Birmingham Subs (Hoover, Homewood, Mountain Brook: for sale by owner, real estate, house)

[krusty_916]

My family and I are relocating to Birmingham (working at the zoo) and are looking for places to live. Of course like everyone we want a safe place with a good school system. I've heard great things about Mountain Brook, but seems out of our price range. Vestvia sounds good and is more realistic. Both of these are very close to the zoo, but I don't mind commuting a little further to get more house for the dollar (4 bdrm around 300K).
Does anyone have any suggestions for Mountain Brook/Vestavia quality schools and community but a little further away? Any comments about Irondale, Homewood and Hoover?

Thanks

[cpg35223]

Try Birmingham Real Estate - Birmingham Homes - Relocation, it's probably the most comprehensive search engine available for the market.

I would try Cahaba Heights section of Vestavia as an alternative. It borders on Mountain Brook, is very convenient to the zoo, and its pretty affordable.

Mountain Brook, Vestavia, Homewood, Hoover and northern Shelby County schools are all good. Irondale, while I think it has potential, just hasn't lived up to the standards of other suburban communities in delivering quality schools.

[Back Again]

The best way to pick a Realtor is to interview them. If you look at some of the questions on this forum, you will see names with a house next to them. These are Realtors. Start questioning them. If you just ask the members here, you will get tons of different answers, just as you have been on where the best place to live and send your kids to school. In the end, only you and decide what is best for you.

Questions to ask Realtors:

How long have you been in the business? There is no correct answer here. While a new agent will work very hard for you, possibility harder then a seasoned agent, they lack experience – What they lack in experience, they make up by working harder. A seasoned Realtor will have experience, but may be complacent in how they work.

Are you a full time agent? – The ONLY answer you want to hear here is “Yes” Being a Realtor is not a part time job, it is a full time business.

How many Clients, Buyers and Sellers, are you currently working with? This is just my opinion, but if it is more then ten listings and five Buyers, the personal touch is lost. Too much to juggle.

Will I be working with you, or a member of your team? While there is nothing wrong with working with the member of a team, why are you then interviewing the Team Leader and not the Team Member? If you do work with a Realtor that has a team, interview the person you will be working with. Remember, you will be spending a lot of time with them and you want to be sure you click with them.

With the high cost of gas, some Buyer Agents are starting to charge a fee for showing home. While some my charge a non-refundable fee, others charge a fee that will be refundable at closing. Remember, there are more agents not charging a thing, but they will ask you to sign an exclusive Buyer’s Agreement with them. Also. To save time and gas and to get you started, once you pick your Realtor and sign the agreement with them, ask them to start sending you listings, via e-mail, of homes that match your criteria.

I hope this helps and I would like to wish you the best of luck with your up coming move!

[bhamkaren]

there's an area on the line of iron dale and mountain brook where the prices are not bad and just down the road from the zoo. i would also look into homewood or even over the mountain in highland in southside.

[Threestep2]

When searching for a home consider the county it is in as taxes, utilities ... vary considerably. Jefferson County is your most expensive.

Google "for sale by owner". You can search by a number of catagories from location, price to number of rooms. Send me a pm if you have problems accessing it.