I wonder in this market environment of REO's and Short sales where we tend to "forgive" contract dates or leave them off totally due to the bank will respond when the bank will respond, has made us tolerant and/or slack in honoring contract dates with "regular" sales.

Not that I get too many "regular" sales these days, but when I do, I conduct business as I was once trained and honor all dates stipulated on the contract.

I do get the home inspections done in 10 days, I do put a date on the counter offer as to when the buyer/seller needs to respond.

There may be strategy behind it or not................but in the end there is somebody on the other side waiting for an answer and want to know why they have not responded by the date given.

Now in some cases there may be a situation where the date given is impossible............However in this high tech world we live in a response can usually be given in the allotted time given or at least a response of some kind.

So at the very least be respectful to the people who are waiting, as none of us like to wait........it is almost like passing up your due date for giving birth!

Mostly be respectful of all parties and communicate ................. most recently I had submitted an offer to a seller and gave 24 hours to respond..............it took 3 days and the house was still being shown.  Now If I were the buyer I would have walked............but my buyers wanted the home very badly so they stuck it out.

However, I have to tell you this worked in my favor in the end..............as no other offers came in and then I knew just where I stood as the buyers agent............I knew I was the only game in town for the home and the ball was in my court from here on out.  So the listing agent did not do the sellers any favors..........

As always remember the golden rule!

If I did not understand clearly before what a title company is supposed to do and how important their job is to what we do as Realtors and Lenders..............I do now!

If I did not appreciate the hard working title company , that I deal with enough, before today, I do now!

In an earlier blog I have wrote, I talk about running title before you list to be sure you are not hit with any surprises..............

Well I am sitting and waiting for 2 closings, where I rep the buyer, and the listing agent on one did not do this and YES there was a surprise and the other we knew there were issues going in.

One of my pending deals have a neighboring property line that goes into my buyers "new" home's living room.  This home was sold this way at the last sale and the title company at the time let it fly! Well I guess we can say the lender at that time had no problem with it at that time as well.

Unbelievable what we find on title work these days..............that go back with a historty of "issues" that either fell between the cracks or professionals not taking care of business.

So buyers when you look at that charge on your closing statement for insured title work and wish you did not have to pay this bill, think again.................

Your choice of title company and the job they do is very important!

I have many times talked to a for sale by owner's who are now getting ready to list with an agent who are frustrated with the sales process.

One of the reasons they decide to list with an agent (among others) is they can not take the "personal" questions.

They do not like getting the hard questions to answer in fear they may answer "wrong". 

One question that seems to really hang FSBO's up is "Why are you moving?"

Sellers are wondering do I say:

Looking for a bigger home.  But fear this may suggest their home is small.

Looking for a better school district.  However fear that this may suggest their home is in a bad school district.

Looking for an area with more kids.  However fear this will suggest to families that their kids will have no one to play with or just the oopposite..........too many kids????

Relocation for job/getting married/lost my job - but will this suggest I NEED to sell and get a low ball offer?

It is very hard to for a seller to figure out; who is not experienced in these situations; how to handle these very simple but hard questions.

There are many reason why buyers ask these questions:

1. Just curious

2. How eager are you to sell

3. What can they offer you in exchange for price - If a buyers can not give you full price for your home they may want to know what your needs are...........can they give you time to move, can they delay the closing a bit.............etc..................sometimes price is not the only concern.

However an experienced agent will know how to field these questions by buyers to see what they are really getting at and what they are really asking before answering.  Not to suggest we tell them what they want to hear but how understand the question and not take anything personal!

Selling a home is more then listng it................dealing with the public is something not everyone can do! However I enjoy it more then you can know!

Come one! Come all!!!!  A Great home in East Grand Rapids.  Click on the link and have a look see what this house has to offer............interactive floor plan available as well...........put your furniture in this house and see before hand how it will all work out!  Then visit us in person this Sunday!!!!

http://photoplan.planomatic.com/3508

YES!!!!!  We are having our golf outing again this year............Different location and time!

We are planning on being bigger and better then ever before.

Where - Thornapple Point Golf Club

When - July 31st 2009 - Friday

Time - Sign in at 9am - Shot gun start at 10am

Why - Because we have all been working hard and need a break and it will be FUN!

Don't play golf? Come for dinner

Some highlights:

Par 3's have a $15,000 prize for hole in one

50/50 putting green contest

Door prizes - promotional golf items for give aways to all players

Cart - Breakfast - delivered lunch and dinner included

If you would like to play or sponsor please e-mail or call me for more information

Michelle Gordon michellegordon@grar.com 616-443-0596

What a cool idea, and sounds like a blast.............this art class is offered by one of my F.L.O.W.artist.  She is very talented!  Here is the info:

Hi Everyone-     It is time for Art Aids 3'rd annual wine and art event. Please set aside the evening of August 20th, we're aiming for live music and painting this year. More details to come. Also below you'll find more information on the class I'll be teaching on Thursday evenings for adults. Hope to see you all soon, Stephanie
Creative Learning (1200 E. Paris-next to CG's Cafe and Bill and Paul's) is hosting a series of ART WORKSHOPS for adults on Thurs. evenings, 6;30-8 PM in our art studio.  Come for one class or as many as you'd like.  Local artist, Stephanie Timmerman is our inspirational teacher.

This is a night away to be spend time with friends and create great art for yourself or as gifts.  Bring in photocopies of  your favorite or meaningful photos, wine labels, post cards, tickets, words, articles, etc. for added inspiration (if needed).  Your masterpiece may be used as a painting suitable for framing, a transfer to fabric (for pillows, clothing, etc.), or a floor cloth.  This class will be fun and you'll have a masterpiece when it's over.  You may want to have dinner at CG's Cafe before class and bring your own favorite beverage if you'd like.

Cost:  $15/session for all paints and paper.  Stretched canvas, floor cloths, etc. extra. 
To Register:  Visit our website: www.creativelearningtoysandtools.com , stop in to the store, or call (616) 975-9019.

Well here I am again, wondering if our market "conditions" are moving faster then our government can respond and take action.

HUD/FHA has done a wonderful thing with lead base paint.  This harmful chemical has been addressed and no longer can you buy a HUD home and move in with out the lead base paint being remediated. 

When buying a true HUD home, HUD takes care of all lead base paint surfaces before the buyer can close on the home.

So why is mold not treated the same..........this harmful substance should be taken care of as well.

I am in the middle of a deal with a HUD home and a catch 22! 

A little history:

My client - a single mother, hard working gal!  She has been working for a year to buy this particular home.  When I met her, she needed to work on her credit a bit...........she has worked so hard to become credit ready, got a great job...........now ready to buy this home.

She is approved for a loan and has a "clear to close" other then the mold in the home, (it was just a small amount in the beginning).  The lender had seen the reports on the HUD appraisal there was mold presence and required a new mold report, as we all know it grows.  Now to the tune of $3,500.00 worth of repairs.  The lender said fine you can add this repair bill to your loan to be paid out to the servicer to re-mediate, however needs to be done before close.................

I have supplied this information to HUD and they say no way, nobody can touch the home till the sale is complete other then fixing the lead base paint.  Now if HUD sees lead base paint harmful, why are we not treating mold the same way?

I understand there are several law suits out and pending where banks/lenders are getting sued by buyers for lending them money on a home with mold, where the buyer got very ill.  So lenders are now saying "fix it" or no deal.  I can not blame them as really we should not be letting people move into these homes with issue.

Here is the statement from one underwriting department:

Even on HUD REO property, the lender (DE Underwriter) is responsible for establishing that the property meets FHA minimum standards. If the Appraiser identified mold, there needs to be a satisfactory inspection from a qualified inspector to establish the next steps. If there is mold present, it must be satisfactorily re-mediated as it is considered a health issue. This cannot be an escrowed item.

Response from HUD:

The HUD Radon Gas and Mold Notice specifically states that this is the buyers responsibility.  Work can not be performed prior to closing.  This either has to be a post closing escrow set up or you have to change this to Conventional with a lender that is willing to stick by HUD guidelines.  

However here is Grand Rapids Michigan I can not even find a lender that will hand out a conventional loan with this amount of mold issues. 

It seems to me the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing................FHA will not allow it, but HUD is FHA - kind of, right? So HUD will allow it.

Now my client is willing to pay for it out of escrows - like a prepaid item such as insurance...paid at close to the supplier, just needs to be done before hand.  Unlike lead base paint remediation, where HUD takes care of it at their cost prior to close.

Many of our bank owned homes and HUD homes have mold in the home, some very small amounts and some large amounts.  This is now a small problem waiting to become a HUGE problem if we do not address this issue real soon, in my opinion. 

So what does a buyer and a buyers agent do, other then move on?

I am writing on behalf of all 1^st time home buyers who are running out of time.  Most of my clients are 1^st time home buyers of low to moderate income, while I am on the front lines of home buying I think there may be an issue that will slow down sales for 1^st time home buyers, that the State of Michigan may have forgotten to address.

While I understand why we have non-homestead taxes, in the current market we are in, I believe it is going to hurt us; more then help us right now.

Most of us are rushing to the finish line - May 1^st - for our closings for all our owner occupied pending sales.  As it can really make a difference in the mortgage payment and for some they can not take the risk as if they do not close by May 1^st they would not be able to afford the mortgage payment.  There fore not buying a home at all.

The one positive aspect of this market is 1^st time home buyers - especially those with families, homes have become more affordable and they can buy a great home, that they probably would not of been able to afford in a sellers market.  However the non-homestead tax will put this to a halt.

Home sales are up in my territory and I would like to see this continue.  I would like to see an exception for 1^st time home buyers; buying a Bank Owned Home - REO.

You may say file for the 1^st time home buyer credit and apply this money towards the mortgage.  However many of these homes need work, inside and out.  This money will be used bring the home up to date and fix any (or many) repairs that are needed. 

Further more the buyer would not get approved for a loan for this particular home while figuring in these taxes as it would make the ratio to high, so penalizing the 1^st time home buyer.

I believe this is an important issue for all of us, weather you are buying a home or just a neighbor of that bank owned home. 

Please HELP!

I live in EGR, so this should not surprise me, most homes here are sold by word of mouth. However after my listing hit the MLS I was amazed to find out just how many "renters" are in the area that are just waiting for the right home to come a long.  Some have been waiting for over a year.  Most of these people do not have a buyers agent as well.

Now, after sending out an e-mail to fellow agents (I must admit I do very well at the net working) seeing if there are any homes that could be sold, that are not on the MLS in EGR...............

Again I was surprised! 

We really need to pull this all together.  When asking home owners who have decided not to list, "why?" They commented they do not want to be the home that sits on the market and does not sell.  However I wonder how many people they are missing the boat with by not listing.

When asking renters why they do not have an agent working for them, they said they can wait for the right home to come on the market and feel they can get a better deal if dealing straight with the listing agent.

However this is not always true.........not all homes are listed with a duel commission. So this may not always matter.

And if buyers are not working with an agent how are the going to learn about all those homes that could be sold but not on the market...........they need an inside person!

I would consider myself an inside person, living in EGR and networking like I do.  So it you are thinking of buying or selling contact me......maybe we can put a few of you together!

WOW!  Real Estate is moving.  Homes are selling, buyers are coming out of a very long hibernation!  I consider myself a very aggressive buyers agent when I need to be.  I love the fight and I love to compete for a home.  However I have had not much opportunity in the past few years to compete for a home, as I have always had the only buyer. 

Not this spring.  I have had several offers in where I was one of many bidding on a home.  I won a few and lost a few............However, the ones I lost the homes were so over bid from listing price we did not have a ball in the game!

I have to tell you, even though I am sorry we lost, I am happy to see buyers out and homes selling.

It is great to see the excitement once had by home buyers, the eagerness and the jumping up and down for joy when winning a bid!

I work with many 1st time home buyers and some of those had credit issues to work on. They did the work and now ready to buy.  What a great feeling they have now.  Working so hard to get credit ready and then able to buy a home. 

If you are sitting on the side lines wishing you could buy a home and wish your credit was better, and embarrassed to talk to some one...........the only thing to be a shamed of if you do not go get help or advise to take care of your situation. 

I can tell you my buyers who thought they would never see themselves as a home buyer and worked on the issues they had and now home owners are glad they did.  It came faster then they thought.  Lets face it it is not getting better by wishing............

Join in all the fun!  Get yourself credit ready too!