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financing: Signing on the Dotted Line - 09/04/07 04:16 PM
One of the final steps in buying a home is to sit down with the escrow officer at the title company and sign the paperwork. For sellers, it's a small hill of papers, while for buyers, it often seems a mind-boggling mountain of forms.
It is important that buyers and sellers arrive at the signing prepared in several ways. Firstly, each person signing needs to bring approved photo identification, such as a state driver's license. The notary will need a copy, as well as a thumb print, as proof of who is signing.
Secondly, each party should have an understanding of what their … (0 comments)
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financing: REQUESTING REPAIRS ~ It's not a blank check to create a dream home! - 08/17/07 03:46 PM
Most of my buyers eventually ask me a great question (I've been fortunate to have so many wonderful & smart clients): "Once we've completed our inspections of the home we're buying, what are appropriate & reasonable repairs to request the sellers to complete?"
My position, which I share with both sellers and buyers, is that it is reasonable to request repairs of any active water or pest damage (usually identified on the pest inspection report) and any safety related issues (faulty electrical wiring). It is also acceptable to request that structural or system defects are fixed if they were not obvious when … (2 comments)
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financing: KNOW WHAT YOU ARE BUYING! - 08/17/07 03:16 PM
When buyers find a home that meets their needs, it's time to fully understand what they are buying. The sellers must disclose everything they know about the home and the buyers have the responsibility to inspect the home until they are completely comfortable with all aspects of the home they are buying.
I always insist that my buyers have home and pest inspections completed at a minimum. If there's a pool, I always strongly suggest having it inspected as well. Based on the findings in these inspections and the buyer's desires, they may also have the roof, chimney or anything else they … (0 comments)
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financing: FIRST TIME BUYERS ~ PREPARE A STONG OFFER! - 08/17/07 02:00 PM
I'm often asked by first time buyers, "How do we write an offer that a seller will accept?". It's a great question. In a buyer's market like we're experiencing today, that usually means the buyer wants to get the home for considerably less than asking price. A couple of years ago when multiple offers were common, the challenge was to simply be the winning bidder.
Once my buyers identify a home to buy, I always begin by preparing my market analysis of the home's value. It is important to understand this value range, regardless of the asking price, so that my buyers … (0 comments)
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financing: FIRST TIME BUYERS ~ USING THE INTERNET TO SEARCH FOR HOMES! - 08/17/07 12:28 PM
Finding the best home for your housing needs can be quite challenging. The key is receiving pertinent information in a timely manner. Last BLOG I discussed the benefits of using a real estate agent to monitor the available homes on your behalf. The Internet provides another timely method of staying on top of the real estate market.
Local agent websites, such as mine at www.GlennsHomes.com, usually have two areas where you can search for homes. The first is the agent's ‘personal listings'. These are homes that the agent has listed for sale. Most of them will be on the Multiple Listing Service … (1 comments)
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financing: PRETENDING TO OWN A HOME MAKES ACTUAL OWNERSHIP EVEN EASIER! - 07/06/07 10:59 AM
When my wife Rene and I were first married one of our goals was to buy a home as quickly as possible. This was in the late 80's in San Jose, California and there were a few challenges in front of us. We had no money (we spent Rene's on the wedding & honeymoon and I had none), we had low wage jobs, interest rates were very high at around 10% and homes were appreciating quickly. On top of that, unlike recent years, you typically had to have a 10% down payment and funds to cover your closing costs in order … (1 comments)
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financing: First Time Buyers – Your Loan – Part One! - 06/01/07 05:38 PM
You want to buy a home in Oakley with a minimum of 3 bedrooms and 1,200 square feet of living space on a lot of at least 5,000 square feet. As of the writing of this article, there are 231 homes that meet these parameters, the 15 least expensive of which are priced between $375,000 and $400,000.
I would advise my first time buyers that they could expect to buy a suitable home for around $390,000. So the logical next questions are: How much cash do I need when I make an offer? What will my monthly payments be to own the … (0 comments)
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financing: First Time Buyers – Is this good time to buy? - 05/31/07 06:40 PM
You'd like to buy a home, which can be a scary enough prospect if it's your first home. Then you ask yourself, is this a good time to buy? This is a great question, especially since local real estate prices have been settling downward over the past year plus.
The answer, like so many answers, is it depends upon your situation. There are some clear cut cases where you should not buy a home right now. In my opinion, do not buy in Eastern Contra Costa County now if:
You'll likely need to move in less than 2+ years. (job transfer, pregnant … (0 comments)
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financing: First Time Buyers – Meet The Realtor! (Part 2 of 12) - 05/14/07 03:56 PM
So you've decided you'd like to buy your first home. Great! So what do you do next? My advice is to meet with a few local real estate agents who work full time helping clients to buy & sell homes in the community you'd like to live in. These agents will have the best understanding of the local market, which will serve your needs best.
Since buying a home is likely the largest financial transaction you will ever undertake, your primary goal is to find an agent you are comfortable working with. Your comfort should be with both their expertise in real estate … (0 comments)
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financing: First Time Home Buyers ~ You Can Do It! (Part 1 of 12) - 05/12/07 11:22 AM
I love many things about being a real estate agent, and one of my favorites is handing first time home buyers the keys to their first home. I recall with great pleasure giving a young couple the keys to their first home in Oakley on Good Friday, where they were able to celebrate their first wedding anniversary on Easter. While it may appear nearly impossible in an expensive real estate market like we have, it can be done when first time buyers understand the process and have a healthy balance of patience and persistence. (Even with the modest price declines of the past year plus, the … (1 comments)
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financing: BUY & REFI STRATEGY CAN BACKFIRE - 05/01/07 11:39 PM
Many home buyers plan on refinancing their homes a year or two after buying them to reduce their house payments. They usually pin these hopes on theirs homes appreciating quickly and then refinancing from a 90 or 100% loan to value mortgage down to an 80% of less loan to value mortgage. This is a very risky move which can easily backfire if refinancing is the only way they can afford to keep their homes.
A couple of my clients have experienced this in the past year. The first client put 10% down and lined up adjustable financing on their 80% … (0 comments)
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Glenn Huxtable
Brentwood,
CA
More about me…
Sharp Realty
Address: 3130 Balfour Road, Suite F, Brentwood, CA, 94513
Office Phone: (925) 240-6683
Cell Phone: (925) 437-5247
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