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Common Expenses New Homeowners Need To Plan For After Buying A Home

Common Expenses New Homeowners Need To Plan For After Buying A Home

Common Expenses New Homeowners Need To Plan For After Buying A Home

Many first time homebuyers in the excitement of getting their first home may not be aware of some common expenses they can expect with the purchase of a home and could neglect to budget for that.  Some of those expenses like closing costs are an absolute requirement that must be paid otherwise the homebuyer will not be able to close on their home and move into it. Other expenses may vary but do need to be considered by the homebuyer so that they have the money ready to do certain things when the time comes.

Closing Costs

One major expense of purchasing a home, and that is usually due right up front upon the final transfer of a home, are closing costs.  Closing costs represent the fees associated with getting a mortgage and registering the new house in the buyer’s name.  If the buyer is using a low down payment or zero down payment mortgage they may be in for a surprise if they don’t have enough money to pay for closing costs.  Even with a zero down payment mortgage (VA, USDA) the homebuyer may be required to bring a check to the closing table in order to pay for the closing costs.  If the buyer cannot pay for the closing costs they cannot complete the sale for the home.

The money used to pay for closing costs also generally must come from income sources of the homebuyer and cannot come from credit cards or other forms of loans.  Gifts of money from parents or other relatives can be used to pay closing costs but the lender...

What Does It Mean When A Home Is Listed As A Short Sale?

should you buy a short sale?

What Does It Mean That A Home Is Available For Short Sale And Should You Buy Such A Home?

Ever run across a home listed for sale and the words in the marketing remarks mention short sale? Often times there is no room to explain what a short sale is or what it involves so homebuyers may be left confused by the term and unsure if they should consider buying a short sale home or not.  This article explores what a short sale home exactly is and discusses whether homebuyers should consider purchasing a home that is being sold as a short sale.

What Does Short Sale Mean With Regards To Selling A Home?

A short sale is the process whereby the mortgage lender agrees to allow the homeowner to sell their home for less than the amount that is owed on the mortgage.  A mortgage lender does not have to agree to any sale of home unless they are getting paid in full everything owed to them. Mortgage lenders generally have a first position lien (generally the highest priority in rank unless taxes are involved) meaning they must be paid off first with the proceeds from any sale.

A homes value may be less than the amount of the mortgage due to factors such as a decline in the overall value in a neighborhood, the homeowner owing more than the home is worth (this is not as common as it was in the past when lenders allowed 125% mortgages but can happen with multiple loans like a regular mortgage and home equity loan), a condition issue with the home or the land, lack of upkeep or something else.  Where the homeowner plans up making up the difference between a boarded up house...

What Sorts Of Environmental Issues Can Affect Real Estate

What Sorts Of Environmental Issues Can Affect Real Estate

What Sorts Of Environmental Issues Can Affect Your Home

When you own real estate you own a piece of land that really cannot be moved.  As a result when certain environmental hazards present themselves it is not as easy as jumping in a car and driving off to avoid the hazard. Instead with land being locked in place it is subject to whatever happens to come by.  As a result environmental issues can have a great impact on real estate affecting everything from its value to its livability. This article explores some common environmental issues that can affect real estate and what if anything can be done about it.

Air Pollution

While most don’t think of air pollution as something that can affect land it can.  Directly air pollution can affect the health of those living on the land and can affect vegetation on the land as well.  If someone wanted to farm the land yet the air pollution resulted in chemicals being deposited on the land (think airborne soot or aerosolized droplets of chemicals that eventually settle on the ground) could have a huge impact on any animals or vegetation on the land used for farming.  The quality of the soil and the health of any farms animals will slowly go down over time. 

Unfortunately there is no cost effective way to avoid air pollution with regards to real estate. Humans could attempt to seal up their home air tight and install air filtration systems so that outdoor air pollution effects are minimized but the expense to do so would be quite high. Additionally the residents would be forced to confine themselves...

Why Do Homes Return Back To The Market After Offer Acceptance

why do homes return to the market after getting an offer

Why Do Homes Return Back To The Market After Having Accepted An Offer

Once a homeowner has accepted an offer on their home there is still a process to undergo before the actual transfer of ownership takes place.  There are a number of contingencies that must be met prior to closing where the actual ownership of the home is transferred to the buyers. Once an offer is accepted the status of the home in the Multiple Listing Service is usually changed to “Pending” to reflect that an offer has been accepted and closing is waiting on certain things to happen before it finally can close.  This article explores some of the common reasons a home may fall out of pending status and come back to the market for sale.

Inspection Issues

One of the more common reason a home falls out of contract is due to inspection issues.  A majority of homebuyers opt to have a home inspection performed after an offer is accepted.  A home inspector will inspect a home to check for any major issues and provides a report to the buyers detailing the overall condition of the home.  Some of the common major home inspection issues uncovered can cause a buyer to walk away from their purchase if they feel the cost of dealing with the issues are too high and/or they could not come to agreement with the seller to either have the seller make repairs or reduce the price.  

In some situations like foundation or structural issues, roof in need of replacement, mold issues or...

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