J.J. Ballard's Blog

Buyers who find a home they’d like to buy soon after they start their home search often pass on it because they feel they haven’t seen enough listings. Months later, when they haven’t found anything to compare to the first home they really liked, they can regret that they didn’t seize a great opportunity when they had a chance.

It takes a leap of faith and complete trust in your real estate agent to make a quick move in a market that’s new to you. You’ll feel more confident when you’ve done your homework and know the reasons why some listings sell for more than others. This is a process that takes time and is time well spent.

A characteristic of the current home-sale market, particularly in or near areas where job growth has improved significantly, is that there are not a lot of good homes for sale. In these niche markets, there tend to be more buyers looking than there are homes to satisfy the demand.

The housing market is bifurcated. Unlike the high-demand enclaves inspired by a pickup in employment, there are many more areas where there are far too many unsold homes and with too few buyers. This tends to have a dampening effect on home prices.

How long it takes you to find a home will depend in part on whether what you’re looking for is readily available. It will also depend on how many buyers are looking for the same kind of home you’d like to buy. If there’s competition for a scarce commodity, you might make offers on several homes before you are able to convince a seller to accept your offer.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Investors snap up foreclosure listings quickly, but they aren’t going to call these places home. It’s rare for buyers to find a home they want to occupy as their primary residence quickly, either due to specialized housing needs or lack of inventory. Put the time you spend waiting to good use by learning more about the community in which you want to live. Patience should be your motto.

Patience is also needed to carry you through the contract negotiation and closing. Although each home-sale transaction is unique, it’s not uncommon for a glitch to come up at some point. Some homes don’t appraise for the price you’ve agreed to pay. If you don’t have any additional cash to add to the deal, and the seller won’t renegotiate the price, you’ll be back at square one, looking for a home to buy.

The glitch could occur before your offer is accepted if the sellers are stubbornly unrealistic about the price they’re asking. Recently, buyers were encouraged to make an offer on an overpriced listing that had been on the market for months. The buyers reluctantly made an offer for the top price they could pay for the house. The sellers flatly turned the buyers down and said they would never sell for that price.

Three months and one price reduction later, the house still hadn’t sold. The buyers were again encouraged to make an offer. They made an offer for the same price they did the first time, but the terms were more agreeable to the sellers. It was accepted.

Many unrealistic sellers never come around. Don’t waste your time on sellers who don’t have a strong motivation for selling. There’s a big difference between sellers who want to sell only if they can get an unrealistic price, and sellers who have purchased another home and have no need for the current one.

THE CLOSING: Until you have an accepted offer, keep your eye on the market; don’t miss a listing that will work for you and is reasonably priced.

By Dian Hymer, Monday, April 2, 2012.

Inman News®

Dian Hymer, a real estate broker with more than 30 years’ experience, is a nationally syndicated real estate columnist and author of “House Hunting: The Take-Along Workbook for Home Buyers” and “Starting Out, The Complete Home Buyer’s Guide.”

Think again if you’re considering buying a home without having it inspected. This particularly applies to first-time buyers who have little, if any, experience with home defects and repairs. Even professionals can make mistakes when buying homes without having them thoroughly inspected.

In one example, an experienced contractor bought a home to fix up and resell. The contractor looked over the property carefully before he bought it, but he did not have it inspected by an impartial home inspector.

After the contractor took possession of the property, he discovered that the furnace was shot and required replacement. The cost of a new furnace was not included in his renovation budget.

Homebuying is an emotional experience no matter how hard you try to keep it strictly business. You have high hopes that nothing will go wrong and the transaction will close. The appeal of a home could cloud your objectivity about the real purchase price when you consider the work that needs to be done to repair defects and deferred maintenance.

Home and magnifying glass image via Shutterstock.com.

Think again if you’re considering buying a home without having it inspected. This particularly applies to first-time buyers who have little, if any, experience with home defects and repairs. Even professionals can make mistakes when buying homes without having them thoroughly inspected.

In one example, an experienced contractor bought a home to fix up and resell. The contractor looked over the property carefully before he bought it, but he did not have it inspected by an impartial home inspector.

After the contractor took possession of the property, he discovered that the furnace was shot and required replacement. The cost of a new furnace was not included in his renovation budget.

Homebuying is an emotional experience no matter how hard you try to keep it strictly business. You have high hopes that nothing will go wrong and the transaction will close. The appeal of a home could cloud your objectivity about the real purchase price when you consider the work that needs to be done to repair defects and deferred maintenance.

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In some areas, the home-sale market has picked up. One example is California’s Silicon Valley, where job growth is strong. There is far more demand than there are homes for sale, which tends to drive prices up.

In some cases, buyers will waive contingencies in order to outbid the competition. Buying without including an inspection contingency in the purchase contract can be an expensive strategy if you later find defects that are expensive to repair.

The risk is minimized if the sellers provide the buyers with copies of recent presale home inspections done by reputable local home inspectors before they write an offer. However, most home inspection reports recommend further inspections. Diligent sellers take the extra step and have further inspections done, like a roof or furnace inspection. Many do not.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: A second opinion from a highly regarded home inspector can’t hurt. The reason to have inspections at all is to find out as much as possible about the property’s condition before you go through with the sale. Don’t skip an inspection to save money.

Sometimes, buyers who are satisfied with the report they received from the seller’s home inspector will hire that inspector to do a walk-through inspection based on the seller’s report. This means a second home inspector isn’t involved. But at least the buyers have an opportunity to spend time at the property with the seller’s inspector, ask questions, and find out more about what works and what doesn’t.

Inspection contingencies protect the buyers and, depending on how the clause is written, can allow the buyers to withdraw from the contract without losing their deposit. This is why sellers are often drawn to an offer that doesn’t have an inspection contingency. However, accepting such an offer can create problems.

Inspection contingencies also protect sellers from future legal entanglements with the buyers over items that weren’t discovered before closing. It’s much easier to resolve inspection defect issues before, than after, closing.

Inspection contingencies can create an opportunity for buyers to ask sellers to fix defects, lower the price, or credit money at closing to cover the cost of repair work.

When buyers ask sellers to make concessions after they bought the house “as is” with respect to certain disclosed defects, it can be a deal-breaker. However, reasonable sellers will often attempt to negotiate an acceptable solution regarding newly discovered defects rather than put the house back on the market.

If you’re buying in a competitive market and find you’re losing out because you won’t waive an inspection contingency and others are willing to take the risk, consider having inspections done before making an offer.

THE CLOSING: Make sure to ask permission from the seller through the listing agent.

By Dian Hymer, Monday, January 2, 2012.

Inman News®

Dian Hymer, a real estate broker with more than 30 years’ experience, is a nationally syndicated real estate columnist and author of “House Hunting: The Take-Along Workbook for Home Buyers” and “Starting Out, The Complete Home Buyer’s Guide.”

Buyers who lose out in a multiple-offer competition or who make an offer a little too late may be offered the opportunity to be in a backup position. A backup offer is one that’s accepted subject to the collapse of an already accepted offer.

The seller can accept multiple backup offers, in which case they are ranked: backup offer No. 1, backup offer No. 2, and so forth. It’s rare in the current market for there to be more than one backup offer.

If you’re offered backup position, should you accept it? Buyers are often reluctant to accept a backup offer because they feel it will strengthen the resolve of the buyers in primary position to move forward with the deal if they hit a rough patch, such as a previously unknown inspection issue. And, in fact, this can happen.

Recently, buyers went into contract to buy a home in Oakland, Calif. The sellers provided many reports and disclosures on the condition of the property. However, someone inspecting for the buyers had a different opinion about the condition of the roof, gutters and downspouts, and said it would cost an extra $13,000 to fix.

Two days after the first contract was accepted, another buyer made an offer that was accepted in backup position. The backup offer was for a higher price than the primary offer. Rather than lose the house to the backup buyers, the first buyers removed their inspection contingency despite the new information they received about the condition of the roof.

Some buyers fear that if they accept backup position they will halt their search effort until they know for sure that they can’t have the home they want. This is a factor you can control. If you accept backup position, don’t slow down your quest to find a home to buy.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Make sure there is a provision in the backup position clause in the contract that says the buyers can withdraw at any time up until they are notified that the primary offer has collapsed and their offer has been elevated to the primary position.

It’s usually worthwhile to accept a backup position because there is a high fallout rate in the current market. Just don’t sit around waiting for the first deal to fall apart.

From the sellers’ perspective, it’s usually a good idea to counter an offer for backup position if there is more than one offer. Keep in mind that most buyers would rather be in primary position. Some won’t accept backup for the reasons mentioned above, or they may have another house in mind if they don’t get yours.

To entice a buyer to accept backup position, you may have to accept an offer with a lower price than the primary offer. Don’t expect a buyer to accept a counteroffer from you for backup position that also includes a price increase. Make sure you tidy up the offer as if it were a primary offer. There won’t be a chance to change the terms if the primary deal falls apart.

Don’t accept any offer just to have a backup offer. If you have a backup offer and the first contract fails, your home goes to the backup buyer without going back on the market. This can be a benefit to both buyers and sellers. The backup buyer doesn’t have to face multiple offers again, and the sellers don’t have to go through the hassle of finding another buyer.

Sellers who don’t like a potential backup offer because of a very low price might be better off not countering the offer for backup position.

THE CLOSING: Sellers should feel comfortable with a prospective backup offer; they may have to live with it.

By Dian Hymer, Monday, October 31, 2011.

Inman News™

Dian Hymer, a real estate broker with more than 30 years’ experience, is a nationally syndicated real estate columnist and author of “House Hunting: The Take-Along Workbook for Home Buyers” and “Starting Out, The Complete Home Buyer’s Guide.”

Now more than ever, it’s important to protect yourself from unexpected surprises when you buy a home. The goal is to find out as much about the house as possible before closing.

Your offer should include an inspection contingency even if you’re making an offer in competition. The contingency wording should be broad enough for you to inspect whatever you deem necessary so that you are confident the home will satisfy your housing needs within a budget you can afford.

If the inspections reveal defects that can’t be corrected, or ones that can but the sellers won’t participate in the solution, you should have the option to withdraw from the contract and have your deposit returned.

Most buyers have a home inspected by a home and structural pest control (“termite”) inspector. Additional inspections recommended, such as for roof or drainage, should also be done.

Jiri Vaclavek/Shutterstock

Now more than ever, it’s important to protect yourself from unexpected surprises when you buy a home. The goal is to find out as much about the house as possible before closing.

Your offer should include an inspection contingency even if you’re making an offer in competition. The contingency wording should be broad enough for you to inspect whatever you deem necessary so that you are confident the home will satisfy your housing needs within a budget you can afford.

If the inspections reveal defects that can’t be corrected, or ones that can but the sellers won’t participate in the solution, you should have the option to withdraw from the contract and have your deposit returned.

Most buyers have a home inspected by a home and structural pest control (“termite”) inspector. Additional inspections recommended, such as for roof or drainage, should also be done.

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Ideally, you want to know not only the severity of a defect, but how much it will cost to repair. It’s a good idea to ask for written reports and repair estimates, despite the additional cost. Written reports can be effective in negotiations with the sellers over inspection issues.

Even if you don’t intend to negotiate, written reports provide a record that will help you complete the needed repair work. It will also serve to inform the future buyers about the condition of the property when you bought it.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: An item that is often overlooked during buyers’ inspections is the permit history on the house. It can be a hassle dealing with the city bureaucracy, and few buyers have time to go to the city planning department. Some even pay others to take care of this task. One way or the other, it should be done. Ignoring this detail can result in problems.

Several years ago, a buyer in the hills of Oakland, Calif., didn’t check the permit history when she bought. When she applied for a permit to do work on her house, she was denied because of outstanding permits taken out by the previous owner that hadn’t received final approval.

In order to obtain a permit, she had to have the property inspected by the city and do any work necessary to receive the final approval — all at her expense. This can cost thousands of dollars.

Recently a homebuyer in Oakland’s trendy Rockridge neighborhood obtained the permit history on the home she was buying. Two items became apparent that required further investigation.

One involved a remodel done by a past owner, not the current owner, for which a variance was granted. The permit received final approval. However, final permit approval was conditioned on the seller agreeing to record a notice of property use limitation on the title to the property. The preliminary title report on the property didn’t show a notice of property use limitation.

The title company searched the title record again, aware of the dates around which the notice should have been recorded, and found it. The title company issued an amended report correcting its mistake.

The permit search also indicated that there were fees owed against the property. The buyer was concerned because she planned to do work after closing and didn’t want to be stuck paying fees that she hadn’t incurred, especially having no idea how much was owed.

It turned out that the fees would not be charged to the new owner. One was for an application made by a past owner that had expired. The city had not performed any services. The other was from 1997, which was deemed to be too old to collect.

THE CLOSING: While you’re checking the permits, be sure to ask if any fees are owed. You may need to check directly with the cashier.

By Dian Hymer – from Inman News Weekly Headlines

Dian Hymer, a real estate broker with more than 30 years’ experience, is a nationally syndicated real estate columnist and author of “House Hunting: The Take-Along Workbook for Home Buyers” and “Starting Out, The Complete Home Buyer’s Guide.”