Will do. I understand Zillow is unreliable.
So I doubt we will talk them down before then go with an agent anyway.
Will do. I understand Zillow is unreliable.
So I doubt we will talk them down before then go with an agent anyway.
spacejamz
Lifer
- Mar 31, 2003
- 10,975
- 1,690
- 126
ditto...we picked up a spec home (already built and finished out) that was 2 months old looking through the real estate section of the Sunday paper...no agent.
builder give gave us the choice of $6000 towards our closing costs or use towards home upgrades...naturally, we applied that towards our closing costs....this would have covered the money they would have paid an agent...
If we weren't buying a new house, I think we would have gone with an agent though...
Red Squirrel
No Lifer
I'd get an agent, it's just less hassle, since they make all the arrangements to see houses, and keep an eye out for you. I am also looking for a house and recently got an agent and he's been very helpful. He showed us 4 houses so far but said the market will be opening up more over the summer, and prices will go down a bit, so I'm best to just be patient. He's also giving me lot of tips for things to take note when looking at a house, such as stepping beside the toilet to see if the wood is rotting. (if you sink, = bad) and checking what type of electrical they have, etc. Lot of things to consider.
squirrel dog
Diamond Member
- Oct 10, 1999
- 5,564
- 48
- 91
Ragingbitch had some good input . As the better half to a very successful Realtor(my wife.I would choke to death half of her clients)I can tell you , its better off with some one , that will rep. you for the largest purchase you will make . My wife works off of word of mouth refferals from past sales . So you need to ask around and find someone in your area that can do you some good . I sold a house years ago fsbo , I had no appraisal ( a cma isnt as good) , no termite contract(a big deal in South Louisiana )so it took one and a half years to sell it in a good time for the selling side . These are not good times for the selling side , prices are down all over , keep in mind a very low offer only pisses off the seller , something a good agent will show you , or you can find out on your own . Also most fsbo's up there price to reflect a 6% comm . So a 150 k house would have a 10 k comm . Go alot lower than that and you are out of bounds in most markets . Good luck , Donald Trump says be bold , now is the time to buy , God Bless Him !!
alkemyst
No Lifer
- Feb 13, 2001
- 83,769
- 19
- 81
well your agent should be able to explain this since you are paying them
...You get the $8000 when you pay taxes and if that is more than 10% of the purchase price.
It's a tax credit and fully refundable. If you own $6000 you get back $2000, if you don't own anything you get back $8000...if you are already getting money back you get it all + $8000.
pre-approval would help there. i dont know the current climate but wouldnt knowing what exact range you can consider be helpful? it's also another card you can play in the buying negotiation to try to bargain down along with the no agent piece.
HomeBrewerDude
Lifer
- Jan 18, 2001
- 14,465
- 1
- 0
pre-approval is a good idea. a good buyer's agent is also a good idea IMO, especially for newbie home owners. Don't forget to get the inspection, and build in what ever contingencies you need in your offer.
the question you should be concerned with is assessing fair market value. look and look and look. research tax assessments. after a while you'll know a bargain when you see one. BTW when we bought (during a hot market 7 years ago), we did not find any good deals with FSBOs. Market was so hot, that houses were selling in a week or less so we needed an agent to get to the houses before they went into the real estate data base. Our strategy worked and we bought a house for 20,000 under what it was probably worth.
the question you should be concerned with is assessing fair market value. look and look and look. research tax assessments. after a while you'll know a bargain when you see one. BTW when we bought (during a hot market 7 years ago), we did not find any good deals with FSBOs. Market was so hot, that houses were selling in a week or less so we needed an agent to get to the houses before they went into the real estate data base. Our strategy worked and we bought a house for 20,000 under what it was probably worth.
halik
Lifer
- Oct 10, 2000
- 25,696
- 1
- 81
Ding,
I worked for a commercial RE broker during Grad school... the only real value added we had was modeling large-scale multifamily rehab projects. All the rest of the stuff was really no different than selling used cars.
Couple hundred for RE lawyer wring up a contract and inspector coming over for an appraisal < 6%
Bringing this back from the recent dead.
Does anyone know any sites out there that are actually geared towards a walkthrough of the process for people going it alone? We're going in to get our preapproval on saturday, will probably shop around some for the rate but want to do a sit down with our local bank first.
I'm looking at a few lawyers and feeling them out for rates, they all seem to mention doing contracts and title search etc, but no what about offer/counteroffer forms? Everyone seems to use the same paperwork I had hoped to find a site online with some downloadable forms but 90% of the results are for realtors telling me to sign with them or are for FSBO, nothing for the independent buyer.
I wouldn't mind having an appraisal done before we make the offer, but that doesn't seem to be the way it works. It reads like I make an offer/counteroffer/etc and then the appraisal happens. The house we have found is a FSBO with no sellers agent. They are asking 219,000 but the home has only been on the market for a few weeks, and I think they are at least 10% if not 15+% high. So my all this work will probably be a waste, but I want to try. The tax assessed value is ~175,000 as of Jan 1st. The seller is preparing to pay a flat fee to get the home listed in the mls, and they are moving into their new home at the end of the month. If house isn't sold by next month they will agent up, and I will too. And then either their agent will convince them they are coming in too high, or I will be completely wrong and will keep looking.
Does anyone know any sites out there that are actually geared towards a walkthrough of the process for people going it alone? We're going in to get our preapproval on saturday, will probably shop around some for the rate but want to do a sit down with our local bank first.
I'm looking at a few lawyers and feeling them out for rates, they all seem to mention doing contracts and title search etc, but no what about offer/counteroffer forms? Everyone seems to use the same paperwork I had hoped to find a site online with some downloadable forms but 90% of the results are for realtors telling me to sign with them or are for FSBO, nothing for the independent buyer.
I wouldn't mind having an appraisal done before we make the offer, but that doesn't seem to be the way it works. It reads like I make an offer/counteroffer/etc and then the appraisal happens. The house we have found is a FSBO with no sellers agent. They are asking 219,000 but the home has only been on the market for a few weeks, and I think they are at least 10% if not 15+% high. So my all this work will probably be a waste, but I want to try. The tax assessed value is ~175,000 as of Jan 1st. The seller is preparing to pay a flat fee to get the home listed in the mls, and they are moving into their new home at the end of the month. If house isn't sold by next month they will agent up, and I will too. And then either their agent will convince them they are coming in too high, or I will be completely wrong and will keep looking.
dullard
Elite Member
- May 21, 2001
- 26,083
- 4,733
- 126
I can't help about websites for buying. Your best bet: find a friend/relative who had a buyer's agent and use the same legal language on your offer that they used in their offer. That should cover most of the bases.
Generally, the appraisal is NOT for you. The appraisal is for the bank. Appraisers work for banks, not for buyers. In many areas, appraisers were basically just yes-men, who tell the bank that the house is worth what you are paying (happened to me, the appraisal came out the the exact unusal dollar amount that I offered). Plus, appraising is a grey area anyways with too many variables to determine a real price. Heck, many appraisers just drive by the house to make certain it isn't a crap-hole then just report back the average selling price of recently sold similar houses in the same neighborhood (which often don't exist so the appraisal is just a guess in that case).
To avoid complications with frequent complaints and appeals, tax assessed values are often (not always) purposely about 20% low (then they jack up the tax rate by 20% to make up for the difference). IF that is the case in your location, then the true value is roughly $175,000 * 1.2 = $210,000. For lack of a better number, I'll use $210,000 in the rest of the post, but that isn't a definate true value.
Without a realtor, they may stick to their guns and try to sell it at $219,000. With a realtor, they may be convinced that it won't sell for under $210,000 and then they'd list it right around $210,000. People who say realtors will always raise the selling price don't understand realtor contracts or basic economics. Think about it realistically. If it won't sell at $219,000, can they really have a realtor tack on 6% to $232,000 and then sell it? If it won't sell above $210,000, then it won't sell above $210,000 regardless of a realtor or FSBO.
alkemyst
No Lifer
- Feb 13, 2001
- 83,769
- 19
- 81
realtor or not is not going to convince anyone of their price. Your best bet is to search the courthouse for what they have into it. Check out comparable sales (not listings) in the area and go from there.
You can find realtors willing to work for really low right now...if you feel you need one it's best not to second guess yourself. A buyer's agent is a bullshit title. They are still working to get the higher selling price. It helps their future sales and commission. The buyer's agent was created during the boom times. While the house may not be able to sell at 232,000 vs 210,000 they will try to hit as high as they can...also you aren't their only customer. Chances are the cherry deals are getting their top priority. It's like the Open House scam. Few open houses sell homes. What they do is give the agent a chance to talk about houses that may be cheaper, larger, in a better area, newer, more property, on the water, etc. Sometimes you get lucky, but most serious buyers want to be alone and have the undivided attention of an agent/seller
I am not sure where the poster above me is getting his appraisal info...yes in the past they did appraise trying to hit loan amount, but they could hardly just make up stuff. With FHA loans, this kind of thing is really not going to happen anymore.
An attorney should be able to draft up a contract once you have negotiated. Title search is really up to the banks / lender so I'd wait to see what they do about it (the attorney should have exclusions in the contract that a inconsistent title search will void the contract and any deposits returned).
Outside of that find a really good home inspector that will also do a certification on the roof. Ask around for who does good work in your area. My guy did a bang up job and found tons off crap and gave me a full binder listing all suggested upgrades and what kind of costs/savings I would be looking at. It's too easy for anyone with some free time to become an inspector and just like brokers and realtors, piss poor examples sprouted up with the boom.
You can find realtors willing to work for really low right now...if you feel you need one it's best not to second guess yourself. A buyer's agent is a bullshit title. They are still working to get the higher selling price. It helps their future sales and commission. The buyer's agent was created during the boom times. While the house may not be able to sell at 232,000 vs 210,000 they will try to hit as high as they can...also you aren't their only customer. Chances are the cherry deals are getting their top priority. It's like the Open House scam. Few open houses sell homes. What they do is give the agent a chance to talk about houses that may be cheaper, larger, in a better area, newer, more property, on the water, etc. Sometimes you get lucky, but most serious buyers want to be alone and have the undivided attention of an agent/seller
I am not sure where the poster above me is getting his appraisal info...yes in the past they did appraise trying to hit loan amount, but they could hardly just make up stuff. With FHA loans, this kind of thing is really not going to happen anymore.
An attorney should be able to draft up a contract once you have negotiated. Title search is really up to the banks / lender so I'd wait to see what they do about it (the attorney should have exclusions in the contract that a inconsistent title search will void the contract and any deposits returned).
Outside of that find a really good home inspector that will also do a certification on the roof. Ask around for who does good work in your area. My guy did a bang up job and found tons off crap and gave me a full binder listing all suggested upgrades and what kind of costs/savings I would be looking at. It's too easy for anyone with some free time to become an inspector and just like brokers and realtors, piss poor examples sprouted up with the boom.
Get an attorney. Cheaper, more skilled, not looking to jam you into a home ASAP to collect on commission.
mugs
Lifer
- Apr 29, 2003
- 48,920
- 46
- 91
That's because the appraisal isn't for you, it's for the bank. It's just to prove to the bank that the house is worth what you're paying for it, so the bank doesn't get screwed if you default. A knowledgeable realtor could give you guidance on what the house is worth and what you should offer for it.
Capt Caveman
Lifer
- Jan 30, 2005
- 34,543
- 651
- 126
/facepalm
A good buyers agent would really provide a you a lot of education about the process that you are sadly lacking.
There is this new property selling for $250,000 here
The county assessed the value at $222,000
They are refusing to lower the price. Wtf? What bank is going to give a loan for a property assessed far less
The county assessed the value at $222,000
They are refusing to lower the price. Wtf? What bank is going to give a loan for a property assessed far less
The county's assessment means nothing unless there's a huge difference (which, in your case, there is not). That assessment is just for tax purposes. You want it low.
blurredvision
Lifer
- Oct 19, 2000
- 17,860
- 4
- 81
I bought my first house without an agent, and the seller sold it to me without an agent. We did everything ourselves, and both of us were complete noobs on the process. My lender helped us through all of it and let us know what was needed and when it was needed. He explained any terms I didn't understand, and was overall an excellent person to work with. Neither myself nor the seller had any issues whatsoever, and I closed within a month. I'm now 3 years into the mortgage and everything is going smoothly.
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