first time home buyers guide: Why you need deed restrictions in Harris and Montgomery County! - 01/23/11 02:44 PM
It really boils down to 2 words and they are NO ZONING. When we moved here in 1997 and I was in real estate school I almost fell off my chair when I found out that Houston did not have zoning. It is especially apparent when you live in either unincorporated Harris County or unincorporated Montgomery County. If you are not in an area that has some deed restrictions it is a total free for all. Those subdivisions without restrictions have mobile homes, businesses, salvage yards, farm animals etc. You get the point!
Since we don’t have zoning something that has … (26 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Home dings that might make for a hard re-sale!! - 11/19/10 12:00 PM
Years ago my mentor told me to not sell a home that I can't resale. I have taken that message to heart and I'm always looking for dings that could make a home hard to resale. I'm going to give you a list of some of the major dings that might make your home hard to sale. Mind you this does not mean you won't be able to sell your home if you have these dings but you might have to take less to make it competitive with similar homes that don't have the ding. It also might take a little … (54 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: TX specific real estate websites - Foreclosures & Housing Programs! - 03/04/10 11:03 AM
The Texas Association of REALTORS® along with NAR and a few additional organizations have launched two websites to help consumers with real estate issues.
www.KeepMyTexasHome.org is a resource for Texas homeowners who have become or may become behind on their mortgages. The site outlines the foreclosure process in Texas. It is an ideal site for a consumer who may be facing foreclosure to get some answers. It has a section on "what you can do" and another section on "what if you can't stay in your home". It also has a section on "renters and foreclosure".
www.TxHomePrograms.com is part of an NAR … (25 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: New RESPA Rules - How they affect Spring-Tomball TX buyers and sellers!! - 02/04/10 09:34 PM
This morning I went to a training that Charter Title offered on the new RESPA rules and how they are going to affect our Spring-Tomball buyers and sellers. Chuck Jacobus SVP of Charter Title and a real estate attorney with law offices in Bellaire was the guest speaker.
RESPA came in to affect in 1973 and to begin with Chuck said the restrictions were difficult to comply with. According to Chuck it is déjà vu 1973. We are going through the adaptation phase of the new RESPA rules and most don't understand them (which includes title companies, lenders etc.).
LONG story short both the seller and … (17 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide - What to bring to your closing! Part 9 - 09/15/09 10:36 PM
I have been asked by many Spring TX first time home buyers what they will need to bring to closing. The first item that comes to mind is of course funds to close. I have had a few Veterans who did not have to bring funds to the closing table but not many. With the changes in the loan industry most 100% loans are gone so you will need some cash.
The money to pay all your fees and closing cost will need to be in the form of "guaranteed funds" such as a Cashier's Check. Your agent or escrow officer … (15 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide – Why you need to live in a HOA! – Part 8 – - 08/31/09 09:15 PM
I am continuing my Spring TX first time home buyer series. In this post we are going to talk about home owners associations. On a regular basis I have people asking me to find them a home that is not in a homeowner's association. Usually this is someone moving here from another state and usually the area that they are moving from has zoning in affect. I am going to tell you why I don't think that is a good idea living in the Spring area.
The problem with not buying in a subdivision in Spring TX is that WE DO NOT HAVE … (26 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide – The Title policy! – Part 7 – - 08/26/09 05:06 PM
I am continuing my Spring TX first time home buyer series. In this post we are going to talk about your Spring TX title policy. In Texas we close at Title companies and if you are getting a loan you are going to be required by your lender to have a title policy.
Title insurance provides protection against title defects that were unknown to you at the time you purchased the policy. Before writing a policy, a title company will check for defects in your title by examining public records, including deed, mortgages, wills, divorces, court judgments, tax records, liens, and encumbrances. … (9 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide – The Texas option fee and your home inspection! – Part 6 – - 08/24/09 05:11 PM
This is my 6th post in my Spring TX first time home buyers series. I have chosen to discuss the Texas option fee and the home inspection in the same post. Your option period is typically that period of time where you do your home inspections. I have lived in four states and each state has handled the home inspection process in a different manner. In Texas all residential contracts have an "option fee" clause. This clause allows buyers and sellers to negotiate a specified time during which the buyer can fully evaluate the house. For this right, they buyer pays the seller … (12 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide – The home offer! – Part 5 – - 08/23/09 04:34 PM
In my last post we discussed what price a Spring TX first time home buyer might want to offer. In this post I am going to discuss the other items that we will need to negotiate. In Texas we have an 8 page resale contract. Price is what most Spring TX first time home buyer's think of when making an offer but there are a number of other terms that will also need to be negotiated.
I am going to go through the items on our Texas contract that I expect we will be negotiating.
Section 3 - Sale Price- I covered this … (9 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide - What price do we offer? – Part 4 – - 08/20/09 01:43 PM
I'm often asked by my Spring TX first time home buyers "How much under the listing price should we offer?" This is an excellent question. As I had told you at the end of part 3 (the home search) we will run comparatives going back 6 months to see how the home is priced compared to other homes that have sold in the area.
I have found that Spring TX sellers price their home differently for different reasons.
1. Ridiculously Overpriced! Often these sellers have an unrealistic expectation of what their home is worth. I have found these sellers usually … (16 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide - The Home Search! – Part 3 – - 08/18/09 10:49 PM
Now that you are pre-approved and have decided on the area you want to live in it is time to start searching for your Spring TX home. At this point you are going to have a list of homes that you have identified from your web search. We can then schedule a time that works for both of us to look for your home.
I don't recommend looking at more than 10 Spring TX homes at a time. I have found if you look at more than that it becomes difficult to remember what you have seen. You are going to … (9 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide - The Web Search!! - Part 2 - - 08/16/09 07:58 PM
This is my second in a series of post for first time home buyers in Spring TX. Now that you are pre-approved for your home loan the next step is to start searching for your home. I have found that most buyers like to start looking at homes and familiarizing themselves with the areas online. Spring is a large area located in two different Counties (Harris County and Montgomery County) and three different school districts. Plus you also have the neighboring areas of Tomball, Magnolia and The Woodlands to consider. With this in mind you are going to want to start … (19 comments)
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first time home buyers guide: Spring TX First Time Home Buyers Guide - Loan Pre-approval!! - Part 1 - - 08/14/09 10:16 PM
I remember being a first time home buyer and the mystery that surrounded the transaction. This is the first post of a "Spring TX first time home buyer series". I hope this series will help to alleviate some of the home buying mystery.
The VERY FIRST step in the process is to get yourself pre-approved with a good lender. I'm not talking pre-qualified; I'm talking pre-approved. There is a difference between the two. In the days where anyone could get a loan this was not a big deal but those days are over.
What is a Pre-Qualification?
A prequalification is … (23 comments)
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