We’re here to make your Real Estate experience easy.

We get it: Real Estate can be a stressful endeavor. But it doesn’t have to be. We remove the stress and add the fun. When done correctly, choosing a realtor is a decision that should only be made once. Many people aren’t aware that you can buy and sell a home with the same realtor. Also, as your realtors, we can show you any home that is for sale- even when another company’s name is on the sign in the yard.

When you choose Margie Stibora and the Key Team, you can stick with us through every stage of life that requires buying or selling your home. When it’s time to buy a home, we’ll patiently work with you until you find the home that’s just right. When it’s time to sell a home, we’ll do all we can to sell it quickly and for top dollar. We’re eager to create a lifetime of business with you.

Here are some basic real estate terms to get your feet wet as you familiarize yourself with buying and selling a home:

• Adjustable-Rate Mortgage (ARM): A mortgage in which the interest changes periodically, according to corresponding fluctuations in an index.
• Amortization Schedule: A table which shows how much of each payment will be applied toward principal and how much toward interest over the life of the loan. It also shows the gradual decrease of the loan balance until it reaches zero.
• Appraisal: A written justification of the price paid for a property, primarily based on an analysis of comparable sales of similar properties nearby.
• Appreciation: The increase in the value of a property due to changes in market conditions, inflation, or other causes.
• Broker: A seasoned real estate professional who helps sellers sell a property and buyers buy a property. Brokers also oversee the real estate agents who work for them.
• Closing: The meeting in which final documents are signed and money changes hands.
• Closing Costs: A compilation of costs associated with obtaining a loan and purchasing a home.
• Contract: A written agreement between two parties to state all the terms of the agreement.
• Earnest Money deposit: A deposit made by the potential home buyer to show that he or she is serious about buying the house.
• Down Payment: The part of the purchase price of a property that the buyer pays in cash and does not finance with a mortgage.
• Equity: A homeowner’s financial interest in a property. Equity is the difference between the fair market value of the property and the amount still owed on its mortgage and other liens.
• Escrow Account: An account you may open after purchasing a home that allows you to pay extra money to your lender each month, in addition to your principal and interest, that will go towards paying for items such as homeowners insurance and property taxes when they are due.
• Fair Market Value: The highest price that a buyer, willing but not compelled to buy, would pay, and the lowest a seller, willing but not compelled to sell, would accept.
• FHA mortgage: A mortgage that is insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Along with VA loans, an FHA loan will often be referred to as a government loan.
• Fixed-Rate Mortgage: A mortgage in which the interest rate does not change during the entire term of the loan.
• Mortgage: A legal document that pledges a property to the lender as security for payment of a debt.
• Mortgage Insurance (MI): Insurance that covers the lender against some of the losses incurred as a result of a default on a home loan.
• MLS (Multiple Listing Service): Provides detailed information about real estate listings in our area.
• Note: A legal document that obligates a borrower to repay a mortgage loan at a stated interest rate during a specified period of time.
• Principal: The amount borrowed or remaining unpaid. The principal portion of the monthly payment reduces the remaining balance of a mortgage.
• Purchase Agreement: A written contract signed by the buyer and seller stating the terms and conditions under which a property will be sold.
• Real Estate Agent: A person licensed to negotiate and transact the sale of real estate.
• Servicer: An organization that collects principal and interest payments from borrowers and manages borrowers’ escrow accounts. The servicer often services mortgages that have been purchased by an investor in the secondary mortgage market.
• Survey: A drawing or map showing the precise legal boundaries of a property, the location of improvements, easements, rights of way, encroachments, and other physical features.
• Title: A legal document evidencing a person’s right to or ownership of a property.