Columnist Dena Kouremetis
A veteran of the real estate and homebuilding industries since 1986, Dena Kouremetis first joined Realty Times as a new homes writer in 1998. Since then, she has authored four books, written consumer columns on new homes issues for websites and newspapers all across the country, contributed to builder trade magazines, appeared as a guest expert on several radio shows and even created a ten-chapter podcast for LendingTree.com’s homebuilder website, iNest.com, now available on iTunes, entitled Uncharted Waters; Navigating the Purchase of a New Production Home .
Kouremetis recently joined her local Folsom, CA Coldwell Banker office as a broker associate while continuing to write for the real estate industry. For the past three years, she has been training real estate agents for both the resale and new homes industries, putting her experience, research expertise and gift of expression to work to help others entering the business.
New Homes: Housing in the Boondocks Get No Respect June 24, 2008 New Homes: A Silver Lining in Today's Housing Market? June 17, 2008 New Homes: Brad Pitt Leads New Orleans' Ninth Ward out of Katrina Aftermath with Sustainable Community June 10, 2008 New Homes: Buy Green – Drive Green June 3, 2008 New Homes: As Foreclosures Abound Multi-family Builders are Sitting Pretty May 27, 2008 New Homes: What's Old is New Again May 20, 2008 New Homes: Homebuilders Doing What it Takes May 14, 2008 New Homes: California's Inland Empire Makes Green May 6, 2008 New Homes: Top 10 Energy-Efficient Remodeling Projects for 2008 April 30, 2008 New Homes: Chinese Housing Market May Produce Revenue for Sagging U.S. Building Industry April 22, 2008 New Homes: Big Hat, No Cattle Found in Study of Denver Area Homebuilders April 15, 2008 Fire Safety Common Sense Program Saves Homes and Lives in San Diego Area April 8, 2008 New Homes: Designing Your Own Wall Plans April 1, 2008 New Homes: Skinny Infill That Works March 25, 2008 New Homes: Pools for All Seasons March 18, 2008 New Homes: Walking on Green March 11, 2008 New Homes: Kitchens for Our Times March 4, 2008 New Homes: A Shining Example of Home Building's House of Tomorrow February 26, 2008 New Homes: All That Glitters Can Be Gold February 19, 2008 New Homes: Cooking on Both Burners February 12, 2008 New Homes: "Works-in-a-drawer" Homebuilding Comes into its Own February 5, 2008 New Homes: The Hunt for Green January 29, 2008 New Homes: Homeowners as Selling Ambassadors? January 22, 2008 New Homes: Kitchens as Workshops January 14, 2008 New Homes: Builder Confidence Unchanged January 2, 2008 The Builder's Salesperson: Your New Home Purchase Consultant May 6, 2003 The New American Home Buyer: A Study in Spending April 22, 2003 Recent International Builders Show a Theme Park of Homebuilding Displays February 18, 2003 Being There When New Homebuyers Can't February 7, 2003 Urban Lofts Rise to New Heights August 2, 2002 Homebuilders Find Ease (and Profit) in Being Green July 1, 2002 New Homes: Made-To-Order or Move-In? April 23, 2001 Solid-Surface Countertops: What's The Difference? April 6, 2001 High Schools Build Needed Housing March 29, 2001 Straw Bale Construction Gains Following March 20, 2001 Affordable Solar Electricity On The Horizon March 12, 2001 Putting A Lid On Household Noise March 6, 2001 Generation X Powers New Home Design Trends February 27, 2001 Are You Haunted By Carpet Ghosts? February 22, 2001 Will The "iHome" Be Part Of Your Future? February 16, 2001 Courtyard Renaissance Changes American Homes February 13, 2001 Three Inspections Smart Move With New Homes February 7, 2001 Boomers Change Retirement Expectations February 2, 2001 The Buyer's Puzzle: How Far To Go for the American Dream? January 31, 2001 New American Closet Becomes Modern Necessity January 26, 2001 Avoid Surprises: Know Your Homeowner's Coverage January 24, 2001 "Dial Romance" Taken Literally with Programmable Lighting Systems January 23, 2001 Red Tape Cyber-Cutting Speeds Home Building January 19, 2001 Using Web Technology for Energy Solutions January 12, 2001 The New American Home; A Study in Excess? January 11, 2001 When the Going Gets Tough, Energy Policies Get Attention January 5, 2001 Homebuilders Create New Online Portals January 3, 2001 Taking Inventory on Safety In Your Home December 29, 2000 Calculated Home Improvements December 28, 2000 Between Homes at Christmas December 22, 2000 Housewarming Presents that Keep on Giving December 20, 2000 A Great Kitchen is Not Just the Sum of its Parts December 15, 2000 Industry Charity Helps Those Needing Temporary Shelter December 13, 2000 A Renaissance of City Living: Cincinnati Builds Housing Showcase December 8, 2000 Renovation: New Approach To Replacement Parts December 6, 2000 Don't Forget The 'Little People" When Moving To A New Home December 1, 2000 Home Building Trail Blazers Gather to Embrace Eco-Building at Civano November 30, 2000 The Beauty of Broker Representation In A New Home Purchase November 28, 2000 An Educational but 'Moving' Experience November 22, 2000 Rising Home Prices and Tight Labor Markets Force Employers to Get Creative November 17, 2000 Giving Consumers Choice of Doing it All Online the Goal of eRealtor.com November 15, 2000 One Site Fits All for Building Anything, Anywhere November 10, 2000 Building Industry Demographics Giant Expands Services November 8, 2000 Putting Everyone On The Same Page for Quality Construction Standards November 3, 2000 Navigating Carpet Selections for a Newly Built Home November 1, 2000 Online Marketing Help at Last For The Smaller Homebuilder October 27, 2000 An Auction of a Different Kind October 25, 2000 New Housing for America's Forgotten Middle Class The Spotlight of New Study October 20, 2000 And the Envelope, Please . . . October 18, 2000 Protecting Yourself Against "Fallout" when Selling Your Home October 13, 2000 Cooking, Washing and Food-Keeping in the 21st Century October 11, 2000 When Hard Hats Meet the Internet, Change Can be Profitable October 9, 2000 New Warranty Repairs; It May be All in the Presentation October 4, 2000 Clever Marketing Helps 'Set the Stage' to Sell Your Own Home September 29, 2000 The Changed Face of Mortgage Lending September 28, 2000 Nostalgia and Pride in Homes of Yesterday an American Tradition September 26, 2000 Slowdown or Downturn? There's Definitely a Difference September 20, 2000 Home Price Disparities: Translating Quality of Life September 15, 2000 Click Your Heels Three Times for LIVE/WORK/2001 September 13, 2000 New Home Brochures Often Need Translation September 8, 2000 Taking It To the Streets: Urban Housing Growth on The Fast Track September 6, 2000 Site Selection Important Consideration in New Home Planning September 1, 2000 Giving NIMBYs Less Ammunition Goal of Multifamily Developers and City Planners August 30, 2000 Seeing The Forest For The Trees August 25, 2000 Home Management Made Easy Online August 23, 2000 REALTORS and Homeowners Discover Time and Sanity With Professional Organizers August 18, 2000 Geothermal Power Garners Heat and Electricity from Beneath the Earth's Surface August 16, 2000 Roofing Warranties and Homeowner Maintenance August 11, 2000 Taking The Impersonal Touch Out of Cyber-Lending August 9, 2000 One Stop Shopping For Accessible Products Goal Of NAHB Research-Sponsored Directory August 4, 2000 New Trend in Home Designs: Little Niches with Big Uses August 2, 2000 The Future is Now: the Internet Home is Here July 28, 2000 Included or Optional? That is the Question July 26, 2000 Bringing The Indoors Out July 21, 2000 Redefining the Word "Tract" in Production Homebuilding July 19, 2000 Internet Can Create Mean, Lean Building Supply Delivery System July 14, 2000 New Decking Surfaces Help Save Environment July 12, 2000 Creativity, Quality, Affordability of Senior Housing to be Studied at New Research Center July 7, 2000 Wandering The Floor at The Western Building Show July 6, 2000 Trend Sees White Picket Fences Becoming Reality for Many Americans June 30, 2000 Putting the Pedal to the Metal on Steel-Framed Homes June 28, 2000 Urban Silk Purses from Sows' Ears Made Possible by Environmental Insurance June 23, 2000 Architects and Production Homebuilders Skipping Along the Garden Path Together? June 21, 2000 Buyers Play Important Role in Timely Completion of Their New Homes June 16, 2000 The New American Dream Has Its Own Unique Vocabulary June 14, 2000 Lights, Camera, Action! "Home Director" is in Charge June 9, 2000 Seven Home in Seven Days: Habitat for Humanity Builds Miracles June 8, 2000 Consortiums Work to Significantly Improve Energy Efficiency in American Homes June 7, 2000 How Much Easier Can it Get? Paperless Real Estate Closings Now Possible May 31, 2000 Portland First to Ban "Snout Homes" May 26, 2000 A Cyber Match-Up of Home Buyers, REALTORS, and New Home Communities May 24, 2000 Ratios Vs. Rationale: Will A New Mortgage Payment Make Sense For You? May 19, 2000 New Home Buyers Learn to Roll With the Punches May 17, 2000 BUILDER Magazine Publishes Yearly Brand Use Study for Building Products May 12, 2000 The Appeal of 55-Plus Communities May 10, 2000 Getting Cold Feet On A New Home Purchase? May 5, 2000 What If Your Loan Approval Isn't A "Slam Dunk?" May 3, 2000 Doing Your Part in Keeping Your New Neighborhood Like New April 28, 2000 Home Builders Understand The Color "Green" From More Than One Standpoint April 26, 2000 New Home Shopping Evokes Emotional Choices - On Purpose! April 21, 2000 Eyes Wide Shut: What Does Seller Disclosure Mean In a New Home Purchase? April 19, 2000 New Millennium Homebuyers Won't Settle For Other's Idea of Home April 14, 2000 Creative Uses for Conventional Rooms Provides Custom Feel to Production Homes April 12, 2000 Rocks of Ages: A Natural Choice For New Homes April 7, 2000 REALTORS Can Become Advisor And Resource When Buying A Newly Constructed Home April 5, 2000 Taking a Model Home Tour From The Comfort of Home March 31, 2000 The View From Above: Are Developers Gobbling Up Our Farmland? March 29, 2000 Nation's Five Largest Home Builders Plan Mega-Site for Consumers March 24, 2000 What's In A Name? Just About Everything, Say New Home Marketing Experts March 22, 2000 Building 'Outside the Box': Profile Of A Custom Homebuilder March 17, 2000 A Place Called Home, And How the Meaning has Changed March 15, 2000 A Building Conference With A Decidedly Green Tint March 10, 2000 Don't Throw Away All That Builder Paperwork! March 9, 2000 When East Meets West, Homebuilders Take Note March 8, 2000 Raising The Bar In New Home Construction March 1, 2000 Housing Starts Are Positive Bellwether For Building Industry February 25, 2000 What You See And What You Don't; Clever Lighting Can Make a Big Difference February 23, 2000 Builders Could Benefit From Elimination Of Seniors Earnings Cap February 18, 2000 Perceived Trends in Homebuilding Fuel Fantasies And Provide Solutions February 16, 2000 Letting The Sun Shine In With Photovoltaics February 11, 2000 The Great American Loo February 9, 2000 Baby Boomers De-bunk Retirement Myths February 8, 2000 Selling New Homes a Piece of Cake? Think Again. February 2, 2000 Concrete Dull? The Hard Facts May Impress You January 28, 2000 Residential Land Planners Want New Homebuyers to 'Have it All' January 26, 2000 A Cyber-Rookie Goes Mouse-Hunting for a New Home January 21, 2000 What You Can Learn From Your New Home Walk-through Orientation January 19, 2000 The American Garage: Is Bigger Necessarily Always Better? January 14, 2000 How Many Builders Make Multi-Million Dollar Decisions January 12, 2000 Building A Home From The Palm Of Your Hand? January 7, 2000 Busy Homebuyers Shop for New Homes, Internet-Style and Get Cash Back January 5, 2000 A Marriage With A Future, Pre-Nup and All December 31, 1999 Education Supplies Fresh New Talent for Home Building December 29, 1999 One Homeowner's 'Brush' With Home Improvement December 24, 1999 Adobe Construction: No Longer the 'Poor Man's' House of The Southwest December 22, 1999 "Woodn't" You Rather Have a SIP? December 17, 1999 Exciting Building Products For Exciting Times December 15, 1999 Say It With Hardwood, New Homes Or Old December 10, 1999 Clean Slate Solutions for Preventing Clutter In Your New Home December 9, 1999 Homeowner Disgust: Mad as Hell and Not Going to Take it Any More December 3, 1999 Selling New Homes for Fun and Profit December 1, 1999 Don't Wait; Say It With Color in Your New Home November 29, 1999 How "Connected" Are New Home Builders to Their Real Roots? November 24, 1999 Firing Up The Hearth For The Holidays November 19, 1999 How Do Builders Protect Themselves Against "Knock-Offs"? November 17, 1999 Turn of the Century Trends in Architecture and Interior Design November 12, 1999 The New American Kitchen; More Functional and Beautiful Than Ever November 10, 1999 The "Three L's" of New Home Sometimes Have an Unexpected Twist November 5, 1999 Can I Relax Now That My Loan Is Pre-Approved? November 3, 1999 The Housing Act of 1949: 50 Years of the American Dream Celebrated October 29, 1999 Finding a Happy Medium in New Homes: Unadorned or 'Dudded Out?' You Decide October 27, 1999 Be Careful What You Wish For In Design Center Choices for Your New Home October 25, 1999 New Home Warranties Don't Release Buyers from Ongoing Maintenance October 20, 1999 Model Home Artistry: More than Just a Pretty Place October 15, 1999 Get the "Deal of the Century" on a New Home to Ring in the New Millenium! October 13, 1999 'Active Adult' Communities Satisfy Needs of Baby Boom Generation October 8, 1999 Internet Makes FSBO Market Sizzle October 6, 1999 By Any Other Name, New Homes Still Spur the Economy October 1, 1999 Flexibility Key to Success in New Home Designs September 29, 1999 Planning Your Home Gym May Inspire You to Actually Use It! September 24, 1999 No Hot Water? HWR Systems Save the Day September 22, 1999 What a Difference A Door Makes September 17, 1999 Homes Built to Last? How Can You Determine Quality? September 15, 1999 Why Newspapers Shouldn't Fear the Internet September 10, 1999 Just What Am I Getting Into? Signing on The Dotted Line.. September 8, 1999 Pure Americana Makes a Comeback; The New Log Home is Here! September 3, 1999 The Survival of the Entry Foyer in New Home Designs September 1, 1999 Sales Trailers Ad Nauseam August 27, 1999 Avoiding Naivete When Building A New Home August 25, 1999 Details, Details . . .Dudding Out the New Home in High Style August 20, 1999 To Build or Not to Build a Home on That Hill? August 18, 1999 Your New Home: A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words August 13, 1999 Reviving Old World Ideas: The Portico Entry August 11, 1999 In a Hot Market, How Do Builders Find Great Salespeople? August 6, 1999 The UBuildIt System: Become Your Own General Contractor August 4, 1999 The Thirty Second Commute to Work; Planning Your Home Office July 30, 1999 The Roles Of Venus & Mars In A New Home Purchase July 28, 1999 Dressing For Builder Success July 23, 1999 Counting the American Blessing of Home Ownership July 21, 1999 New Builder Products are Built to Last July 16, 1999 Is Something Fishy in Builder Pricing? July 14, 1999 Sparkling Pools And New Homes July 9, 1999 Proposed Legislation Will Help Californians Buy New Homes July 7, 1999 In-fill Urban Gems: The Resurrection of Chic City Living July 2, 1999 Potential Del Webb Homebuyers Take Lifestyle Out For a Test Drive June 30, 1999 Safe in the Eye of the Storm: Concrete Form Housing June 25, 1999 Time for the Big Move. Or is it? June 23, 1999 New Home Construction Nightmares June 18, 1999 Builder's Marketing Campaigns Benefit More Than Meets The Eye June 16, 1999 Who Will Build The Homes of Tomorrow? June 11, 1999 Homebuilders ask "Who are You, Anyway?" June 9, 1999 Stakin' Your Claim: Oh Give Me a Home on the New Home Range June 4, 1999 The Latest In Innovative Products For New Homes June 2, 1999 Hot Markets Can Lead to Overconfident Builders May 28, 1999 What Did I Forget To Choose For My New House May 26, 1999 Builders and Realtors - A Powerful Combo May 21, 1999 New Home Marketing Firms - What Do They Do? May 14, 1999 Arbitrate, Don't Litigate with Builders! May 12, 1999 Builders Still Prefer The Human Touch May 7, 1999 A Window to the World of Energy Efficient Windows May 5, 1999 New Home Buyers are Getting Wired! April 30, 1999 Bite The Bullet And Pay The Price April 28, 1999 Is There Any Room To Haggle With The Builder? April 23, 1999 Baby Boomers are Moving to Empty Nesters April 16, 1999 "Dateline NBC" Criticized for EIFS Report April 14, 1999 Builder Espionage: How Sales Associates Keep On Their Toes April 9, 1999 CyberShopping For A New Home April 7, 1999 Crumbling Walls Creating A Stir April 2, 1999 You Snooze, You Lose: Market Too Fast for Fence-Sitting Buyers March 26, 1999 Everything Old Is New Again, Even Insulation March 19, 1999 Builders Often Reserve the Right to Make Substitutions March 12, 1999 Point: Don't Sweat Mortgage Rates Too Much March 5, 1999 Your New Home: Small & Elegant or Average & Plain? February 26, 1999 Just Give Me The Keys Please February 19, 1999 The Long View: Getting Re-Sale Upgrades Before the Walls are Up February 12, 1999 Using Builder-Preferred Title, Escrow Company Simplifies Things February 5, 1999 The Design Center Appointment For Your New Home January 29, 1999 Production Builders' Build On Your Own Lot Programs January 22, 1999 Landscape, Hardscape, but what's a "Streetscape"? January 15, 1999 How Can I Best Use a Builder's Incentive Money? January 8, 1999 Does My Life Fit Into This House? December 31, 1998 Your New Home - Why is it Taking so Long? December 24, 1998 Safeguards For Contingent Buyers December 18, 1998 What About My Neighbors? December 11, 1998 New Homes: Why Use an In-House Lender? December 4, 1998 Going "Into The Light" May Be The Best Direction After All... November 27, 1998 What Will They Build Nearby? November 23, 1998 Former Soviet Republic, Kyrgyz, Eyes U.S. New Homes November 13, 1998 Builders Embracing Virtual Walk Throughs November 6, 1998 Why Are There So Many Deposits When Building a New Home? October 30, 1998 Luxury Living In Laid-Back Lanai October 23, 1998 Four Major Reasons To Buy a New Home Over a Resale Home October 16, 1998 Expect Delays on New Homes October 9, 1998 Secrets to Buying A Model Home October 2, 1998 The Difference Between New Home Agents and Re-Sale Agents September 25, 1998 Will My New House Be Ready In Time? September 18, 1998
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