3rd Time is a Charm!
Today, my buyer client and I started all over again, 3rd Time is a Charm. We started the process of viewing homes, but this time in a different zip code. Our goal is to find a home with a minimum of 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, at least 1500 square feet, no homeowners association, and a decent kitchen for under $250,000. We're starting over because we've written two contracts and both have had to be cancelled.
Both of our offers prior to today were for very nice homes. They both had nice pools, showed very well, and had a good "vibe" to them, ie open floor plan.
The first home was an instant yes. It had nice 
neutral paint, new carpet, been remodeled, and the pool sparkled. We should have put on our sunglasses for that white pebble finish disquised fine cracks throughout the pool, which were discovered during the home inspection. We also discovered the house needed a new roof, among other minor repairs.
During the contract process, we discovered the seller is an investor and bought the home as a short sale. Uh oh! Owners of homes that are listed as short sales aren't typically maintaining the home. Oftentimes, that means the pools aren't being maintained. Sellers think it is cheaper for them to drain the pool and not maintain it. But an empty pool with our hot summers spells disaster. Pools will crack. Sometimes it's better to have a green pool than an empty pool.
Historically, the Phoenix housing market has been rife with foreclosures and short sales. Investors have swooped in and purchased a lot of that inventory. A large percentage have been remodeled to re-sell. These "flips" are made pretty, updating what needed to be updated, and put back on the market to sell. Unfortunately, the investors may cut corners by using unlicensed contractors for some of the work.
The unlicensed contractor may not be up to speed on the correct roofing, plumbing or electrical construction and building codes or or proper building techniques. I've seen this countless times and have written several posts on the topic. Invariably, these "flips" end up needing more repairs and investors feel they have done more than their share, become indignant, and contracts can fall out over these issues. Which is exactly what happened on our first contract.
The second contract was an estate situation. The parents have passed on and the home is in a trust with 4 sisters, one being the Executor. There is no money for the roof or replastering the pool. In this scenario, we worked to get the roof and pool bids during the contract process so as not to waste anyone's time or money going through a home inspection.
Sure enough, the bids are expensive and there isn't enough money or willingness by the seller to pay to replace the roof or replaster the pool, much less any other repairs that would pop up during the home inspection. AND the carpet was shot. Cancelled contract number two.
Fast forward to today. We visit six homes in the same zip code as the two cancelled contracts. None of these really fit the bill. If we could take some features from one home, put it with another, and hang onto that new roof on the other one, we'd be golden. Not so today.
So tomorrow we're visiting yet another zip code and viewing ten homes. Location of course is a concern, and luckily we can move in the opposite direction and try to accomplish all of what we started searching for in the first place. We're stoked and believe that the 3rd Time is a Charm!
If you are selling your home, be aware that buyers don't want to pay for a new roof. This is a regular part of normal maintenance of a home. If you have items that need fixing, fix them before you list the home for sale. If in doubt, get a home inspection. Having these items repaired will spare the headache that can occur during the purchase process. Buyers will appreciate the extra effort and the sale has a better chance of closing. 3rd Time is a Charm!
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