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Q. A group of 5 adjacent neighbors have their back yards perpendicular to a creek. Across the creek is a large parcel of land that belongs to a church. About 51 years ago the church was unable/unwilling to maintain a 10 foot strip of land that existed behind the 5 neighbors' yards. The church offered the strip of land behind each neighbor as a gift if they would maintain it (cut the grass, and handle the trees.) One neighbor recalls that the church "abandoned" the land on the far side of the creek because they couldn't get their mower across the creek (prior to the gift.) In any case, fast forward to present day... the church went out of business and never disclosed the disposition of that land on the far side of the creek to the new owners (another church group) when they sold the land. The new church group claims its their property, while the families that maintained the grass, trees, and handled erosion control for 5 decades also claim it. Most of the neighbors have letters from the old church related to the gift, but it is unclear if anyone changed any deeds, etc. The new church group also pulled up old property markers and recently replaced them with new ones (expanding their holdings in the process!) Most of the neighbors are elderly and are not in a position to hire lawyers and surveys but also do not want to be bullied either. Most have nice landscapes along the creek as well that they cultivated for decades.

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Q. My sister and I own a duplex. I want to sell her my half but she cannot get a loan to buy it through Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, the only lending companies that give loans for this type of residence. She has been told it is because this is a duplex and classified investment property. The duplex is in Lakewood Heights and sits on a lot and al half, was built in 1934, and is valued at around $360,000. Is there any way she can get a loan for $90,000 and does anyone know a good real estate lawyer in Dallas?

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Q. Is it legal if one home owner sells another home owners home if she has no real estate license?? This old woman was taken back to her home state by her brother and gave a neighbor permission to sell his sister's house. This neighbor now is trying to sell owner's vacant home with no license. is this legal as I though you can only sell your own home but selling another's home with no real estate license?? please reply, as this woman is underhanded. thank you

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Q. When you need to locate an agent to Refer your client to, is it best to INTERVIEW various agents, or just send a BLAST EMAIL to a multitude of agents you have not spoken with, and send the lead to the first one who responds? I generally receive these Blast emails and feel it is NOT in my client's best interest. How do most agents find a REFERRAL AGENT thur AR?

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Q. My husband and I were really close to buying a condo. We had made an offer, it was accepted, we did a home inspection and wanted to move forward. We were applying for an FHA loan. There was a seller's disclosure that said that other condo owners had 1st right of refusal. Our attorney and mortgage broker said that an FHA loan would view that as discriminatory. This disclaimer was on the MLS fact sheet and everyone saw it, us the buyers, our buyer's agent, the seller's agent our lawyer and our mortgage broker. We are now frustrated because he put notice on our apartment and have to move, we are losing our security deposit, and lost 400 towards the home inspection. Who dropped the ball? Should we stick with this agent? I did ask our agent about that disclosure in the beginning and he nonchalantly said it shouldn't be a problem. Should he have known this?

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Q. I recently bought a home and I am inthe process of flipping it. I am considering doing the work myself, and most of it will be unpermitted. The extent of the work is vast: remodle bathrooms, kitches, replace windows, new floors. How much of an issue will this be when I go to resell if the work is unpermitted?

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Q. is it the buyers job to really research the area (crime included) of a house you want to buy or is it my real estate agents (she is associate broker) job to do her due dilligence on area and not let us commit to unsafe place

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Q. I have 3 rentals that I want to sell to an investor. All are currently rented. What is the best way to find an investor wanting to add to their fleet or maybe someone that is looking to get into the rental business? I purchased them, renovated them and I am not looking to make alot on them, but I won't give them away either.

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Q. I am a licensed real estate agent in Florida. If I am related to the buyer or seller, am I required to divulge that? The lender is asking for it.

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Q. My friend's sister has an underwater property. The sister wants to shortsell my friend her property then buy it back from her a few years after. Can she do that? She doesn't want to apply for loan modification saying it will not reduce the principal loan. I've heard that you can not buy or sell property within family circle.

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Q. If I am purchasing property and placing it in my trust do I need my estranged spouse to sign a quitclaim?

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Q. My husband and I would like to buy our first home within the next year but our credit isnt great. His credit is worse than mine cause he has things he has not paid on or paid off and my credit isnt all that bad i just dont have enough of it. My question is...should we try paying off our debt first, just start saving for a down payment, try our luck with getting a fha loan, all of the above, or none of the above????

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Q. How much are houses selling for compared to list price in Woodbridge?

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Q. What do you consider the 10 most important considerations when: Buying; Selling a home

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Q. I tried to buy a property and the loan was not approved so escrow has cancelled. This is an REO property and the seller was going to pay the HOA transfer fee of $800. Now the escrow company wants me to sign a cancellation document that will release the $800 from my $5000 earnest money deposit. They also want me to give them back the HOA documents. Is this legal for them to take the HOA money from me? Should I sign the document, or say that I want my full $5000 back? They said they MAY reimburse me the HOA fees once another escrow closes on the property.

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Q. I have been in the process of purchasing a home that qualified for a home path renovation loan and it has been a long drawn out process two months finally I am closing tomorrow the 10th of June and construction is due to start on Monday June 13th. Now today my realtor tells me I can't have the keys until it is recorded sometime after the 14th of June. I need the keys before Monday if the money is received by the seller on friday 6/10 why can't I have the keys at that time.

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Q. If a home is listed " as is" must the owner/agent disclosue if it is not built with a permit or does the "as is" free them of that disclosure?

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Q. IS IT STANDARD PRACTICE FOR AN INSURANCE COMPANY TO ISSUE A CHECK FOR DAMAGES UNDER THE HOMEOWNERS POLICY with the check payable to the homeowner and the mortgage company holding the mortgage?

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Q. Being a Realtor® and not an insurance person, I would have to say it probably depends on the policies of your particular insurance company.

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Q. We have bought two joining lots in South Fork,Co. in a subdivision. Each lot is a little over 5 acres. If we combine the two lots, can we later separate them?

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Q. I began getting info about buying a new home while I was still in another state. I had to sell my house there first. I have been back in NC since May Ist. I have excellent credit. I made an offer on one house. The deal didn't go through because we backed out because the selling agent didn't give us good info about the size of the lot. I ended up not only paying for appraisals and inspections, half of what I had put up was kept by the selling agent because of something called due dilligence. None the less, we found another house and started the process over again. This house needed a new roof and we agreed to ad the cost of the roof to the price of the house. We can't get definite info about where the process is for the purchase. We were told the appraisal was done and we were waiting on the results. Now it appears that it has not been done. It is expensive staying in motels while we wait and keeping our dog in a kennel and our things in storage. I have paid once for cost on one house. My credit is excellent and there are no problems with finacing for me. If it is not my fault that a transaction doesn't go through, am I still responsible for the costs? We feel we are being treated in a dishonest manner by all parties involved. The costs of waiting amd waiting is eating away at our funds. What can we do to get a house financed with out all of these problems.

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Q. I have several short sale properties where the owners moved out and left the homes trashed. I refuse to list in these horrible conditions, so I pay to have them cleaned. My manager feels that "if they are priced right, someone will buy them". But since these are short sales, and I have no control over the end approval, I am not so sure in these situations that this philosophy will work. Opinions please?

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Q. My wife, along with 4 other persons, have their names on a deed to a property. My wife has been paying the taxes on this property basically with no help from the other 4 persons for about the past 7 years. She wants to build a house on this property. Can she do this without permission from the other 4 persons named on the deed? These 4 other persons would rather sell the property. They all receive part of the land tax bill, but they never pay their share. My wife covers all of it to hang on to this property. Does she have any rights, like to build a house on this property?

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Q. FTHBs with parents cosigning. On the initial offer, submitted with FHA pre-qual 2 months ago, the EM became non-refundable 1 month ago. However, 10 days after that deadline, we found out from the loan underwriter that the house was double-flipped less than 90 days prior, invalidating any contract signed before the 90 days expired. A new contract needs to be signed by the seller, but they counter-offered, removing 3% closing cost assistance and demanding the earnest money released to them immediately, not at closing. Q1: Does canceling the 1st offer refund our EM?Q2: Can we sign the 2nd offer before canceling the 1st, or is that not legal?

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Q. if a couple are married and one or the other purchases some land and one of them did not sign to purchase, is it still considered community property?

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Q. We live in Georgia and recently rented out our townhouse, in hopes of buying a bigger home. We got pre-approved for a loan and were told that we needed to show rental income for 90 days. Now we're told that we have to show it on our income tax return. Since we rented it this year, we would not have it on our 2011 returns. What do we do now? Why can't proof of rental income for this year count?

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Q. my son and i own a house together i own 68% and he owns 38% and he has walk away from the responsabilty of this house how can i get his name off of deed

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Q. My contract is up in 2 weeks. My agent called to ask about an extension, but I said I wanted to try to sell on my own since there hadn't been any showings. The agent stated that if anyone bought the house in the next 6 months he would still get a commission. I looked over the contract and I think it's only if someone had looked at the house while it was under contract and then bought it that he would get any money.

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Q. If I change Real Estate agent what financial obligations do I have toward that agent if I sign with another agent?

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Q. I own 12 acres in bradford county pa in the middle of the gas drilling. Ialso own a 2 story 3 bedroom home in wilkesbarre pa all free and clear. Iwould like to purchase a farm in north caralina to start a farm business. Can I use these propeerties as a lein to purchase the farm as I have no down payment

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Q. Greetings, I put an offer on a house and it was accepted. We are in our due dilligence period, and I have found another property I would like to be an offer on to secure it. I would prefer the recent home. Do I have to retract the offer from the first house, in order to put an offer on the second house? Is this possible? Thanks

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Q. I have been in default of my first and second mortgage for about 6 months. I was laid of from my employer and my financial situation gone down hill ever since. I now have my house up for short sale and have become employed. I have decided to go through with the short sale and move on with my life. Recently my first mortgage company notified me by mail sending the original loan papers that my loan is paid in full. They have made a huge mistake since I am really in default. They have been hounding me for the documents to be sent back to them. I don't want to send them if their mistake can work in my favor. My question is....Due to me now having position of my original loan documents stamped and signed paid in full, does that mean that I am free and clear of the loan and the owner of the house? Please advise on what if any steps I will need to take. Thanking you in advance, Janet

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Q. I have a contract for a foreclosed Fannie Mae home. First issue, I understand it is an "as is" property but were never told that the heating system did not work until after I had a home inspection. The home inspector couldn't check the the heater because the seller did not turn on the gas. When I questioned this, they told me that it didn't work but that they (real estate agents) have estimates to have it replaced but failed to let me know. Of course, Fannie Mae refused to negotiate because they said it was sold "as is". Next issue, I recently had an appraiser on the property and he noticed water all over the floor in the garage, which is connected to the house. When we asked our agent to follow-up as to what could be going on, she sent us pictures. I noticed in the pictures that the washer was gone. She proceeded to say that it wasn't listed as an appliance. On that note, it wasn't excluded either. It is suppose to be an 'as is'. Do I have any recourse? This real estate company has been nothing but a headache. Very unhappy with the agents (it's a dual agent contract). Help!!! I feel like I am being taken advantage of.

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Q. we have been working with an agent for around 6 weeks, we have a pre approval letter for a fha mortgage. we made 4 offers on 4 different houses, with our agent advising us, none were sucessful. The first house we were told we were outbid, the next two we never got even a counter offer, and the last, the most painful, we were told the owners picked someone else, even though we bid higher. Then our agent seemed to get impatient with us , telling us we would never win bids with out getting a mortgage committment letter, we already had a pre-approval letter. Our agent pressured us to work with her mortgage company to provide a commitment letter, when we did, they turned us down completely, now our agaent wont answer my calls. How can this happen is our pre-approval letter void. Can our mortgage company still approve us when another didnt? We have been looking for months and our leas is up soon what can we do?? please help!!!

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Q. If my brother signs his house over to me in my name and its paid in full. Would that create a problem for me when my wife and I go to purchase our first home together ?

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Q. I'm trying to build a 2,200 s/f house (lakefront lot). The cost of construction price on the contract is $383,400.00 and I paid $180,000.00 for the lot but now only owe $115,000.00 on the lot. I have up to $100,000.00 of my own money to add to the project. The FHA loan appraisal came in at $550,000.00 and at the same time I had an appraisal of my own done and also 2 other appraisals as I also tried to do a conventional construction-to-permant loan, thus 3 other apprailsals. these 3 appraisals came back $180,000.00 lower (the average) than the FHA appraisal. I don't know how that happens! - I can see a 40k or 60 k difference but not 180k. FYI - at least the land portion of the 4 appraisals were much more consistant.. I'm trying to determine if I should move forward with this or entertain the idea of loosing some or all of the $10k I gave to the builder so far? (I think I can apply this money in the future if I still build with him and if I don't we will add up the time spent on planning/costing thus far then send me the difference). Some people have said that I should question the cost of construction but don't know how to best do this? I'm also concerned with paying PMI insurance with the FHA loan in terms of trying to refinance after construction to remove the PMI and not being able to do it conventionally because of the other 3 appraisals, thus being upsidedown...?

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Q. do i have to pay for the remainder of fuel in oil tank when buying a house

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Q. I have 3 mortgages (all with the same mortgage company) and would like to do a consolidated refinance loan. These are rental properties. Is this possible? If so, how would I go about this?

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Q. Hello, my husband (who lives in Texas) owns a piece of property (land with a garage, no house) in Michigan with his brother (who also lives in Michigan). We have a buyer for this property (he also lives in Michigan). I have several questions. Since a purchase price has been agreed on, can we (buyer & seller) complete the documents needed for this to be a legal and binding agreement? Secondly, can my husband sign a Power of Attorney or similar document so that his brother can act on his behalf and we do not have to make a trip to Michigan for the closing. We are not certain what documents are needed, can you please assist us on these questions. Thanks so much- Marina

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Q. Once a deed in lieu has been accepted by the lender and its been recorded at the count court house how long does it take to get the final paper work from the va ???

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Q. I put $5000 earnest money down on an offer to buy a home contigent upon the sale of our home. There was no end date put on the contract by the realtor and it has been several months and ours has not sold. The earnest money check has been cashed. I want to refinance our home but the mortgage company cannot refinance it until the contract has ended. What can I do

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Q. o.k. so I've been trying to get some listings as a relatively new , part time licensee.What aere some good strageties to try?

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Q. I bought a condo in mid June of 2009 and received the first time home buyer's tax credit. I'm planning on moving out of state and I'd like to rent the property. What's the soonest I can start renting without having to repay the credit?

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Q. IS IT STANDARD PRACTICE FOR AN INSURANCE COMPANY TO ISSUE A CHECK FOR DAMAGES UNDER THE HOMEOWNERS POLICY with the check payable to the homeowner and the mortgage company holding the mortgage?

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Q. I am a buyer and recently closed on a home in Parker, CO. We had the sellers/listing agent sign and agree (econtrac) to a furnace inspection and any repairs. The listing agent said he would bring proof of service to closing. He did provide an invoice only, so we presumed it was done. A month into living in the house we ran the furnace and it won't run. I called the company on the invoice and they said they only inspected the air conditioner, not the furnace. Do we have any recourse with the seller/listing agent? Is this something we have a legal leg to stand on? Should we file a complaint with anyone? Or is this a life lesson? Thanks.

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Q. Hi, My husband and I have been renting a home for 3 1/2 years, our landlord approached us about buying and we agreed. He and his ex-wife (who remains on the deed) signed the contract and it came time to close last Friday, we went to sign and his documents had been received (he lives in WA), hers had not (she lives in IN). After a week of wrangling with her, sending notaries out to her home and trying to get her to sign the docs, she is now flat out refusing to do so. Our mortgage co is going to give her a final ultimatum to sign and honor the contract, or be served and go through litigation. In the meantime our landlord has now demanded that we pay rent for June, and I am supposing July when it rolls around until this is settled. We have already paid our closing costs to include interest from 6/10. In addition, our landlord still holds $1500 in deposits from when the initial lease was executed. The ex-wife has no legitimate reason for not signing, she apparently has mental issues and is in "one of her spells". Do we have any other recourse on this and should we continue to pay the rent until this is hammered out?

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Q. okay....my husband and I want to buy a bigger house we have out grown this one two kids ago but can not afford to pay two mortgages so was wandering what should we do.....is there any other way rather than staying here and waiting for someone to buy this one

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Q. is it possible to buy house through one agent and sell through other(different) real estate agent?

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Q. Can I as personal representative of an Estate list a property with a broker, if one of the beneficiaries of the Estate has filed a Lis Pendens on the property?

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