Hey there and happy Sunday!

Sunday is family day at my home...and we have been running around doing errands. We also stopped to see, Brave, and I tell you, the writer of that movie is a mother with a teenage mother!  LOL  We also stopped to pick up some previously viewed movies from Blockbuster.  One of the movies we got was, The Help, and that is such a good movie!  It is also a good movie for our kids....my kids had to ask me if things were really like that.  On one hand I love the fact that they have to ask since some of the topics of that movie are so foreign to them, but at the same time I have to be sad when I watch it....in fact, I am crying now over that poor little girl crying and poor Abeleene having to leave her.  It was such a wrong time....  

Anyhow...now that everyone is sad...  sorry!  Let's move on to to home stuff!!!  

So how does this relate to you and buying a home?  Well, when buying a home you do need to some research...  you need to look forward, and backward as well.  So some things to be aware of when looking for homes....

Election year
As we all know this is an election year, and I would never presume to tell anyone how to, or what to vote, but if you are moving into a new town, school district, or area then you do need to be aware of anything that has recently been voted on in that area since it may affect whether or not you want to move there.  

Schools
If you have children then you do want to do some research on schools that your children might be attending.  One of the things that most folks don't think about when thinking about schools is location....location of the school is important.  Look at more than the school they will presently be attending...what about future schools?  The average buyer spends 7 years in their first home, and that is a couple of schools....

New vs Old
When I bought my home, I purchased a new one.  We 'thought' it would be easier, but it really wasn't.  With a new home you don't know how the home is going to settle, or how the neighborhood is going to end up.  When we first moved in, and we started getting some neighbors....we really liked them and we helped quite of few of them put in their yards, and they helped us with ours.  However, as often happens in new neighborhoods most folks are just running through and they left.  Our neighbors now?  No clue really.  There are about 5 homes on our street that are owned by one extended family and they do their own thing, the other homes do their own thing....it isn't really a community.  It is the opposite of the neighborhood 8-10 years ago.  Of course some of the homes in our neighborhood are on their 4th owners, and the homes are only about 10 years old.  
Most more established neighborhoods have an established personality so you know what you are moving into.  Drive through...talk to the neighbors. With older homes you also have already been through the settling period so what you see is what you know.  Newer homes tend to be more energy efficient, but older homes can have the Clark PUD come out and help with energy efficiency.  

Condition
How well is the home taken care of?  Doesn't matter if it is a bit worn, what matters is if it has been loved...  A loved home probably has had the maintenance done on it regularly.  Look beyond the 'flash' for the quality.  Good bones will get you further for cheaper than pretty flash.  You can always upgrade carpets, counters, paint, etc....look at those more expensive items, and look at the home itself.  I know this sounds weird, but a well loved home feels cared for....and they feel better than a home that hasn't been taken care of at all...even if it is prettier.  I see a lot of homes and it is weird but really there is a lot of feeling when buying a home.  I know I tell you to use your head, but yes, buying a home is emotional too....go ahead and 'feel' it...your buyers agent will help you with using your head.  

Market
When you are looking for homes be aware of that neighborhoods market.  This is what your buyers agent will help you with.  Are there a lot of homes for sale in that area?  How long are they on there for?  If there are a lot of homes in an area you want to live in you have more choices, and therefore may have more price flexibility.  If there are only a few homes for sale in that area, and it is a good area then there may not be any price flexibility.  When talking with your agent about the area you want to live in ask your agent about what is available in your price range, and what their take on that market is.

Looking for homes.....
RMLS.COM!  This is the website that all agents use to post homes for sales and it is used by all agents in clark county.  We do not use any other dot com site...no redfin, no craigslist, no zillow, no homes.com, none of those other sites...those are for marketing purposes only and do not always have accurate information as there is no regulations or rules about what someone can post on those sites.  Only the RMLS.com has rules and regulations that an agent must follow for when posting homes.  Why?  Because that is the website that other agents go to for home information so it has to be up to date, and accurate.  The rest of them??? Not worth a spit....  Sorry!  For example; I know of a home right now on two of those sites and it isn't for sale.....it is the agents own home.  If you call on this home she'll say something like, "oh, I am sorry but that home has an offer on it...can I get your information and send you some others?"  It is marketing!  Yes, it is kind of like a 'bait and switch'...but technically it isn't illegal.  Now...I am NOT saying it is right and NO I don't agree with it and neither would I do this....but a LOT of agents do.  I had a client send me some homes earlier this week and they went to one of these sites.  There were 2 homes they really loved...I mean REALLY loved....sadly one of these homes sold back in March and the other, per the current rmls, is a short sale with a bankruptcy that requires the buyer to bring in an additional $15,000 for the bankruptcy court....and it has a roof leak, needs new siding, and because of the roof leak, needs new flooring....  none of this was on what they saw...  sad, isn't it?
So, last thing for today?  Don't go to those other sites...go to the rmls.com for your housing information....just remember that the agent whose name shows up is the sellers agent and you want to talk to your BUYERS agent...the one who works for YOU!




If you know anyone who is thinking about buying a home, our next class is Saturday, July 7, 2012, at the Vancouver YMCA located at 11324 NE 51st Circle from 9am-12:30pm!  With reservations, lunch is included....  :-)

Please let me know if you have any questions! And again as always, if you are looking for a buyer's agent, please give me a call or drop me an email...I would love to help you with your home buying adventure!




Please call, email, text, or even facebook me (at Tracie DeMars Real Estate Q&A) anytime with any questions, or if there is anything I can do to assist you with your home buying adventure! As a buyers agent, I am, as always, here to help!! :-D



Thank you again for your business and for your referrals!



If there is anything you would like to see on here...please let me know and I will make it a weekly note!

...as always...if you have already purchased a home, or no longer would like to receive these emails from me, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from receiving any more.



Thank you again for attending the home buyer education classes, and I hope that you will continue to refer the classes out to your friends, family, and co-workers. Upcoming class dates and times are located at www.freehomebuyerclasses.com.  Just click on the link on the left hand side.  We appreciate your referrals and word of mouth!  Also, if you have somewhere that we can place the flyers at, please let me know....
:-D




Next Week: Inspections
Last Week: Homeowners Insurance (aka Hazard Insurance)

Remember that you can always go to 'Free Home Buyer Education' on Facebook for all of my weekly blogs and upcoming class dates/times/locations. I post the weekly blogs on there as well. 

Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon, 
;-D 
Tracie DeMars
Buyer's Agent
Re/Max - Van Mall 
360/ 903-3504 cell 
360/ 882-3600 fax 
www.traciedemars.com 
find me on LinkedIn
traciedemars@aol.com


“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer classes?  Go to www.freehomebuyerclasses.com or www.learningtobuyahome.com for local upcoming classes, or facebook free home buyer education.” 


*****Remember that if you are interested I can, and will be happy to, set you up on an email that will automatically email you with new home listings in your area and price range as they come up on the market. This email will include all bank owned homes and anything with price changes. Just send me what you are hoping to find, your top 3 things in a home, and price range...and I will set that up within 24 hours for you!

Saturday, 6/23/2012, from 10am-2:30pm
      Vancouver YMCA
       11324 NE 51st Circle, Vancouver WA 98662
 
Wed & Thurs, 6/27 & 6/28/12, from 5:30pm-7:30pm
                  Sixth Street Station Model Home
                  604 SE 11th Avenue, Battle Ground, WA 98604
              (this is a two part class and both nights must be attended)
 
 
 
July 2012
 
Saturday, 7/7/12, from 9am-1pm
         Vancouver YMCA
          11324 NE 51st Circle, Vancouver, WA 98662
 

Happy Sunny Sunday!  :-)

...and to those of you father's, may I wish you a very wonderful Father's Day!  In Woodland, this weekend is Planter's Day weekend so we have been busy with our community.  I think most people around here love this week, and most of us love our community events where we love being a part of it.  Planters Day weekend is always Fathers Day weekend here, so my husband kind of gets two weekends because this weekend ends up being taken over by the community event.  We all get a little sun burnt yesterday though...today was SO much better, and the classic car show was in town too....  :-)  Now I am working, and my husband is having some quality time by himself and the xbox.  LOL!  I hope that the fathers in your life are having a wonderful day as well.  

So this week we are going to talk about homeowners insurance as it is very important to you as a home buyer.  Homeowners insurance is also known as Hazard Insurance, and once you have a home you need to call around for some insurance quotes.  Homeowners insurance typically runs about $400-$600 a year...but that doesn't cover what you really think it does.  

Homeowners insurance is really about the 3 C's....Custody, Care, and Control.  What an insurance company considers is this:  Was the damage something you could have Controlled?  Was the damage something within your Custody?  With Care could the damage have been prevented?  

What this means is if a tree falls on your home there really isn't you could have done about it, so covered.  A car drives into your home?  Covered.  Did you pipes freeze while you were out of town?  Question:  Did you perform preventative maintenance?  Covered.  You haven't performed any preventative maintenance?  You might have a problem.  Your water heater goes out?  Not covered...that would be a home warranty...however, the damage from the water heater may be covered.  You have a roof leak?  Depends...Did a major storm come through?  May be covered.  No major storm....that would be a maintenance issue...meaning something that you could have controlled or was within your care and no...it isn't covered.  A fire would be covered.  

Why is homeowners insurance important?
If your home burned to the ground you still have to pay your mortgage, but you would be paying mortgage for a home you can't live in.  Homeowners insurance will cover the cost of re-building the home so you still have a place to live....especially since you are still paying mortgage on it!  Don't forget that just like with car insurance you have your deductible.....and you have to make sure that your homeowners insurance covers the rising cost of your home if you needed to rebuild it.  Raising your insured dollar amount on your home will increase your mortgage payment as that is part of your escrow.

What else doesn't your homeowners insurance cover?
Earthquakes!  Our area is the #1 earthquake danger zone.....crazy, isn't it?  When I bought my home earthquake insurance was part of my regular homeowners insurance....about a year or so ago they stopped covering it due to the question of not 'if', but 'when'.  I very much encourage you to purchase earthquake insurance for your home.  Mine is $127 for the year.....I can deal with that.  

Other insurances?
Flood.  I live in Woodland, and yes, I carry Flood insurance as well as my other insurances.  Flood insurance costs range and vary on the home and location in Woodland.  There are other areas in Cowlitz and yes, Clark County too, that are required to carry Flood insurance.

Umbrella Insurances....  I also have dogs, and I drive a lot.  I also carry an Umbrella Insurance policy because if some one were to jump into my back yard and one of my dogs bit them (why are they in my back yard anyway?) then sadly, yes, they can sue me.  If some kid falls on my driveway or sidewalk and breaks his/her arm, whether I am home or not, they can sue me.  I know, crazy, right?  Anyhow, this umbrella policy goes on top of my regular policy to provide me with extra protection...just in case...

Some things that can increase your insurance costs?
Dogs, pools, trampolines, location of home, previous claims on the home...these are the most common culprits, and yes, I love my dogs so it is worth it!  :-)

Don't forget that by putting your homeowners insurance and car insurance with the same company can reduce your costs as most insurance companies will give you a discount for 'bundling' your policies with them.  

DON'T FORGET!!  If you know anyone who is thinking about buying a home, our next class is Saturday, June 23, 2012, at the Vancouver YMCA located at 11324 NE 51st Circle from 10am-2pm!  With reservations, lunch is included....  :-)

Please let me know if you have any questions! And again as always, if you are looking for a buyer's agent, please give me a call or drop me an email...I would love to help you with your home buying adventure!

Please call, email, text, or even facebook me (at Tracie DeMars Real Estate Q&A) anytime with any questions, or if there is anything I can do to assist you with your home buying adventure! As a buyers agent, I am, as always, here to help!! :-D

Thank you again for your business and for your referrals!

If there is anything you would like to see on here...please let me know and I will make it a weekly note!

...as always...if you have already purchased a home, or no longer would like to receive these emails from me, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from receiving any more.

Thank you again for attending the home buyer education classes, and I hope that you will continue to refer the classes out to your friends, family, and co-workers. Upcoming class dates and times are located at www.freehomebuyerclasses.com.  Just click on the link on the left hand side.  We appreciate your referrals and word of mouth!  Also, if you have somewhere that we can place the flyers at, please let me know....
:-D

Next Week: Other items to look into when buying in a new area/town/school district.  
Last Week: More on Title Insurance (CCR's & Easements)

Remember that you can always go to 'Free Home Buyer Education' on Facebook for all of my weeklyblogs and upcoming class dates/times/locations. I post the weekly blogs on there as well. 

Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon, 
;-D 
Tracie DeMars
Buyer's Agent
Re/Max - Van Mall 
360/ 903-3504 cell 
360/ 882-3600 fax 
www.traciedemars.com 
find me on LinkedIn
traciedemars@aol.com


“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer classes?  Go to www.freehomebuyerclasses.com or www.learningtobuyahome.com for local upcoming classes, or facebook free home buyer education.” 


*****Remember that if you are interested I can, and will be happy to, set you up on an email that will automatically email you with new home listings in your area and price range as they come up on the market. This email will include all bank owned homes and anything with price changes. Just send me what you are hoping to find, your top 3 things in a home, and price range...and I will set that up within 24 hours for you!
  
"Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be." 
   - Shel Silverstein, American poet, cartoonist and composer, (1930 - 1999).

Hey there and happy Sunday!
weekly home buyer education for 6/10/12
more on title insurance, ccr's, and easements...

Well...the day started out pretty enough, but I have got some clouds over my house right now.  I think I prefer it when it starts off cloudy and clears up.  I am not a fan of when it goes the other way....and this is a great lead in to our topic this week!  ;-)

As you know I have to take classes yearly to keep up my education hours for my licensing renewal.  In case you didn't know, yes, as a real estate agent, I am licensed with the state of Washington.  :-)  I have been taking a few classes on title insurance and clouds that can appear on the title of a home.  It is interesting because it started off clear enough, but lo and behold, I took another class this week that muddied up the waters...again... sigh... so yes, I am going to talk a bit more about title insurance today, and home owners insurance next week.

so...Title Insurance....
Title insurance is a one time fee that is paid as part of your closing costs.  Title insurance protects both the homeowner and the lender in case of a lien on title, or a 'cloud'....something that breaks up the clarity of owner to owner.  The most common lien on a title is your mortgage.  Some other liens that can be on a title is mechanical liens, property tax liens, creditor liens.  A mechanical liens is from a contractor who did work on the home and who wasn't paid for the work and took it to the court.  A property tax lien is for unpaid property taxes, and creditor liens is, just like it sounds, judgments from a creditor for payment.  There are more types of liens today, but how much time do you have for me today?  :-)

As part of their responsibilities the title company researches the deed of a home and makes sure all liens are taken care of at closing.  What happens if they miss one?  Or are unaware of a lien?  This is where title insurance comes in....it protects you in this event and we talked about the 3 types of homeowners insurance last week.  

Yes, the homeowners policy is standard in Washington and there are some title companies that will just offer it....however, not all will on some properties.  In the case of a short sale, bank owned foreclosures, etc, many title companies will not provide a homeowner policy because of the lack of continuity in the title...they will only offer a standard title policy.  In the case of buying land, you will be most likely looking at an extended survey, with the extra cost for the surveyor.  The title company will decide upon which policy based on their level of risk. Yep...there is that word again....Risk.  Just like lenders when looking at you for a pre-approval and your level of risk, the title company is looking at the property for level of risk before deciding upon a title insurance policy.  Interesting....READ your title report!  Which type of title insurance are you getting?  

CCR's....
all properties have CCR's...no matter the age of the home or neighborhood.  You can get a copy of the CCR's (covenants, codes, and restrictions) from the title company.  This is good reading....but boring.  Why is it important?  Because CCR's are always enforceable, but there are loopholes.  If you buy a home in a HOA (homeowners association) the  CCR's have a governing board of people who are enforcing those CCR's, but what happens if you buy a home in a neighborhood with no HOA?  The CCR's are still enforceable, but only if brought to court by a complaining neighbor.  The CCR in question can be set aside by a court of law if it can be proven that it has been ignored by the person, or persons (preferably by more than one home in the neighborhood) for a period of time with no complaint.  Whew!  This is good for me because my CCR's say that I have to have a flowering plum tree in my front yard, and I never planted one....didn't want it.  I have a maple and a curly willow instead....but if one of my neighbors complain, can they take me to court?  Yes.  It will most likely be thrown out though because I have lived here for 11 years without one, and there are about 4 of us in my neighborhood without one.  I can breathe again....  Now....the courts can throw out that ONE CCR, but the rest would still be enforceable.  More questions?  give me a call or drop me an email....

Other things that always stay on the property?  Easements...
by terminology an easement means that it is a privilege to use someone else's property.  Easements always stay on the property and follow the property from homeowner to homeowner.  Every property has easements....some for travel to another property and some for utilities.  For example, on my home I have a 10 foot easement on the front of my property....for utilities.  Do I have stuff planted there?  Yes.  Can the city, or utility company come tomorrow and dig it all up to do what they need to?  Yes.  Will I be reimbursed for damage?  NO...it is an easement for that purpose.  I also have an easement in the back of my property as I am on a corner....I have a 3 foot rock retaining wall there filled with dirt and a 6 foot fence on top of that.....same situation applies though...  I can not create adverse possession for that land because I am using it....there is an easement there that I was aware of when I purchased my home.  

So...got all that?  Yeah...me either!  LOL  Actually it is one of the reasons why I take these classes...to keep up with the changes in law to better protect my clients.  This is why you hire a buyers agent...to help you with your home purchase.  

If you know anyone who is thinking about buying a home, our next class is Saturday, June 23, 2012, at the Vancouver YMCA located at 11324 NE 51st Circle from 10am-2pm!  With reservations, lunch is included....  :-)

Please let me know if you have any questions! And again as always, if you are looking for a buyer's agent, please give me a call or drop me an email...I would love to help you with your home buying adventure!


Please call, email, text, or even facebook me (at Tracie DeMars Real Estate Q&A) anytime with any questions, or if there is anything I can do to assist you with your home buying adventure! As a buyers agent, I am, as always, here to help!! :-D

Thank you again for your business and for your referrals!

If there is anything you would like to see on here...please let me know and I will make it a weekly note!
...as always...if you have already purchased a home, or no longer would like to receive these emails from me, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from receiving any more.

Thank you again for attending the home buyer education classes, and I hope that you will continue to refer the classes out to your friends, family, and co-workers. Upcoming class dates and times are located at www.freehomebuyerclasses.com.  Just click on the link on the left hand side.  We appreciate your referrals and word of mouth!  Also, if you have somewhere that we can place the flyers at, please let me know....
:-D

Next Week: Homeowners Insurance (aka Hazard Insurance)
Last Week: Title Insurance...what is it?

Remember that you can always go to 'Free Home Buyer Education' on Facebook for all of my weekly blogsand upcoming class dates/times/locations. I post the weekly blogs on there as well. 

Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon, 
;-D 
Tracie DeMars
Buyer's Agent
Re/Max - Van Mall 
360/ 903-3504 cell 
360/ 882-3600 fax 
www.traciedemars.com 
find me on LinkedIn
traciedemars@aol.com

“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer education? Go to www.freehomebuyerclasses.com for local upcoming classes!”

*****Remember that if you are interested I can, and will be happy to, set you up on an email that will automatically email you with new home listings in your area and price range as they come up on the market. This email will include all bank owned homes and anything with price changes. Just send me what you are hoping to find, your top 3 things in a home, and price range...and I will set that up within 24 hours for you!

I am a bit late today...I know! I wish I could say it is because I have been so busy this weekend, but nah...it was family stuff this weekend. My husband had to leave this morning for his company's yearly sales meeting....in sunny, warm California...yeah...I feel bad for him too! :-)
It is rough when he is gone though....after 20 years together it is like missing my right hand. It is really hard on our kids though....our oldest daughter says everything feels 'less safe', our son is on spring break, and for our 2 year old....she doesn't understand why daddy isn't putting her to bed at night. Luckily he comes home on Wednesday and is taking Thursday (or wedding anniversary), and Friday off. He works salary, so yeah...long hours, crap pay, but Hey! he has health insurance, and with a family of 5, health insurance is a beautiful thing....especially since being self employed, I don't have any without his!! :-) 

Real estate is a feast or famine business, and as busy as I have been the past couple of weeks, it has slowed down this week...and yes, more homes have come on the market as well...as they always do. It has been a busy week in terms of questions though....I am really not sure which ones to get to first, but this is an email to help you answer the questions you have about home buying....and to help you better understand the process. I am not going to lie....I am hoping that you will call me to help you buy a home...it is true, but I started this weekly email to help answer questions that I can't get to in the classes, or for those topics that people would like more detailed explanations on. So, I am going to put off the inspection email yet again, but if you really were hoping to read about this topic on this weeks email, let me know and I will get you that information. I had a couple of questions this week about mortgage insurance....so that is where we are going at this week....

Insurance....it is one of those things that everyone thinks about! Whether you are a family of five and grateful for your husband's health insurance, or a lender wanting to protect their assets....insurance is very important to everyone. So what is mortgage insurance, and why do you have to have it? Mortgage insurance is, very simply, a way for the lending institutions to protect themselves in case you default on your loan. 

If someone defaults on their mortgage, whether through foreclosure or short sale, the mortgage insurance protects the lending institution in the loss. It is a lot like homeowners insurance....your home catches fire and burns down, you still have to pay the loan, and you have no home. With homeowners insurance you are paying on it....just in case something like this happens, and your home gets rebuilt so you aren't just paying mortgage on an empty piece of land. With mortgage insurance it protects the lending institution in case of loss, but yes, you pay on it until you have enough equity built up to protect yourself, and the lending institution in case of loss. Most people, including me, have mortgage insurance when they buy their home. If you don't want mortgage insurance you need to put down 20%, and really...how many of us have 20% to put down on a home? I know that I didn't. Mortgage insurance gets a dirty reputation, but in reality it helps home buyers buy a home. One of the reasons why we have so many short sales on the market is because people are trying to get out of mortgage insurance. Remember the 80/20 loans? That was people trying to get out of mortgage insurance. Many lenders told them how smart it was to get a low interest 80% loan, and to get out of mortgage insurance they could get a 20% loan as well....at a much higher interest rate (sometimes around 10%-12%)...and many times with an adjustable rate mortgage too. So why would they want this 15-30 year 20% loan at such high interest rates? ....because they didn't want to pay mortgage insurance. The really doesn't make sense to me since you can have mortgage insurance taken off when your loan reaches 80% of the homes value.....which is a LOT quicker than 15-30 years. Many of these people have gone into foreclosure or short sold their homes because of these loans....because they did not want mortgage insurance. Maybe because I bought my home 11 years ago with mortgage insurance, I just don't understand this. I still don't have mortgage insurance on my home as I had that removed after 3 years in my home. Honestly, these 80/20 loans really did hurt everyone, and not just the buyers who fell for this....but everyone, and the economy as these loans weren't insured and ended up costing not just the buyers, but all of us. 

Mortgage insurance is not your enemy! For many first time home buyers mortgage insurance is your friend as it helps and allows you to buy your home without 20% down. An yes...you can have it taken off when your loan reaches 80% of the homes value. Now...this is something you do need to talk with your lender about as the rules differ depending upon whether you have PMI (Private mortgage insurance) or FHA mortgage insurance. With FHA mortgage insurance you can have to wait for 5 years before you can have the mortgage insurance removed...and with most PMI it is about 3 years. Honestly though, it takes about 3-5 years to have enough equity in your home to have the mortgage insurance removed. However, how long would it take you to save up a 20% downpayment? Talk to your lender about mortgage insurance! What kind do you have? Is there a time limit on how long you must keep it? What are the rules for its removal? Some lending institutions will take it off immediately when you have paid down your homes mortgage to 80% of what you paid for it. With some lending institutions you can provide a CMA (comparable market analysis) by a professional, licensed real estate agent to show that the market supports a higher value of your home which could take your mortgage amount owed to 80% of the homes value. Be sure to talk with your lender about your mortgage insurance....and remember...it isn't your enemy. Mortgage insurance is a lot like home owners insurance, they both protect the lending institution and you as well. Mortgage insurance also allows many of yes a way to buy our first homes, but you don't have to keep it on their forever....

So why can it be up to 3-5 years to have enough equity to remove your homeowners insurance? I have clients who purchase their home about 3 years ago who would like to sell soon as they see that their homes value have gone up. However, for these guys I am the bearer of bad news. They won't be selling, but they can get their mortgage insurance removed. So why, if their homes value have gone up, won't they be selling? 
When someone sells their home it costs them 13% (or more) to sell their home. For instance, the sellers is selling their home for $200,000. You go on tax records (because I know you do! LOL) and see that they bought their home for $140,000. You need to know that this information is only what the amount of the original loan, and doesn't actually show you how much the sellers really owe. There is no way to know for certain how much the seller actually owes on their home as that is private, personal information. So...let's say that the sellers took out a second loan a couple of years prior for $30,000, and between the two they have paid down $5,000. In this instance the sellers would actually owe $165,000. They are selling the home to you for $200,000, minus the amount they pay to their agent (who then splits it however the sellers agent wants with your buyers agent...so your buyers agent is free to you) which in this case we are going to say 5%, and then there is the 5% that the government/county/city wants, and of course, your 3% for your closing costs....which totals about $26,000. So...$200,000 minus $26,000 equals $174,000....and their mortgages equal $165,000....which means the seller has a total equity of $9,000......whew! 

So...that is a short description of mortgage insurance, and what it is, and what it does....and how it can actually be helping you. Please let me know if you have any questions! And again as always, if you are looking for a buyer's agent, please give me a call or drop me an email...I would love to help you with your home buying adventure!

Please call, email, text, or even facebook me (at Tracie DeMars or Tracie DeMars Real Estate Q&A)
anytime with any questions, or if there is anything I can do to assist you with your home buying adventure! As a buyers agent, I am, as always, here to help!! :-D

Thank you again for your business and for your referrals!

If there is anything you would like to see on here...please let me know and I will make it a weekly note!

...as always...if you have already purchased a home, or no longer would like to receive these emails from me, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from receiving any more.

Thank you again for attending the home buyer education classes, and I hope that you will continue to refer the classes out to your friends, family, and co-workers. We appreciate your referrals and word of mouth!
:-D

Next Week: Inspections....what you need to know...I promise to get this in next week!! Sorry....
Last Week: home buyer information and questions to ask

Remember that you can always go to Tracie DeMars Real Estate Q&A on Facebook for all of my weekly blogs if you missed any. I post them on there as well. 

Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon, 
;-D 
Tracie DeMars
Buyer's Agent
Re/Max - Van Mall 
360/ 903-3504 cell 
360/ 882-3600 fax 
www.traciedemars.com 
find me on LinkedIn
traciedemars@aol.com

“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer education? Go to www.traciedemars.com for local upcoming classes!”

*****Remember that if you are interested I can, and will be happy to, set you up on an email that will automatically email you with new home listings in your area and price range as they come up on the market. This email will include all bank owned homes and anything with price changes. Just send me what you are hoping to find, your top 3 things in a home, and price range...and I will set that up within 24 hours for you! 

Happy Memorial Day!!

I do apologize for the lateness of the email this week, but I just got home! :-) My family went over to Sunriver for the holiday...in part to relax, and in part to visit our oldest daughter who recently moved out on her own to Bend. It is still difficult for me.....I miss her... Anyhow, the weather was cloudy and cool, with a couple of rain showers so nothing desert-like about that, and I guess we missed the big thunderstorms? I love thunderstorms so that is kind of sad, really. However, it was lovely to get away for awhile....even though I didn't always seem to have phone service! I was returning phone calls this evening as we came over Mt Hood! LOL I had missed 3 phone calls this weekend, and if you were one of them, then I am sorry! You should have a voicemail from me now. :-D It was funny though as 2 of the phone messages were about the same things...HUD homes. Because of this, I am going to deviate (I know, again) this week and talk about HUD homes real quick. As always though...this is a short description so if you have ANY questions, please call or email me! You know that I am usually MUCH better at getting back to you than this.... I hope your holiday was wonderful and that you had time to enjoy some time with your family.....and time to remember why we celebrate this holiday.... Thank you to those you have served, or continue to serve.

What is a HUD home?

A HUD home is a home with a FHA loan that went into foreclosure. HUD actually owns the home/loan, but FHA insures it....hence a FHA loan. These are foreclosures, and these homes really are 'as-is'. With a bank owned home sometimes we can get the bank to do some lender required repairs (sometimes, but not usually, and especially not in cases of multiple offers), and sometimes we can do 'small', and most especially CHEAP, repairs on a home, but with a HUD owned home there is to be NOTHING done on a home prior to closing. In fact, with a HUD home, HUD will send out an inspector prior to closing to inspect the home to make sure that nothing has been done with it and that it is in the same condition as it was when it was listed.....that's all they check.
With any other home sale the appraisal is paid for by the buyer, and done after the home inspection. HUD homes are a bit different as prior to listing a home HUD has an appraisal come out and check out the home. The appraisal does an appraisal on the home, and calls out any lender required repairs. Remember that when an inspector calls out a repair these are 'suggestions', but when an appraiser calls out a repair these are now 'lender required' repairs which means if the repairs aren't done, the home doesn't get financed, and you can't purchase it. These lender required repairs are then called, 'repair escrow'. The catch is that an appraiser is not a contractor so really has no idea what these repairs may actually cost, so it is really just a guesstimate. These repairs are not done prior to closing, but done afterward. The cost of the repairs is an additional cost that must be added to your loan, or is cash you must bring in to closing. As you can probably figure any HUD home with a repair escrow won't be able to finance with a FHA loan, or any state assistance loan, such as downpayment assistance. Most HUD homes are sold with cash offers, conventional loans, or with FHA203k loans. If you are potentially interested in a 203k loan then call Chris Berg at Pinnacle Home Mortgage at 503-320-0925. 

How is an offer made on a HUD home?

When a HUD home is first listed, there is a 10 day window before HUD will look at any offer. What this means if you, and your buyers agent, make an offer on the 1st day, or the 3rd day, or the 7th day...it doesn't matter...HUD will not look at offers until the 10th day from listing. When a bank owned home receives multiple offer, the bank will respond requesting buyers 'highest and best' offers, and choose the highest, or best offer for the bank. With a HUD home they will take the best offer right out front...no request for 'highest and best'. Do NOT write an offer for higher than appraised price!!! I can not stress this enough....a bank will only loan you as much as the home appraises for....no more! IF you write an offer for higher than the appraised amount then you, the buyer, will be expected to bring that amount in as cash to closing. When you, and your buyers agent, make an offer it will be on their paperwork, and you will need to give your buyers agent your social security number to put the offer into the HUD system. It is a bidding auction online, and you only get one offer....
After the 10th day, HUD will look at offers daily, and after 30 days investor offers are welcomed. 

Contingencies

When you make an offer on a HUD home you still include the inspection, financing, insurance, and utilities contingencies. Your buyers agent, and the sellers (HUD) agents should be verifying that all utilities are on prior to inspection as with HUD homes there is NO utilities on at the home. What this means to you is that you should plan to see the home during the daylight hours, and that you schedule the home inspection for at least 3 days out so that utilities have time to get turned on. Again, there will be NO repairs, so the inspection is really for your own knowledge. An agent will tell you that HUD will do repairs up to $4,000, but HUD doesn't actually do the repairs. They are put into a repair escrow which means it is then financed into your loan, or becomes cash that you bring in to closing. If the repairs are guesstimated to be over $4,000 then the home is considered no longer insurable. Just like any other home purchase, if you chose to back out after inspection (and you still can), then you do receive your earnest money back, but the inspection cost is non-refundable. 

Some thoughts....

Not many HUD homes are insurable (meaning no escrow repair), and the ones that are go fairly quickly. If the HUD home has no escrow repair then you can consider it with FHA, or state bond down payment assistance. Most HUD homes are IE, or insurable with escrow repair. This is something for you, the buyer, to consider....these homes will not finance with FHA, or downpayment assistance. You can go FHA203k though....as long as those repairs can be financed into your loan or you have the money to bring in to closing for those repairs. Then there are the HUD homes that have repairs over $4000 and will go cash, or conventional loans only.

Be wary of any realtor or lender who promotes the 'Good Neighbor Next Door' program! This is a fabulous program for firefighters, EMT's, police officers, and teachers where they can buy a HUD home for 50% of listing price. You still have to offer just like everyone else, and all other rules apply, but if you are the winning bid, and can prove you are employed in one of those careers then HUD will sell you the home for 50% of listed price. The catch? There has only been a couple of these homes available in Washington in the last couple of years, and currently there are none available. These are very rare, and few are ever available. There are agents who will promote this loan like crazy to get you in so that they, (in an agents words at the training) "get the buyer in, and get them interested enough so that you can lock them into something else". Wow! Talk about misrepresentation!! ....as always....be aware....there are a LOT of great programs out there that are not currently being funded. Sadly there are also a lot of lenders and agents who will promote these...knowing that...they use these as a way to get you in, but can't actually deliver. Remember...if it walks like a rat, smells like a rat, and sounds like a rat.....what is it again?

There are a lot of HUD homes out there, but you need to know what you are looking at....and what your options are. There are also a lot of great homes out there that are not HUD homes, or short sales. I can guarantee you that if you are patient you will find a home you love, and that will love you back! Buying your first home is a roller coaster experience, and yes, it is stressful, but it should also be fun and exciting! A buyers agents job is to advise, assist, and help you with the process...including giving you all your options, walking you through each step of the process, and keeping you informed.

If you know anyone who is thinking about buying a home, our next class is Saturday, June 2, 2012, at the Vancouver YMCA located at 11324 NE 51st Circle from 9am-1pm! With reservations, lunch is included.... :-)

Please let me know if you have any questions! And again as always, if you are looking for a buyer's agent, please give me a call or drop me an email...I would love to help you with your home buying adventure!

Please call, email, text, or even facebook me (at Tracie DeMars Real Estate Q&A) anytime with any questions, or if there is anything I can do to assist you with your home buying adventure! As a buyers agent, I am, as always, here to help!! :-D

Thank you again for your business and for your referrals!

If there is anything you would like to see on here...please let me know and I will make it a weekly note!
...as always...if you have already purchased a home, or no longer would like to receive these emails from me, please let me know and I will be happy to remove you from receiving any more.

Thank you again for attending the home buyer education classes, and I hope that you will continue to refer the classes out to your friends, family, and co-workers. Upcoming class dates and times are located at www.freehomebuyerclasses.com. Just click on the link on the left hand side. We appreciate your referrals and word of mouth! Also, if you have somewhere that we can place the flyers at, please let me know....
:-D

Next Week: finding a home, and questions to ask (or the 3 insurances you need to know about)
Last Week: interest Rates vs. APR...and how can you tell

Remember that you can always go to 'Free Home Buyer Education' on Facebook for all of my weekly blogs and upcoming class dates/times/locations. I post the weekly blogs on there as well. 

Have a great day, and I will talk to you soon, 
;-D 
Tracie DeMars
Buyer's Agent
Re/Max - Van Mall 
360/ 903-3504 cell 
360/ 882-3600 fax 
www.traciedemars.com 
find me on LinkedIn
traciedemars@aol.com

“Interested in free and non promotional home buyer education? Go to www.freehomebuyerclasses.com for local upcoming classes!”

*****Remember that if you are interested I can, and will be happy to, set you up on an email that will automatically email you with new home listings in your area and price range as they come up on the market. This email will include all bank owned homes and anything with price changes. Just send me what you are hoping to find, your top 3 things in a home, and price range...and I will set that up within 24 hours for you! 

Happy Sunday!