they can rely on the information we provide.

An IDX (Internet Data Exchange) site pulls from the MLS so they are typically pretty good. However, there are no current requirements that I know of for how often the IDX vendor needs to update their data and which fields. For example, do they pull all field changes including new pictures, new disclosures, new edits, or just price and availability?

I know my websites pull directly from the MLS daily because I want my clients to have accurate data when they search for a home online! I get frustrated when a client finds a listing on another website that they are really excited about only to find out it has sold months ago or has an offer on it that isn't reflected yet.

If anyone knows of an MLS that is currently using any type of "certification" process, let me know so we can compare notes and help improve the industry in which we serve!