Buyers' Resources

Thinking About it.

So you're just getting started.
A voice whispers inside your head, "buy". You have a dream you are stepping over the threshold of a new home. You find yourself daydreaming about a different view from your window, perhaps a mountain filled with skiers, or elk nibbling grass outside your back door. Champagne powder dusts your imagination. Steamboat Springs is marked by a red tack on your map. There are endless possibilities before you. There are realities to entertain:

• What kind of house do I see myself in? (A new property?)
• If I purchase an older home will I need to remodel?
• Where do I see myself? In the wild outside of town, close to shopping, close to the ski mountain?
• What features are must-haves for me?
• Will this be a full time home or a rental property? Property management fees are typically 35% - 45%
• What price range am I looking for?
• What is my credit? (Check your credit now at myfico.com)
• 20% down is required or an 80 10/10% Loan can be take
• What will my mortgage payments be (mortgage calculator)
• I recommend speaking with a mortgage professional at Catamount Mortgage. Click here to contact Catamount Mortgage.

What do your friends and family think?

This is a logical next step. Over the years you have accumulated friends you trust, family members that know you almost better than you know yourself. When the questions in your head become a broken record, it is time to speak, to ask and to absorb.

• Whose judgment do you trust most, who knows you best? Ask them for their honest opinion.
• Where do they see you living? What do they think the benefits of this new home are?
• Do they anticipate any drawbacks?
• Talking lets you weigh the positives and negatives, confirm your excitement and reassure your anxieties.
• If you have a family, what do they think about Steamboat Springs? How will their interests be fulfilled?
• What amenities do I need to be happy?
• You may find yourself challenged on your image of yourself as a mountain man versus the reality that you like a fresh brewed cup of Starbucks in the morning
  

Evaluating the Market

You have pages and pages of notes from friends, family, even the postman. You notice the bartender at your local bar shifts his eyes away when you look up from your real estate magazine, your finger pointed at yet another property. Now is the time to tally up the results.

• I want it, I want it, I want it!
• Draw a line down your sheet of paper and title one upsides the other side downsides. Fill in the sides.
• Is this a financial investment or a lifestyle investment?
• How long do you plan on holding the property?
• Do you have pets and how will your new property accommodate them?
• Know your price range, what types of loans are available to you?
  

You're getting really close to pulling the trigger

The results are in. You want to purchase a property in Steamboat. You have already bought new skis, snowboards, golf clubs, hiking boots, mountain bikes and Smartwool socks. You feel like a local. In no time, the bagel shop will know your order before you do. What else do you need to consider?

• Will you want to walk through the property, or are you comfortable purchasing from pictures and video?
• If booking a ticket check the great direct flights coming in from all over the country.
• The contract is ready to be negotiated.
• Are you aware of HOA dues, rules and regulations of the property, the terms and conditions of the rental program?
• How quickly can I get the keys?

The rubber meets the road!

There is nothing to stop your dreams now. The voice in your head is singing Hallelujah. You find yourself joining the voice in your head in the shower, your car on the way to work, sometimes in between bites of dinner. A tingling manifests itself inside your body, a ticklish vibration of excitement about the new life you are embarking on. Only a few details stand in your way:

• When do you want to close?
• Is the contract written? Approved?
• How does the inspection period work in Colorado?
• How long is the typical loan commitment?
• Are your funds ready for earnest money deposit?
• How are you going to take title?
• Joint Tenants or Tenants is Common?
• Joint Tenants passes title automatically to the next person on the title if you die.
• Tenants in Common is 50% ownership. Each person can pass title to whoever they like.
  

Congratulations. You own a home in a community that still reads their daily paper daily, drinks their coffee with grit in it and jumps up and down every morning they get fresh tracks.