4 Small fixes make a difference when selling a house

Over and over, these items are being written up in buyer's home inspection reports. Deal breakers? No. Buyer's repair requests? Probably. What is more important is the thoughts that these overlooked or neglected items plant in buyers' minds.Examples are "I wonder what other things are wrong that we can't see" or "I am not a handy person, so I will have to hire a contractor to fix it". Not every buyer reacts that way, but why not be pro-active and present the home in a maintained fashion already?

Grade levels along the home: Many of us have planter beds along the home. Or the leaves pile up, and then for good measure we have a faulty downspout. I can't tell you how many inspection reports call out the fact that the earth is piled too high against the home's wall or siding or a condition that lets water pool against the house. Tip: earth should not be piled up above the weep screed (that 3.5 inches of sheet metal between the foundation and the wall of the house. Solution: Remove and level excess dirt or leaves.There is no doubt that small fixes make a difference when selling a house.

[caption id="attachment_1905" align="alignleft" width="150"] Earth covering weep screed[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 


Water heater strapping: Done properly, the job sails perfectly past a buyer's home inspection. Mr. Seller, if your water heater is not strapped, take action before putting the house on market and avoid being "written up". Is it strapped? Check if it's done properly and correct if necessary. Here are the guidelines for this requirement.



 

 

 

 

 

Furnace filter: Filters are cheap. Problem is that most homeowners simply do not think about hidden things like a furnace filter. Just before putting their home on market, sellers should replace or wash (depending on installed product) the filter in their furnace!

Burned out bulbs: If there is a burned out bulb 15 feet up on a cathedral ceiling, the buyer is now thinking about all the future headaches he may have changing light bulbs. Sellers, be sure to have every light in the home working when you list.

Naturally, home inspectors will usually identify more potential issues with a home. But to watch for and fix these 4 small fixes puts sellers a step ahead of the game.

 

How to Avoid Mortgage Fraud

Orange County is a hotbed of fraud because “bad guys like to live in nice climates”, a quote from Senior District Attorney Joe D’Agostino. There’s a new scheme every day. Some of the investigations by the DA’s office involve loan modification, fees to delay foreclosure, fees for forensic loan audits, false representations of government programs, and ownership transfer schemes.

Loan Modification: Loan modification frauds often operate from call centers. The goal of each call is to get he up-front fee now. One of the current loan modification schemes is carried out via advertising. People advertise that they are a major lender like Citibank or Bank of America and promise immediate help if money is sent. In a recent Ladera Ranch case, the address to which the money was to be sent was a Mail Boxes Etc. next door to a Bank of America branch. At first glance, the address would sound right—or almost right: Same street, similar number.

Fraudulent Recording of Title Changes: These schemes target seniors and can be divorce related, be related to fraudulent foreclosure relief, be a form of theft, or involve second mortgages and equity lines. One form this type of fraud takes is for a family member or “friend” to record joint title with a senior and then drain the property of value through a second mortgage. The Orange County Clerk-Recorder sends notification to property owners when someone changes title. This is often the first indication property owners have that something is amiss.

Investment Fraud: Brochures advertising that people can “make big money investing in foreclosures without cash or credit.” Schemes of this sort involve buying and renovating foreclosures, investing in individual foreclosures, investing in multi-family dwellings, or investing in foreclosures in another state. The down side is that it is often a Ponzi scheme in which there is no real  investment and the persons receiving the money simply spend it on themselves.

 

How To Avoid Becoming a Victim of Real Estate Fraud

• Do not use an intermediary to negotiate your loan modification


• Contact the lender yourself and tell them you wish to negotiate concessions


• If you need additional help, use government agencies or various charitable housing groups


• Don’t pay up-front fees to anybody


• Do not “temporarily” sign over the deed to your property to someone promising to stop foreclosure or to someone promising to take over the payments

 Suspicious Mail from Unknown Lenders - First Sign

Real estate agents, with the help of online property record tools and title company representatives, can assist homeowners who wish to verify title records on their property.

 To Report Suspected Real Estate Fraud call the police agency in the city in which the suspicious activity occurred, or the Orange County Sheriff at (714) 647-7040 and the Orange County DA’s Hotline at (714) 347-0850.

Selling a House is like Herding Cats

[caption id="attachment_1891" align="aligncenter" width="635"] Experienced Realtor coordinates multiple aspects of selling a home[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1778" align="aligncenter" width="628"] Real Estate Matchmaker[/caption]

Appraisal is an Opinion of Value

An Appraisal is an opinion of value at a given time. Appraising a property is an art, as comparable properties are not exact replicas of each other and the appraiser must make adjustments for extra features. They are not absolute science and thus need to be viewed merely as a guideline.

The definition of market value: Amount of cash or cash equivalent that is most likely to be paid for a property on a given date in a fair and reasonable open market transaction.

[caption id="attachment_1881" align="alignleft" width="150"] Steps to buying a home[/caption]

The most common need for an appraisal in real estate is when the bank is asked to make a loan on a property that is used as collateral. To be sure, banks are institutions of people who deal in numbers only. Therefore, if the buyer seeks a loan of 96.5%, 95%, 80% of value, the bank must use an absolute number to establish the exact loan amount. Much ado has been made of appraisals and valuations coming in "too high" or "too low" during a real estate transaction.

If a short sale valuation or BPO (broker price opinion) comes in too high for a short sale approval, the lender thinks they can get a higher price than is actually being offered. That is often the case, but most of the time the problem lies in the method and source used to arrive at the valuation. That's an entirely other blog post...

In a standard sale, when the buyer's lender orders an appraisal to establish the value for a loan, a low appraisal means that the buyer can still buy the property but has to come up with more cash. Let's say the buyer made an offer of $ 500,000 with an intended down payment of 20% or 100,000 and the appraised value comes in at $ 493,000. There were no recent comparable sales, so the appraiser had to make several adjustments to arrive at the value. Each adjustment involves somewhat of a guess as to the value or detriment of the adjustment in dollars, and you can see how the end result can have a 10,000 variance.

How the bank reacts to a low appraisal: They will lend 80% on 493,000, i.e. 394,400, requiring the buyer to increase the down payment by $ 5600.

How most buyers react to low appraisal: Holy cow, I am paying too much for this house. I better cancel the deal or renegotiate price with the seller (even though the house fits my needs perfectly and I have not seen one as nice in the six months I have been looking). Renegotiating occasionally works, but not in a hot market where the seller has multiple offers.

 

How the realistic buyer thinks after reviewing the appraisal report and how the value was arrived at: Luckily I have the extra $ 5600. Based on the homes I have seen during the last six months, this one is worth it to ME. Unfortunately, if the extra cash is not on hand, the deal is likely to fall out.

 

 

 

Townhome for Sale in Woodbury

[caption id="attachment_1865" align="alignleft" width="233"] Huge loft is easy bedroom conversion in this plan 5 built by John Laing[/caption]

103 Hallmark is a townhome for sale in Woodbury, Irvine. Turnkey condition and a standard sale allow the quick and decisive buyer to move in time for the holidays.

The Four Quartets plan 5 has two large bedrooms plus a huge bedroom-size loft. Conversion to a full three bedroom home is a snap! Gorgeously upgraded townhome with Bamboo wood floors, super plush neutral carpet, onyx and travertine in baths. Gourmet chef's kitchen is upgraded with grade A granite counters, stainless steel appliances, lots of beautiful cabinetry. All bedrooms are on same level as the main living area. There is a covered deck off the living room, and another balcony accessible from the loft/3rd bedroom. For the garage buff waits a gleaming epoxy floor to park his "baby". The home has a security system with motion detection and video recording. Woodbury is known for its fantastic amenities and community events. Less than a mile from Woodbury Town Center.

 

[caption id="attachment_1866" align="aligncenter" width="300"] City Stroll with its grand vista of beautiful mountains[/caption]