Idaho Falls Real Estate Video Blog with Shawn Anderson

Why Is Now a Great Time to Sell Your Bonneville County Home?

There are many great Idaho Falls area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home,click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (208) 227-5357 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Every year at this time, we begin to see the inventory start to balloon a little bit as sales start to slow down. However, our inventory is currently nearing all-time lows. There are only 479 houses for sale in Bonneville County, which is the lowest I've seen since I started in real estate. Right now, if no other homes came on the market, every available home would sell in only 2.9 months!

There are buyers out there who are still buying, even though it's cold. The holiday season isn't stopping buyers from putting offers in on our listings, so now is not a bad time to put your home on the market.

We've noticed a few trends recently we think you should know about. Since this same quarter last year, we've seen a 55% increase in the number of units under contract. In this last quarter in Bonneville County, 90 homes went under contract, as opposed to only 58 last year. The median home price has also jumped this year, from $163,000 last year to $172,500 right now.

Adding to these promising numbers is the fact that appreciation is at a healthy 6-7% for this year!

If you would like to take advantage of these fantastic market conditions, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to give you a hand in anyway possible.

How Home Inspections Benefit Buyers and Sellers

Today, we'll discuss the home inspection process. The home inspection is a crucial part of the process for both the buyer and the seller, although it is designed primarily to protect the buyer.

When you're looking at a house, you want to be able to focus on whether or not it's the right house for you. You don't want to worry about the nuts and bolts of the home. Once you have your house under contract, there will be a contingency that allows you to have an inspector examine the nuts and bolts for you.

Inspectors keep an eye out for safety concerns and things that will affect the home value. The inspector will climb up into the attic and check insulation, and look out for wiring issues as well, among other things.

It's important to choose the right inspector. Don't choose a lax inspector. We know the best inspectors in the area. You want someone thorough, but also someone who won't cause unnecessary alarm. If there is a major issue with the home, and the seller won't fix it, you do have the option to back out of the house.

From a seller's standpoint, it's important to understand that you should designate some money for inspection repairs. No house passes an inspection 100%. An inspector will find something, and it's smart to have a budget set aside. Some sellers even have an inspection ahead of time so that they can make the repairs before an offer has even been made.

The most important thing is to choose the right inspector. Listen to your real estate agent, because they will have an inspector they know and trust to work with you. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

Recent Market Trends in Idaho Falls

Today, we'll discuss the real estate market in Idaho Falls. Overall, we're in a very strong market, but there are a few areas that are standing out.

Right now, we have 3.8 months of inventory. Whenever the market is under 5 months of inventory, it means there are not enough houses on the market to accommodate buyer demand. This is good news for sellers, because as demand rises, so do home values. Buyers can still find houses, but they should be prepared for a more competitive market.

Sales will slow down in the winter, but you still have a good chance to sell your home. Buyers who look for homes in the market tend to be more serious than summer buyers, so there's no need to wait for the spring market to sell your home.

On average, a home spends 83 days on the market, which is very good. Sellers are also getting 98.6% of their asking price.

Now, there are a couple of areas that are particularly strong right now. Homes priced between $150,000 and $175,000 are in high demand. The average days on market for these homes is 66, which is almost a month faster than our county average. The $200,000-$250,000 market is also hot, with 3.5 months of inventory and an average of 72 days on market.

In addition, the 83404 zip code on the south side of Idaho Falls is on fire! That area has 3 months of inventory, and there are only 7 houses for sale built after 1990, and they are priced between $300,0000 and $350,000. I recently had a listing appointment with a seller, and since their home falls within that market, that seller will be able to get more than they would at another time.

As you can see, the market overall is very strong right now, with a few pockets that are on fire. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

What’s Going on in Idaho Falls?

It’s about time for us to provide you with another real estate market update for Idaho Falls, so we wanted to do that today. We have some statistics and predictions that we think you will be very interested in.

We are watching inventory continue to go down in Idaho Falls, while sales continue to remain strong. Right now, the inventory out there is sitting at 3.9 months. That’s the lowest level we have seen in 7 years! Right now, we are selling about 156 houses a month, home values are going up, and it’s a great time to buy or sell.

For buyers, interest rates are still very low and we are happy about that. It may make finding a good home a tad more difficult, so it’s important to have a licensed buyer’s agent representing you and looking at all your potential options in order for you to get the best deal possible. Plus, we have a lot of unlisted inventory from sellers who want our buyers specifically to get a crack at their home first.

For sellers, this is a fantastic market. The average days on market of 85 is the lowest it has been in years. Our team’s average is just 62 days and we are starting to see list prices and sale prices come together just a little bit.

One question we’ve been getting a lot is when the best time of year to sell a house is. In our opinion, there are about half as many homes for sale in the winter months as there are in the summer months. You might only have one or two showings a week at that time, but when a buyer walks through your home they are serious about looking and you’d be surprised at the kind of price you could fetch.

If you have any questions for us, just give us a call or email. We would love to speak with you!

The Most Important Part of Renovating Your Home

Renovating your home can be an exciting process, but it's important that you don't get ahead of yourself. You can't just go willy-nilly into a major project and expect it to go perfectly. Planning properly for these types of projects can assure a smooth project, and one that may even cost less!

We recommend making a very detailed timeline of your project, including potential things that could go awry and making backup plans in order to prevent these things from happening. Putting your plan onto paper is a good way to start this process.

Another major step is choosing a good team of contractors that you can communicate with. If they don't know what you want done, they can't do it.

Just remember, there is no such thing as too much planning! If you plan on renovating your home, please contact us. We know great contractors and could also give you advice on what projects will bring you the highest return on your investment.

What Should You Know about Home Warranties?

Hey everyone, today I am excited to talk to you about home warranties. People are always asking us questions about this topic, so today we want to clear the air.

A home warranty is from a 3rd-party company that will cover different components of your house for the first few years you own it. It's very similar to the coverage on an insurance policy, but the deductible is a little lower and the claim response is a little faster.

We recommend home warranties for all of our buyers and sellers. For sellers, you can buy a home warranty and advertise it as an incentive to buyers. If you use one of our home warranty companies, your coverage starts on the day you list your home with us, and transfers over to the buyer, who will have it for a full year. We think this is a great option for sellers, especially if something goes wrong. In that case, you don't have to deal with the hassle of renegotiating repairs, you can simply give the home warranty company a call, and they will have someone come out and fix it for a low cost.

Generally, a home warranty is around $400, but you can add different components to give you more coverage. If you have any specific questions about this, or any real estate questions at all, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to speaking with you!

How Does Our Real Estate Market Keep Getting Better?

Hey everyone, today I wanted to talk to you a little bit about the state of the real estate market here in East Idaho.

Much like last month, we are still in seller's market. It's not dramatically in favor of sellers, but our inventory is continuing to creep down, and now sits at 4.3 months.

As of yesterday morning, we had 603 homes on the market, but sales are increasing enough to make up for the influx of inventory. This is having an effect on home prices, which are starting to rise a little bit. If you've been living here for the last 7-10 years, you have seen many months of declining or stable prices. We have seen them rise greatly in the last 6 months, however.

Of course, interest rates have the potential to slow down those prices, but they are still favorable right now for buyers in the market.

If you have any questions about our market or if you're interested in buying or selling, give us a call or send us an email. We would love to speak with you!

What's the Key to Getting Your Idaho Falls Offer Accepted?

Hello, and welcome to Part II of our series on multiple offers. We're very excited to share some more information with you on this topic, as we haven't seen this many multiple offer situations in years! Last time, we offered some advice to sellers on how to deal with multiple offers; now, we want to help people on the buying side of things.

A lot of buyers we're working with right now are making offers on multiple properties because the marketplace is so competitive. In order to make an effective offer, the most important thing to keep in mind is the price. How much you offer is often going to play a huge role in whether your offer is ultimately accepted. You don't want to offer more than you can afford, but you have to remember that other buyers will be submitting their best offers.

In short, the days of making anything other than a full-price offer are over. If a seller lists at a fair market value, don't be afraid to offer a little over that if you need closing costs covered. Because buying can be complicated, it's important to work with an agent who knows market value and can help you make smart decisions when crafting an offer.

To make the most of a multiple offer situation, you need to work with a buyer's agent you can trust and who is not afraid to tell you when a home is priced too high. If you've maxed out on price, there are other strategies we can help you with. Think about the risk sellers have to take when accepting an offer; you need to mitigate those risks up front! You need to be pre-approved by a reputable lender if you want to be taken seriously. If you get the letter after you've written the offer, your offer won't even be considered!

There are other strategies you can use to make your offer stand out from the crowd. If you would like more expert advice on how you can make the most of the buying process, give us a call or shoot us a quick email. Something as simple as writing a personal letter to the seller can make all the difference! Don't hesitate to reach out to us for more tips - we would love to hear from you!

How Do You Pick the Best Possible Offer on Your Idaho Falls Home?

The Idaho Falls marketplace is in great shape right now. Multiple offer situations are basically a regular occurrence, which is great news for homeowners. Sometimes listings are getting up to three offers in only a matter of days, so today we want to give some tips on how to handle these situations.

Generally, multiple offer situations are indicative of a market with low inventory. In an ideal market we like to see around six months of inventory, but we currently have just under five months. Sellers are in a fantastic position to sell quickly and for top dollar, as there are more buyers out there than available homes.

Receiving multiple offers can be overwhelming for sellers, so it's crucial to work with an experienced agent who has been through the process hundreds of times. No multiple offer situation is the same as another, and having an agent with experience could make all the difference!

A great agent will help you look through the offers and determine which combination of terms, conditions, and price is the most beneficial. We are expert negotiators and have time-tested strategies to help you reach your selling goals. It's not as simple as picking an offer; we will look at the offers and create a bidding war among the interested parties to ensure you get the best possible price for your home!

If you have any questions about how we can help you make the most of a multiple offer situation, or if you have real estate questions of any kind, give us a call or shoot us a quick email. We would love to give you a hand!

What Do Rising Idaho Falls Home Prices Mean for You?

The Idaho Falls marketplace is unlike anything I've seen in my 8 years in real estate. For most of my career, it was a buyer's market because values were dropping through the floor. It was tough for homeowners and agents alike, as the market hit rock bottom.

In the last few years, the market has made a comeback in a big way. Finally, we're starting to see symptoms of a seller's market! We've recently dropped below five months of inventory in our area, which is great news for people who are looking to sell their homes. There are currently 573 homes on the market in Bonneville County and we're averaging 113 sales a month. If we continue to sell at this rate and no other homes come on the market, we'll be out of inventory in a matter of 4.9 months!

Homes are selling closer to asking price and we're seeing multiple offers on many listings. Prices are rising and we expect them to continue to do so moving forward. Now would be a great time to get top dollar for your home, sell it quickly, and lock in a low interest rate on your next home!

If you have any questions about market conditions in your area, or if you would like real estate assistance of any kind, give us a call or shoot us a quick email! We would love to send you over some of the more detailed numbers and chat about your particular situation.

We look forward to hearing from you!

One of the Biggest Names in Real Estate Endorses the Anderson Group

Last year, I was privileged to do something really neat for our business. You may have seen it already, but I posted a picture to Facebook of me and Barbara Corcoran hanging out in New York City. It received a lot of great feedback, and the time I was able to spend with a genius like her was truly remarkable.

Many of you asked whether I was on the Shark Tank show as a contender - unfortunately, I was not in New York for that. However, I did sign an agreement with Barabara to endorse the Anderson Group! I was in New York to shoot a commercial with her, which was a whole lot of fun!

If you haven't seen the commercial, here are some of the highlights of what Barbara had to say about our team:

"To sell your home on time for the most money, you need a sharp agent with a marketing strategy that creates the most demand. Bottom line: You need a partner willing to put their own money on the line for you!"

"In Idaho Falls, I would hire Shawn Anderson. His marketing creates so much demand that if your home doesn't sell at a price and deadline you agree to, Shawn will buy it!"

We truly appreciate the kind words Barabara shared about our team. We are also thankful for all of our clients and past clients who help us get better with each transaction. Feel free to share this great video with your friends, I know I will!

As always, if you need real estate assistance of any kind, feel free to reach out to me by phone or email. I would love to hear from you!

What Do Changes in the Idaho Falls Market Mean for You?

Today, we're going to give you a quick recap of what the Anderson Group saw from the Idaho Falls market in 2014. Then, we'll discuss what recent trends mean for our market moving forward.

Overall, 2014 was a pretty interesting year. We expected prices to rise quite a bit after the market began its recovery in 2013, but they ended up remaining pretty steady throughout the year. For instance, take a look at the numbers from Bonneville County over the last two years:

Houses sold:

2013: 1,398 sold
2014: 1,439 sold

Median home price:

2013: $144,000
2014: $145,000
We're expecting greater appreciation this year.

Inventory

Closed 2014 with a supply of 4.4 months.
We're selling about 124 homes a month.

As you can see, not much changed between January of 2013 and January of 2014. Home sales and prices have remained pretty steady, and we're currently in a market that slightly favors sellers.

We're expecting our market to continue it's steady growth in 2015. A lot of new houses are coming onto the market, and interest rates are still low. If you have been on the fence about buying or selling, now is the time to act. We can't predict what 2015 will bring, but most experts are expecting rates to rise.

If you want to take advantage of the market before it cools off, give us a call or shoot us an email. We would love to help you achieve your real estate goals!

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About

Anderson Hicks Group gives every client a true "first class" real estate experience. With decades of experience between the members of the team, we are equipped to handle all aspects of a real estate transaction from start to finish. Every detail is meticulously tracked, so we are ready to answer your questions before you even ask.

Our listing agents know the market value of a home better than any other individual because they are analyzing local market trends and home values daily. Our buyer's agents know the inventory in our area better than anyone, because they show properties every day. Better yet, we have the largest selection of "coming soon" properties in the area, so it is possible you may find a home to buy before it ever hits the market.

Anderson Hicks Group takes pride in now providing an "Instant Offer" program. If you need your home sold as quickly as possible, we can buy it! You no longer have to wait for the right buyer to come along.

Your home may be the most valuable asset you ever own. Do you trust it to a person who might know a little bit about a lot of different things? Or do you rely on a team of proven professionals that are experts in every aspect of the process?

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Anderson Hicks Group
Keller Williams Realty East Idaho
3525 Merlin Dr
Idaho Falls, Idaho 83404
(208) 227-5320
Shawn@AndersonHicks.com

What our happy Idaho Falls clients have to say

"We have recently had the pleasure of working with Shawn to sell our home. We were very impressed with Shawn from the first meeting. When he told us about his team and their team approach to selling homes, it just felt so right. They were all awesome -- very knowledgeable, professional, friendly and very responsive to all of our needs.

We were living out of State while the house was on the market and were very impressed that when the appraiser required a pressure extension be put on the water heater, Shawn went shopping for the parts and installed them himself. We definitely saw that as above and beyond the call of duty.

We were very happy with Shawn's performance as a Real Estate Professional and would definitely recommend him to others."

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"I would highly recommend using the Anderson Group. After our initial meeting with Shawn, my wife and I were both impressed and chose Shawn over the other realtors we had met with earlier that day. As a result, we sold our house in less than a week for pretty near what we were asking for it. Shawn and his group made the entire process painless. Aside from keeping the house clean and the lawn mowed, there was very little work on my part. Shawn is very friendly and kknowledgeable. The bottom line, my house sold in less than a week for a price near what I was asking for it. I highly recommend using him and his group."

Click Here To Read Even More Testimonials