The days of new home builders giving great incentives to purchase their inventory are not over yet. Some builders are allowing large sums of money to be applied to choice upgrades for the home or applied to closing costs. I also know of a couple of builders that are willing to pay your electric bill for 2 years...imagine that!!!!
Between the extremely low interest rates, great pricing on homes, incentives to purchase and don't forget about the first time home buyer Up to $8,000 tax credit (no you don't have to pay it back) it really is a great time to buy a home...especially here in San Antonio!
Don't forget that having a Realtor represent you in buying a new construction home will not cost you anymore for the home...don't buy without having a Realtor represent your best interests.
For more information on New Home builders and their offerings or a free San Antonio home search go to www.HollyGHomes.com or email me at hollyg@kw.com.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Buying a Foreclosed Property Needs Patience
With the current state of the housing market there are plenty of foreclosures out there for sale...VA foreclosures, HUD foreclosures and bank owned. The perception of many buyers is that a foreclosure is going to be a "great deal" and that is not always the case.
I have seen plenty of these listings overpriced compared to it's actual market value sometimes due to the homes condition and sometimes related to the amount of money that the bank would like to recoup.
Condition of a foreclosed property is a serious issue...many prior owners took out their anger and frustrations about their situation on the poor house they had to abandon. I have witnessed missing appliances, cabinetry, flooring, electrical outlets and wiring, light fixtures and faucets not to mention damage to walls/ceilings/closets/plumbing/HVAC systems...these folks were mad!
So let's talk a bit about why you need a heavy dose of patience to purchase one of these fine units. Normally when your agent makes an offer on a property for you, an answer of yes/no/counter can be expected usually within the next 24 hours. Getting an initial response about your offer usually takes a minimum of 3 days. Should your offer be accepted, there are bank drafted contracts and addendums to sign off on and get to the title company...another 3 to 5 days. Your agent should check with the listing agent to see what the rules are for that specific listing in terms of how many days are allowed for the buyer to get a home inspection and what happens should that turn up serious defects. Most all foreclosures are "as is where is" with only the option to back out of the contract (hopefully with the earnest money tendered). The closing date you ask for in the contract should take into consideration the slow nature of closing these homes...45 days sometimes is enough but not always. Once the inspection is done and the buyer decides to stay with the home contract, then the appraisals, surveys, HOA docs are all ordered and the lender works through thier processes. Communications through the title companies to the seller are also slow...most title companies will inform all parties ahead of time that the seller may take 48-72 hours to sign off on everything up to and after closing. Another fine thing to know since keys to any new home are not given to the buyer until all parties have signed off and the transaction has funded.
Perhaps I have oversimplified a bit but anyone considering purchasing a foreclosure needs to understand that the whole transaction will take a lot more time to close and a lot more patience.
For more information on foreclosures or a free San Antonio property search, go to www.HollyGHomes.com or email me at hollyg@kw.com.
I have seen plenty of these listings overpriced compared to it's actual market value sometimes due to the homes condition and sometimes related to the amount of money that the bank would like to recoup.
Condition of a foreclosed property is a serious issue...many prior owners took out their anger and frustrations about their situation on the poor house they had to abandon. I have witnessed missing appliances, cabinetry, flooring, electrical outlets and wiring, light fixtures and faucets not to mention damage to walls/ceilings/closets/plumbing/HVAC systems...these folks were mad!
So let's talk a bit about why you need a heavy dose of patience to purchase one of these fine units. Normally when your agent makes an offer on a property for you, an answer of yes/no/counter can be expected usually within the next 24 hours. Getting an initial response about your offer usually takes a minimum of 3 days. Should your offer be accepted, there are bank drafted contracts and addendums to sign off on and get to the title company...another 3 to 5 days. Your agent should check with the listing agent to see what the rules are for that specific listing in terms of how many days are allowed for the buyer to get a home inspection and what happens should that turn up serious defects. Most all foreclosures are "as is where is" with only the option to back out of the contract (hopefully with the earnest money tendered). The closing date you ask for in the contract should take into consideration the slow nature of closing these homes...45 days sometimes is enough but not always. Once the inspection is done and the buyer decides to stay with the home contract, then the appraisals, surveys, HOA docs are all ordered and the lender works through thier processes. Communications through the title companies to the seller are also slow...most title companies will inform all parties ahead of time that the seller may take 48-72 hours to sign off on everything up to and after closing. Another fine thing to know since keys to any new home are not given to the buyer until all parties have signed off and the transaction has funded.
Perhaps I have oversimplified a bit but anyone considering purchasing a foreclosure needs to understand that the whole transaction will take a lot more time to close and a lot more patience.
For more information on foreclosures or a free San Antonio property search, go to www.HollyGHomes.com or email me at hollyg@kw.com.
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