Back to the Future

                                                        Déjà Vu all over again

          In the old days (before home inspectors) we Realtors carried a tool bag in our car. There was a wooden mallet for driving in those horrible wooden driver stakes that were supposed to hold up yard signs.  There was a flash light for checking under the house for leaks and in the attic for insulation. There was a screwdriver and pliers for fixing minor things we found in the house before showings. There was also a 25 foot tape and a 100 foot tape for measuring rooms, as well as lot sizes.  Some offices even had metal detectors to mark lot corners without the aid of surveyors. Most city lots had to be surveyed (cost $150) before closing any way. You see we Realtors were thought to be the experts regarding "a good, safe house."

          Here is what is quickly coming at us.  Buyers will receive a copy of  the Appraisal Report any time between 10 days and 3 days PRIOR to closing.  If a house is quoted in the MLS or in a Realtor ad as being for sale at, let's say, $92 per square foot and the appraisal report says the house is 50 or 100 feet smaller than advertised; that could cause a problem just before closing (if the buyer wants the quoted per square foot price.)

          I do not think the county is particularly accurate in their measurements. Many home owners have little idea of square footage, only what they have been told. This is where the old 100 foot tape gets back in the Realtor tool bag. You must learn to measure a house accurately, or pay someone to do it for you. It would be wise to stop quoting a home for sale as priced at so much a foot. Remember, not all square feet are created equal anyway.

          Some of the sharper Buyer Agents are making offers with a price on page one of the real estate contract, then going to page nine in paragraph 27 "other" and qualifying that offer based on a price per square foot.  How do you advise your seller now?  Some appraisers offer home measuring services to Realtors and/or sellers for $100 to $150.

In times past, we Realtors were the arbiters of house sizes.  Sometimes changes bring back old ways.