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    Monday, December 7, 2020

    Real Estate: Closed on a home and my realtor has been terrible. Where can I leave a fair honest review?

    Real Estate: Closed on a home and my realtor has been terrible. Where can I leave a fair honest review?


    Closed on a home and my realtor has been terrible. Where can I leave a fair honest review?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 08:10 AM PST

    My realtor throughout my home buying process has made my life more stressful than I thought imaginable.

    • Incredibly lazy, had to convince him to be present for my final walkthrough.

    • Clearly cared about the sale more than being my advocate

    • Communication was incredibly bad. Would talk to my wife or inspector about what I called him regarding instead of me.

    • Then there is the repairs fiasco. We asked for two things to be fixed before we moved in. First thing was some exterior work. He kept saying "I'm 99% sure the seller will fix it" until the seller had "no money to fix it". My realtor stated he knew a guy that does this work and he said it cost $1500 to fix. I asked for this guys quote and contact information and the realtor still hasn't given it to me. I gave up and am getting my own quotes contractor. Now I'm in it because I trusted him. He just keeps telling me "he will get that to me". Its been over a month.

    • The second was the electrical. Asked to have two things fixed. It took a super long for my realtor to let us know what was going on. He assured us "it was all fixed" when it clearly wasn't. I asked for invoices, abd it wasn't all done. Told my realtor I was coming out to look for myself, AND THEN he was quick to get an electrician out there to fix the rest as we refused to close unless it was complete.

    submitted by /u/Man-0n-The-Moon
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    Getting tenant to sign new lease?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 09:48 PM PST

    Located in CA. We have a tenant that we rent to. She's nice and we've had her on a lease which has moved to a month-to-month term. She's had family come and stay for a couple weeks here and there. Mostly I don't care, we haven't had any issues over the years. I'm only concerned about liability. I guess CA considers the guest a tenant if they've stayed 14 days or more in a 6-month period, or 7 consecutive days. So technically this family member is a tenant in the state's eyes.

    Looking at the guest provisions in our contract, it's not specific. We should have not used something from the internet. How can I get the tenant to sign a new lease that's more solid? How can I protect myself from liability from guests staying over a lot?

    Thanks!!

    submitted by /u/everytingirie865
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    How do you think I should finance my next property?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 07:12 AM PST

    So, just started investing in real estate a little over a year ago. I first acquired a 4 family using an FHA loan and currently owner occupy the property. I have about 15% equity in that property. Just about 4 months ago I bought a 6 family commercial and have a little over 25% equity. We are now expecting a child and would like to move from the 4 family back to a single family home, and use the 4 family as a strictly investment property. We have enough cash for an approximate 30k down payment, which is about 5-10% down payment on median home prices in my area. My goal is to acquire the single family within the next 2-3 months, while still being able to purchase another investment property by the end of the year.

    How might you go about financing this? Is it possible to get another FHA for a single family (due to child). This would keep my down payment on the residential property low... then cashout refi the commercial and 4 family at end of year and use some of the extra money I saved on the residential for down payment on the next investment property? Purchase the residential as a vacation home at 10% down? Refinance the 4 family to a non fha and put in 20% equity now, then get an fha signle family for us? Something else?

    Would love to hear your thoughts.

    submitted by /u/Crockett721
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    Requiring a pre-approval to see property

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 08:35 AM PST

    I just listed my place in a relatively hot market (NYC suburbs), am I being too limiting requiring buyers be pre approved to see my property? I thought this was standard practice, plus, um there's this thing called COVID 19 going around. My realtor said it was up to me.. I really only want to entertain serious buyers. Had a showing cancel and get offended today (insert eyeroll). Any real negatives to this strategy? I feel like if someone is truly interested they'll get an approval letter. I did it and it took about 20 minutes to complete the application and upload documents to the banks portal.

    submitted by /u/raisinboysneedcoffee
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    TLDR; Sale is firm but anonymous man contacted our realtor claiming structural issues - WTF?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 04:26 PM PST

    Hey there!

    First time home buyers here in Canada! We're over the moon happy about purchasing a forever home (not expected) as our first house. It's a 107 years old home, but we're both handy and capable people. I have a fine arts degree, and he's a mechanical engineer. We love a good project! We have lots of friends who are also so talented when it comes to home renos and general upkeep of older homes. We have savings for home maintenance, and have no issues with the age of the home.

    The home has been wonderfully cared for, as the previous owners were invested in the home for 17 years, and the husband was actually a home inspector himself. They did rent it out for a while, but maintained the home really really well. We feel very lucky.

    Our sale went firm last Friday (Dec 4th). Financing, inspections, a special pipe inspection are all in oder. No issues. Closing is first week of January. However!! Saturday we got a call from our realtor, with news that he has never received before. An "Anonymous" caller contacted him claiming to be a structural engineer, but refused to give his name, and claimed that the house was actually going to cost us an extra 100K in structural repairs because the owners have covered up a ton of issues with the foundation.

    We had our inspector really investigate the basement of this home. We were blown away with how greta the basement was, but wanted to make sure things were in fact as they appeared. Nothing was a cause for concern! The sellers have specified that there has NEVER been a structural engineer on the property or in the house. It has not been inspected by one.

    Luckily for us, one of my friends is actually a structural engineer haha So you BET I called her as soon as we received this news. The sellers have agreed to allow for a structural inspection to take place even though they have no obligation to allow us anywhere near the house now that the deal is firm. Everything is signed! We'll pay for it though, and the seller will be present, which we're actually excited for because we want to talk to them and make sure they know we're not trying to be pains in the butt! This anonymous asshole has forced us to be extra careful though!

    We have no doubt that :

    1)Mr. Anonymous is NOT a structural engineer (there aren't a ton in our province, and with my friend being one of them she's calling bulllllshit)
    2) There is nothing wrong with the house that would cost us THAT much money. (It's 107 years old. of COURSE there's constant upkeep!)
    3) That this inspection will prove all that.

    My friend who's the structural engineer has gone over a ton of stuff with us, and is confident that there is nothing that wrong with our dream home. We're setting up the actual inspection for this week and can't wait to get it over with.

    What I want to know is...
    Who the heck goes to the trouble of finding out who is a buying agent in a deal, and contacts them anonymously? Especially after they see the house pop up online as SOLD instead of pending? Our realtor thinks its a butt-hurt previous buyer who didn't get it, and is pretty confident that they'll try to contact us after our closing date/we've moved in. We really hope this isn't the case and that they just go away.

    Have any of you heard of or experienced being contacted anonymously (or not?) after a deal has turned firm? The ridiculousness of it all is what's most annoying. I'm pissed off at this random dude!

    submitted by /u/Binx_9
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    [AL] Better to buy now w/ PMI or later at 20%?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 08:08 AM PST

    My fiancee and I are currently saving to buy a house, and we're at about 8.5% of a 250k, able to save about 2k a month combined. House prices in our area have gone up 15% in the past year, and the forecast is another 9% increase for the following year. This could get thrown out the window with COVID, but yeah.

    In our area, average house price is about 210k, and we're looking in the 250-300 area. If we stick to 250k, and save up to the full 20%, it would approximately take us 15 more months. We'll be at 10% in 2.5 months. If house prices go up another 10% in a year, that means the 250k house will be 275k.

    On the off chance the house prices do continue to increase, it seems obvious to put less down, pay PMI, and say this theoretical house does go up to 275k, then that increases our equity in it due to appreciation, correct?

    The only down side I can see is if the housing market in our area crashes and out 250k house drops to 210k and we're underwater. I don't think this is much of a possibility due to the nature of our area being carried by government contracts + engineers, but I guess the possibility is still there.

    So am I correct in my assumption that buying a house with 10% down (having an extra pot for emergency savings of course) in a growing market, and having to pay PMI will be completely worth it? If so, when should I go about talking to a realtor if we'll have the 10% down payment by February 1st?

    submitted by /u/Spritesgud
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    Found my dream home, but I'm poor!

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 09:30 AM PST

    HELP! i found my dream home, it's bit more than what I was expecting and I'm pretty sure that with my income alone I won't be able to get any loans for it, now before I get lit up for trying to buy a house I can't afford my parents will be moving in with me, they would be paying for the house with me and the house has an apartment that can be rented for extra income (between me and my parents we make over 150k a year, but by myself I only make around 40k). Heres the big issue, my parents credit has been obliterated since 2012 and they have not fixed it, they recently got some credit cards and have been building a good rep but I don't think that would be enough for them to actually help with a cosign. My credit is perfect no blemish at all, so do I have any options at all?

    submitted by /u/ariel32112
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    Home with a lot of DOB complaints

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 08:39 AM PST

    A house in my neighborhood popped up that my aunt is interested in and would like to see it (we're in NYC). I went on the city's website and saw there was about 38 complaints for the home! They don't list who made the calls for the complaints but on a couple of the complaints it says "my neighbor is blahblahblah". So it seems to be 1 neighbor complaining every other month or so about an illegal conversion to the basement or illegal work without permits for the past 8 years. It seems the DOB was never given accessed and no real violation was ever given. Would you guys recommend skipping on this home? Can the seller take care of all these complaints? Has anyone bought a home with this much complaints?

    submitted by /u/daev0z
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    Does changing the allocation of your paycheck affect your mortgage application?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 08:18 AM PST

    I got pre-approved a few weeks ago and know that moving all of my money from my savings account into another one will be a red mark against me.

    However, I want to stop funding my savings account and some of my checking account into other accounts moving forward that can make me more money. Will doing this have a negative impact on financing or getting approved by my lender?

    submitted by /u/DVDeveee
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    Market-rate home in deed restricted neighborhood?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 08:02 AM PST

    I'm looking at buying a market rate home in a deed restricted neighborhood (20% of the homes are market). This is in an extremely expensive resort town, and the neighborhood was built for families that work in the area. In general, the price of the home is comparable to prices of the cheapest of the other single family homes in the area, plus it's newer. I honestly do not think the price will ever go down, especially as there has been low inventory and people are flooding to towns like this since covid has allowed WFH. Just wondering if anyone else had experience with this type of home.

    submitted by /u/cambouquet
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    [WA] Can I as a realtor hire another realtor to sell my property and what are the disclosure rules in such a case?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 07:02 AM PST

    I'm a realtor. I want to sell my house. But I don't want to get a commission for it and have it added to my taxable income.

    Can I hire another agency to sell my house for me and avoid having to disclose I'm a realtor in my listing and contract?

    How does anyone even know I'm a realtor through this process if I don't disclose it.

    submitted by /u/RemoteDesktop
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    Does the fence style of a backyard fence have any impact on resale?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 06:54 AM PST

    We're going to get a 6-foot vinyl fence (I think that's what is required by the HOA if we get a fence) for our backyard so our dog can play. The lots in our neighborhood are small. I'm thinking a picket-style semi-privacy fence to let a little bit more air/sunlight in. I also just think picket looks better, especially on a colonial-style home. My husband prefers a full privacy fence with lattice on top. Is any particular type of fence more desirable/less of a turn-off to buyers? We might not even sell the house before its lifetime, but I figured it was something to consider. Thank you!

    submitted by /u/UNsoAlt
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    Every structural engineer booked solid until Jan... go with a basement repair company to assess?

    Posted: 07 Dec 2020 06:41 AM PST

    Inspection showed some cracks that should be assessed. The inspector didn't seem to think it was a big deal but I want to be cautious. I have hunted for days and cannot get a structural engineer that is available for months. I heard if you use a company that does basement waterproofing and foundation repair (they all give "free inspections") they will invariably tell you the sky is falling. But my due diligence ends Wednesday and they may be all I can get. Should I call one of them, just let it go, or run?

    submitted by /u/LuluLamoreaux
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    Newly renovated home has unpermitted work

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 10:47 PM PST

    I'm a buyer and found under the SPQ form that they have some unpermitted construction; the addition of a wall in the bathroom to make it 2 bath, a deck, and an expansion of the 3rd bedroom by knocking out the wall in the kitchen (btw the home is basically listed at 2 bed since 3rd bed is unpermitted, still listed at 2 bath somehow). Seller is a flipper, bought the home at 650k and basically tried to make the home look cosmetically nice without spending much money.

    I don't mind getting permits in the future, but I do not want to buy a home at premium price with all the unpermitted work + other repairs + whatever additional shady stuff we'll find. Offer is initially 890K but with everything I'm finding out about the home, it's definitely not worth 890k. How much leeway is there when it comes to negotiating price with the seller? I'm thinking of trying to bring it down to 40k and repairs but not optimistic they'll take. Any advice?

    submitted by /u/MasterGrump
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    Polybutene pipes "with copper fitting"

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 06:50 PM PST

    We are under contract for a house to purchase built in 1992. It has polybutene pipes. They have never had an issues and we just had inspector come in doing thermal scan and no moisture was detected.

    One of the plumbers we received a quote for said that because the pipes have "copper fittings" and it hasn't had a problem there is no need to replace the pipes.

    Is that true? I always thought this was ticking time bomb? Just trying to assess what the risk is and whether or not it's worth spending the money to get them all replaced.

    The plumber also says home insurance usually covers damages and home warranty can help cover repair.

    submitted by /u/dim_discourse
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    Selling my house while out of state, should I do a rushed floor touch up or don't bother?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 08:03 PM PST

    I'm relocation and have been on temporary assignment. I just got assigned permanently and need to sell my house relatively quickly as they stop paying my housing here (where I am working) in 45 days.

    I'm going home for the weekend. The living room and dining room floors have no finish on them. I'm short on time and they definitely can't be sanded due to age. Floors.

    I can swap the furniture from the living room to the dining room and vise versa but would have to use the quick doing polyurethane and move furniture back within a few hours (whole praying the cats stay away). Will the floor condition turn off buyers? Is it worth doing a quick coat even though it may not be perfect or could this make the problem worse?

    submitted by /u/radicalindependence
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    Free Software for HOA management (MI) USA

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 11:16 AM PST

    I just moved into a new Condo. I want to help the association update their digital communications - so residents can communicate - maybe vote - maybe submit and track maintenance requests. My HOA is scrappy, free solutions are preferred. Any ideas?

    submitted by /u/ahealthtablet
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    Feeling frustrated

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 06:26 PM PST

    This is the third offer we've lost because they went with someone else, and we haven't been able to get any details on why they went with someone else. I understand how competitive the market is, but I've been keeping tabs on saved houses once they've sold and they're not going crazy over. All the offers we've put in have been over asking. Is it because we're FHA? How many times did you have to put offers in before finally nailing one? It's getting a bit discouraging

    submitted by /u/Allz4
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    CA Home Seller requesting rent back - Gotchas or loopholes i'm missing with Covid restrictions

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 09:35 PM PST

    Hello all,

    My partner and I think we found a house in the bay area that we think may be good for our family. There is obvious dry rot on the house and it needs a new roof/gutters. These all seem reasonable with the price of the house and we think others may be dissuaded by the issues.

    As we're looking at putting an offer on the house, the owners have requested rent back. My partner and I are not in a huge hurry to move in (we live in a stable housing situation) except that we would want to be moved in by May/June next year. If we close in the house in January, I would feel comfortable doing rent back to the seller for 60-90 days and then we can get into the house to do repairs.

    If we are to offer rent back, I had a few questions:

    • with the Tenant/Landlord protections because of Covid, could this end up biting us (IE. the person stops paying rent and refuses to leave the house without us being able to evict them)
    • If our mortgage is $3700-$4000, what should we expect (fair market, 20% below fair market, 50% below FMV)
    • Is there any clauses we should put in the contract that have been good in the contract?
    • Do Lenders take issue with doing rent back to the seller?
    • Could the bank increase our interest rate if we do rent back for more than 60 days to the seller?

    Our real estate agent just let us know this evening about the rent back option for the sellers, so we've yet to discuss if this is truly worth our time or if it's just trying to get a few weeks of padding in finding their new home.

    submitted by /u/analogIT
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    Selling in January but neighbors friend is interested. How to navigate selling before listing?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 06:53 PM PST

    We will be listing our home for sale in Jan after we fix a few things, prep and stage. We are carrying two mortgages so we would like to sell asap. However we could pay both for a while if we had to. Of course i would rather not.

    We are in an extremely hot market where homes go well over asking price(think 50-150k over) and homes are under contract within days. However, i have a neighbor who has a friend who has been looking for 8 months and has had no success(likely continues to get outbid). When i told him we were moving he asked if i might be open to letting them view the place.

    Assuming i were to let them check the house out prior to listing it how should i go about this? I could let them see it before we move out but of course we wouldn't have done all the work and fixes and staging and its kind of a mess right now due to moving. I could wait until we move out and stage it and give them first look. I guess the pro here would be potentially selling quicker without going through the whole listing process? The con would be the risk of losing money on the sale.

    Im curious how folks recommend handling a situation like this. If they were to put an offer on the home, would i have to list it? Can you sell without even listing? If they put an offer i accepted and they backed out, would that show as it having been listed? If so, should i ask them to waive contingencies considering i run the risk of having to relist as well as the risk of losing out on money due to a bidding war i could get?

    Open to any feedback here.

    submitted by /u/needacrib
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    Tax Bill on Mortgaged Property?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 02:11 PM PST

    I own two structures, one that I live in and have a mortgage with escrow of course and one that I own free and clear. When I looked up what I owe in taxes on the county's tax collector site, they show the full bill for both properties. Will the mortgaged property be paid by the lender who handles my escrow? I am pretty sure that is the way that worked but this is more of a sanity check than anything.

    Edit: this is actually showing two slightly different tax bills for only my mortgaged property and nothing for the one I own free and clear. Both are dated 1/6/21 though. Is this some kind of mistake? Also both bills and within 10 dollars of each other but they are different.

    submitted by /u/ChiefBustard
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    Want to buy empty lot and build garage apartment, what all should I be thinking of?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 03:48 PM PST

    I just moved to southern Maine have been living in an apartment for 5 months. Rent around here is $1200/month at minimum, and so it's led me to think about buying. I'm currently living in a garage apartment, about 1200 sq ft over a 2 car garage. Land here seems to be expensive, and the area is developing rapidly. The big catch is that I really only plan to be here for 3 years or so. My thought is that if I can buy a property and build a garage apartment, I could get all my money back, or even make money when I go to sell. To reference land values, There are 5 acre lots nearby for $85,000 (on the low end).

    I really have no clue what in talking about. So my questions are the following. - Does this sound reasonable? Any land with a good building on it seems to go for $200,000 easily around here. - How much does it cost to have water connected if I have town water, and how much is it if I don't have town water? - How much does it cost to get electricity to the building? - Am I reasonable to think that I could get all my money back out of this? (2 car garage w/ living space above) and would it be attractive in the market? - What are the costs of natural gas is available (just to get connected)? - What should I be considering when doing this?

    submitted by /u/PumpSquatRaqs
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    Have any states repealed the rebate ban in the last 20 years?

    Posted: 06 Dec 2020 10:55 AM PST

    We know that some states ban rebates and some not. Do you know of any state in which this was banned but repealed it (and now it is not banned)?

    submitted by /u/mahyar-s
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