John Mijac Tucson Real Estate Discussions

Real Estate Glossary, Home Buying and Selling jargon

John Mijac — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 22:45:00 GMT

Real Estate Glossary It occurred to me that there are few places for consumers to go to get a layman’s explanation of Real Estate Jargon, so I thought I would begin a glossary on this blog for people who are planning to buy or sell real estate. I am going to start with the A’s of course, but if you need to have a W or Z term described, just ask. The list will by no means be exhaustive and may have many important holes in it when I am done. If you find that is the case, please email me...(read more)

Why you should hire a REALTOR

John Mijac — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 17:48:00 GMT

There are five reasons to hire a REALTOR® when planning to buy or sell property: Market Expertise; Lowering Your Risk; Saving You Money, Reliable Advice and the REALTOR® Code of Ethics Market Expertise : We are immersed in the housing market everyday and are experts in the tools used to interpret this data. Because we receive lots of mandatory continuing education, we are informed of current trends and legal changes. Also, we have access to information it would be difficult for most people...(read more)

Southwestern Building styles

John Mijac — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 03:13:00 GMT

Tucson is known for its Southwestern architectural styles. As with all American cities, you can find examples of most any style, from Bauhaus to farmhouse, even modern lofts are available. But for those who want a home that reflects The Southwest and its history, Tucson is a Mecca. Many people who move here have a clear idea in their mind of what southwestern style means, but they lack the vocabulary. Perhaps what you want is a Santa Fe style home, but it could be a Pueblo home, a Territorial Home,...(read more)

FollowFriday, is it moribund?

John Mijac — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:38:00 GMT

Followfriday, except for a few wonderful tweeters is still a waste of time. Most of the new people who post on this day just ReTweet the lists of any and all who bother to put one together. In the spirit of community, at first I tried composing individual messages about each and every person who had affected me on twitter. When the list was small this seemed acceptable, though it demanded a lot of time to manage, and even more to give a thoughtful response to everyone. After a while however, I could see that the recommendations themselves were becoming annoying. So from now on I will reference this FollowFriday list. Insted of Posting many #followfriday tweets.

Friday July 31,2009

I follow the tweople below , in no particular order, for these reasons:

@1sweetwhirl Folloow for great music, conversation and good friendship

@JosephRanseth I follow him because he is guileless, interesting, and wears his heart on his sleeve

@LadyParadis Follow this lady for gentle and positive tweets and a helping hand when you need it

@iamwun Provides wonderful inspirational quotes you just don’t see elsewhere

@FizzyDuck Follow her for dry wit, engaging personality and quick responsiveness

@Jason_Pollock Although he hardly need more followers, Jason and his tweets are a real asset to the community and unlike many mega tweeters he will follow you and communicate

@007peter is a tease and skirts the boundaries of relationship on twitter, but he's beguiling

@Yuricon A wonderful woman and engaging conversationalist

@dpbkmb ReTweets when he sees something of value, which is a lot. Look to him to keep you informed in the flow

@RobinTaylorRoth Engaging, friendly, and thoughtful

@JonBacon We may not agree on everything but we are both happy to talk and disagree, the world needs more of this

@michaelemmanuel One sweet man with a sweeter voice, follow him

@1sweetwhirl Love this lady and her music

@ManiKarthnik an engaging blogger with a candid point of view

@MariKurisato for her sharp wit, cool art and hidden, tender heart. If you need an Avatar, this lady is the one to hire.

@mylender for her love of family and willingness to help connect

@DavEnergy for his careful attention to friends, his compassion and quirky tweets

@BuzzEdition this stalwart of the community always has time for friends

@JanetVanderhoof for fabulous art, a caring spirit and a brilliant mind

@noxhanti fun conversation, great tweets with unexpected links

@kelvinringold always has time for anyone who needs it, supportive and loving man

@RayBeckerman fabulous source of news and a real person

@BrokePimpStyles & @SomaMoja social conscience reminders and faithful retweeters

@CoachChristy a wonderful woman who gives of herself with joy

@Red_Dust wonderful photos of daily life and a quiet presence

@DreamWorthy What a pair! Great conversation, love and support, grilled cheese (and great gifts)

@perfectquarters wonderful Real Estate agent from NY, great conversation and support for friends

@JanSimpson Always an honest view from Jan and she's there for her friends

@Doc_Remy Dreamer, poetry lover, musical stream maker

@QuantumCoach Love and concern for others is her hallmark

@mwurzer Not for everyone, because his focus is on his MLS provider company, but for Realtors, a must

@MinuteWithMike Because he is doing the right kind of social networking help for his clients

Free Tools for Home Buyers and Sellers in Arizona

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:25:00 GMT

Free Tools for Home Buyers and Sellers in Arizona Times are challenging for anyone buying or selling RealEstate today. For Sellers, home priceshave plummeted from their heights in 2006 and for Buyers, credit has been tight. Also, finding sources of trustworthy information can be daunting at best. The good news is that from all appearancesthe market is finally turning. If you need to sell, this may be the besttime to list in the last year, and if you are ready to buy there could hardly be a better...(read more)

Conversations with an Escrow Officer

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:24:00 GMT

Susan, how did youbecome an Escrow Officer in the first place? I was 18 years old and looking for a job, I contacted aemployment service and with the skills that I had, I had one interview and washired by Pioneer National Title Insurance at 45 W. Pennington. Wow, so you’ve beendoing this all your life, no wonder you’re so good at it. I also notice you seem to take great joy indoing this work, what is it about Escrow that you enjoy so much? I love the people; closing is my favorite part...(read more)

Conversation with a home inspector

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:23:00 GMT

Thom Culpepper and I have been working together for sometime and I respect the quality of his work. I found his comments on home inspecting of interest. Thom, how did youbecome an inspector in the first place? My wife and I discussed starting a business, but we bothbiology majors at the time and then I went to nursing school. At the time, we had several rentals, we had"flipped" houses and liked Real Estate, but I was not interested inselling it. A friend talked to us abouthis business as...(read more)

Disclosure in a sale

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:18:00 GMT

Alex and Dusty were worried about the sale of theirhouse. They had bargained hard with theBuyers and had reached an agreement last night, but they felt at a disadvantagein today’s market. Under the terms ofthe Arizona Residential Purchase Contract they had to fill out a Seller’sProperty Disclosure Statement (SPDS), get a Letter of Experience or a CLUEreport from their insurance agent and provide both to the Buyers. Dusty wondered if these items mightdisadvantage them even further and...(read more)

Making the Offer

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:17:00 GMT

Pat and Kim decided to make an offer on a property. We’d looked at many houses; some great forPat, some perfect for Kim, but this was the only property both loved. As Pat said, “It doesn’t matter how muchmoney you have, buying a home is always a trade off.” Kim replied, “Yes, butthis is a win-win. We’re both giving up a little while getting what’s mostimportant to us.” As this is true forany family finding a home, there is also give and take between...(read more)

Discovery and home inspections

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:16:00 GMT

Pat and Kim, (who we met in Making the Offer and Pricing theHome) were under contract to buy a house they loved. By the time the counter offers were finishedand everyone had come to an agreement, the two were very attached to the homeand nervous about inspections. Bargaininghad been tough and the Sellers insisted on an “As-Is” Addendum. Pat was unsure what that meant. Was there something wrong with the house orsomething the Sellers were trying to hide? Would they have to take the propertyjust...(read more)

Listing the House

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:14:00 GMT

Billy and Kim needed to sell their home. They were in the Service and were beingposted to Japan in two months. They’d triedto sell it on their own, but finding a buyer in today’s market seemed impossible. Kim pointed out that neither of them had theexperience to price or market their home effectively. But Billy noticed that the people who hadcome to their showings had seemed uninterested. They decided that the few percentage points they might save didn’t mean anythingif they couldn’t...(read more)

Pricing the Home

John Mijac — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 03:10:00 GMT

My first exposure to bargaining was in grade school. I played the part of a Mexican vendor givingadvice to his new gringo friends. I still remember my lines (after all, it wasmy debut!) “First, ask the vendor howmuch the pottery costs; his price is double the cost. Offer him less than cost, but enough so youmeet in the middle and you are both happy. Senor, you should never be mad or act insulted . . . bargaining shouldbe a game everyone enjoys.” Buying ahouse is not like buying a pot...(read more)

What do you know about Tucson? Probably not much!

John Mijac — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:46:00 GMT

That is compared to what there is to know. I am always amazed by how few people who live in Tucson know about even a few of the great things to see and do here. I know that my tastes are a bit catholic, but really, Tucson has something for everyone. If you love Opera, Symphony, Pops, Local Professional Theater, dance, museums or zoos, (and of course there’s the Desert Museum which is neither a zoo nor a museum but much more than both) we’ve got it.

If, on the other hand you’re more of a gardener . . . wow! What about the Tucson Botanical Society, Thono Chul, or the Tucson Bonsai Society to name a few. Perhaps your thing is Hiking, City Biking, Mountain Biking, four-wheeling, nature walks, birding, telescopes, minerals & gems, mining, history . . . as you can see from these few links, whatever it is we’ve got it in abundance.

So, in some ways I can see why it’s so hard for us to form a city center . . . we all have so many different directions we can go and few of them lead downtown. This, however, could be our real strength, if we can find a way to make the center a vital connection between all of these disparate destinations. How? We can do it with public transportation. So, will the planned Streetcars do the trick? It is a start, but not unless we follow that small plan up with an immediate second, third and fourth stage. Let’s be forward thinking here and encourage our representatives to do the same!

Tucson downtown revitalization myth or fact?

John Mijac — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 12:50:00 GMT

For those of us who live in Tucson, subjects like Rio Nuevo can raise hackles. Still, there seem to be signs that something may be happening. Unlike the so called Rainbow Bridge or the now mostly forgotten Aquarium, substantive things are happening.

Take for example the call for a Tucson Town Hall by local media and government, or the recently approved Streetcar . . . or even the more sober, infrastructure approach proposed recently at the Fox by the Pima County Real Estate Research Council. What do you think? Here's a place to voice your ideas and hash out your concerns, vision and plans. As for me, I'm getting involved.