Entries from Searchlight Crusade tagged with 'buyers'
Advertising a Sold Property As Available on MLS
This really ticks me off. I just got done going around about this with a clueless Realtor. According to them, it's not available. It's simply pending contract signatures. But it's showing as "Active" in MLS. This is not a minor...
Altering the Terms of A Real Estate Purchase Contract
A search hit that I got: What is the reasonable amount of notice to give when changing contract terms in California Unfortunately for this person, a real estate contract is not something like Lando Calrissian's bargain with the Empire in...
"Buy and Bail" or Buying One Home Before Foreclosure on Another
This has been a noticeable phenomenon for quite a while in San Diego. I've been loath to talk about it because I didn't want to be giving fraudsters ideas. Most lenders have now put into place safeguards against this measure....
How to Effectively Shop for a Buyer's Agent
This is easy. Much easier than effectively shopping for a loan or a listing agent. So easy that a congresscritter can do it. So easy that congressional leadership can do it. The only thing possibly moderately difficult to understand is...
The Escrow Process and Reasons for Falling Out
There are all sorts of reasons why escrow falls through, but they fall into three main categories. They can best be described as failures of qualification, failures of the property itself, and failures of execution. Before I get into the...
Listings from Non-MLS Websites
About once a week, I get an email from a client or prospect asking about a property they found on a site not sourced from MLS. These properties are pretty universally non-existent, at least as far as being for...
Wells and Community Water Systems
We read Searchlight Crusade every day and consider your essays a priceless education in avoiding the major pitfalls in the home-buying process. On behalf of all of us consumers, thank you so much for your hard work! Please comment on...
The Are No Schools That Teach What A Good Agent Needs to Know
I find it fascinating the number of people who will claim that because no college degree is required to become a real estate agent, that agents can't possibly be worth any significant amount of money. The reason no college...
Negotiation Requires More Than Dueling Ultimatums
Not too long ago, I started negotiating for a property. I did extensive research online, and and I and my clients visited several competing properties. We made an offer that was a little under 90% of the asking price, and...
Rent to Own and Lease With Option to Buy
This has always been a portion of the market, but right now, more and more people are emphasizing it, or at least the ones who are able. Actual Rent to Own is rare these days, a sign that the...
What If You Cannot Refinance Later?
People always assume they'll be able to refinance later. Even most of my articles have it as an implicit assumption. But what if you can't refinance later? There are situations where it happens. Many situations, as millions of people...
The Basics of What Should A Buyer Offer (and Should You Even Make An Offer)?
Dan, Okay, so now I'm in the process of just making an offer on a house and it's already getting confusing despite all my reading. It would have been worse has I not spent all this time reading but just...
Negotiations After the Purchase Contract: Seller's Allowances and Fixing Problems
I had made a request to repair that included $3700 credit for closing costs. I wanted to get things done like safety issues and more critical maintenance issues done. Our estimate said that it would be about $4900 to...
Finding or Creating a "Green" or Eco-Friendly House
With the current popularity of pursuing a "green" lifestyle and some sustainability (garden plot, edible landscaping, micro-orchard, etc.) in one's yard area, I value your input about what to look for in an older subdivision with larger lots that aren't...
"All of the Good Properties Get Offers So Fast!"
That's way up there on the list of complaints buyer's agents get. Probably number one, definitely no lower than number three, and it's only going to get worse when the markets recover. There's really only one honest response: "Well,...
When to Get A Buyer's Agent and Start Looking at Property
Once we figure out when we are going to be ready to buy, how early is too soon to get a buyer's agent and start looking. You are ready for a Buyer's Agent when you are ready to act...
What Buyers Need: What Sellers Should Want to Supply When Selling
(This is a companion article to What Sellers Need: What Buyers Should Want to Supply) Quite often, I hear people talking about the real estate market as if it's all some amorphous blob, and buyers and sellers are no more...
What Sellers Need: What Buyers Should Want to Supply When Making An Offer
(This is a companion article to What Buyers Need: What Sellers Should Want to Supply) Quite often, I hear people talking about the real estate market as if it's all some amorphous blob, and buyers and sellers are no more...
Real Estate: General Education versus Specific Expertise
Hi Dan, Your blogsite is great; I stumbled on it and find you very credible and knowledgeable. I have two questions for you, if you are looking for things to write about: 1) What are your views on the...
What Can You Do If You've Bought A Vampire Property?
Dear Mr. Melson, I was wondering if you could offer some insight re: the other side of the equation: what to do *after* you've bought a vampire property. We bought one, quite by accident, despite a house inspection by...
Desperation Mining: How a Buyer Hits Paydirt (and How Sellers Can Avoid it)
One of my favorite blogs ran a picture of a listing sign that included the caption "REDUCED But Not Stupid or Desperate". I beg to differ on the former. On the latter, time will tell. Most successful real estate investors...
For Sale By Owner - Working Directly With a Loan Officer
Just got a search on "state of california fsbo questions to work directly with loan officers without a agent" This isn't a problem. Whereas it is the same license, it is two entirely separate job functions and the government is...
Procuring Cause and Multiple Agents
Dear Mr. Melson, If you sign two or more non-exclusive buyer's agent agreements in your search for a home to buy, how do you avoid putting yourself at risk for a procuring cause situation from either agent, or even the...
What Does It Mean To Fall Out Of Escrow?
I got this question in an email, and almost blew it off, but then I realized for every person who actually asks, there are probably at least a dozen who are unclear but don't ask, and I apologize that...
The High Cost of Waiting To Buy A Home
(Note: This is a repeat and 100% financing is not currently available unless you are one of those with a VA loan available to you - but the article is still valid for those who have the required down payment...
If You Don't Think Agents Are Valuable, Do It Yourself
And I mean that literally. Do it all yourself with no begging for free property advice, free help, free negotiations help, free real estate location services, free answers to "how do I deal with this problem?" and not least of...
Vampire Properties
I just went out doing some general market scouting. Looked at ten properties, and at least three were of a sort that I've started calling "vampire properties." Vampire properties are one more reason you want a good buyer's agent, and...
Real Estate Purchase Negotiability
What's negotiable on a purchase? The short answer is everything. There may be standards and traditions in your area, whether they're the same in your area as there are in mine or quite different. That doesn't mean they are...
How To Buy Bargain Real Estate
There are two main sources of bargain properties. The obvious one that everyone knows about is properties fresh on the market where the owner doesn't realize what they've got. This is the largest single reason why potential buyers obsess over...
California's Home Equity Sales Contract Act
A while ago a reader gave me a heads up that Illinois HB 4050 was hurting residents of certain poverty stricken Illinois Zip Codes. Now I have to pick on my own state: California law generally requires special handling of...
Top Ten Reasons You Bought The Wrong House
A while ago, I wrote Top Ten Reasons Your Home Isn't Selling. It was well received so I thought I'd take it from the buyer's perspective. Once again, I'll try to inject as much humor as I can. And...
What is Real Estate Worth?
One of the most common questions in real estate is "What is this property really worth?" The easy answer is the same as the deepest, most profound one I can come up with, "Whatever you can get someone to pay...
Trying to Buy Real Estate Below Market
This question: What real estate office can I trust to help buy below market house in (location) California? brought someone to the site and I have not previously written a real answer to the question. The short answer is "nobody."...
Why Do Purchase Escrows Fall Apart? (And Why Is It Happening More Often?)
There have always been real estate transactions that fall apart. The reasons why they fall apart are as varied as the people who enter into the transaction in the first place. Let's get back to the very basics for...
Fixing The Real Estate Mess - Proposing Some Small Changes That Would Make A Huge Difference Over Time
Yesterday, I published the first half of this article, describing the issues currently preventing a return to a more normal real estate market, and the facts that any proposed solution needs to be built upon. At a quick recap, the...
Fixing The Real Estate Mess - Describing the Situation
Lots of folks have offered lots of different proposals for fixing the real estate markets and the mess we're in. All of the ones I have seen have suffered from one or more of about three problems. First, the...
Protecting My Buyer Clients Good Faith Deposit
The buyer's deposit is always at risk. This is just a fact of real estate transactions. I could pretend it's not so, but that wouldn't keep the deposit from being at risk - it would just make me a...
What Exactly do First Time Home Buyers Need?
That's one of the questions I've been asked, and it deserves an answer. Know that there is some flexibility to the answer, as there are embedded trade offs. You don't need as much of an income, or as high of...
Is The Good Faith Deposit At Risk?
Many agents seem to answer this question differently depending upon whether their client is the prospective buyer or seller, according to what they think will make the client most comfortable. When their client is making an offer, "No, your...
For Sale By Owner Issues
I've been taking a long look at the world of For Sale By Owner and similar concepts lately. With the digital revolution, you always want to be watching the tide to figure out if you're in a business that's about...
Top Ten Reasons Your House Isn't Selling
No, I'm not a David Letterman watcher, for reasons having to do with turning into a pumpkin before his show starts. I'm going to treat it a little more seriously than he does, as this is a serious subject,...
Seller Paid Closing Costs (or, When Your Prospective Buyer Has No Money)
In many transactions when I originally wrote this, the buyer has absolutely no money, or an amount that was not sufficient to pay the costs that they would traditionally be expected to pay in order to close the transaction. Today,...
How to Use Internet Based Real Estate and House Hunting Sites
As with anything you find on the internet, the critical thing to keep in mind with internet real estate is that it is subject to input control. In plain English, you only see what they want you to see....
Ill-Considered Real Estate Offers and Contracts
There's an old literary tradition that cautions the reader to "Be careful what you ask for. You may get it." Many real estate purchase offers are good illustrations of that principle. The rule followed by good agents is, "Never...
Writing Real Estate Purchase Offers to Beat Higher Competing Offers
This article was inspired by closing one of many transactions where my clients did not make the high bid (or even close), but did get the fully negotiated purchase contract and the property. By building an airtight case that...
Consult a Loan Officer Before You Make a Purchase Offer
I don't know how many people have told me the story of the Purchase Offer That Was Accepted But Couldn't Be Done. They come to me because they lost their deposit or are about to and they want some way...
Why Buyers Should Avoid Short Sales
I've been saying this for a long time: Short sales are poison for buyers. I don't know why people encourage buyers to look at short sales, because there is no advantage for buyers that I am aware of. In...
Real Estate: Giving Someone a Monopoly Does Not Encourage Top Performance
From an e-mail I've been talking to agents lately and I ask them about the things I've learned about from your site. I thought I would say things like "I want to apply for a backup loan" and they would...
Pretending the Service Equation is Simpler Than It Is
Way back when I was just out of high school, I was doing a lot of things with my time. Working, dating, competing on the fencing team, gaming of various sorts. But every once in a while, I dropped...
Real Estate: Know What Can Be Fixed and What Can't, What's Profitable and What Isn't
It's a well known fact that not all factors in real estate are equally important, and not all property investments perform equally well. A critical part of successfully choosing the right property, whether it's for investment or personal use, lies...
My Sixty Second Public Service Announcement about Buying Real Estate
Here was an idea I had: Pack a list of the most important things consumers need to know about buying real estate, as packed into the words I can say in sixty seconds without sounding like an over-clocked squirrel. Here...
Consumer Due Diligence on Real Estate and Mortgage Loans
Or: Please don't believe everything you read on the internet! Rarely a week passes by that I don't get a request from someone to link to their website or article. I'm happy to link to good sites and good articles...
Selling In Buyer's Markets: Do You Need to Sell Or Are You Part of The Problem?
One of the things that sticks out about buyer's markets is that there are two sorts of listings: Those who are willing to do whatever it takes, anything it takes, to get the property sold, and the other who apparently...
Listing Agents Who Want Both Halves of The Commission
I went out previewing properties a couple days ago. That particular client's situation being what it is, I was concentrating on vacant properties. But over half the vacant properties in that area had restricted showing instructions. "Call agent first," or...
How to Tell A Good Real Estate Market Article From A Bad One
Don Henley has a fun song off his second solo album called "Driving With Your Eyes Closed". I can't find a video performance, but here are the lyrics. It's got a chorus that ends with the line, "You're gonna hit...
Steering: The Most Violated Law In Real Estate
I just picked a random ZIP code in my local MLS, and out of the first twenty listings I came to, ten had explicit violations of one or more of the sections of RESPA regarding steering right there in the...
Non-Exclusive Buyer's Agency Contract - A Bet Consumers Can't Lose
There are two sorts of buyer's agency contracts, exclusive and non-exclusive. Note that this has nothing to do with Exclusive Buyer's Agents, who do not accept property for listing. I disagree with their reasoning on the virtues of doing...
Finding Bargain Real Estate: Work With the Buyer's Agent Who Actually Finds The Bargain!
Several times a month I get calls and emails. Sometimes, it's even people stopping in. "I've heard you're good at finding bargains." Well, yes I am. "Please tell me the addresses of some bargains so I can drive by."...
The Perfect Time To Buy Real Estate
There is no such thing as the perfect time to buy. The perfect time to buy would mean that you have all kinds of leverage, and can make sellers give you pretty much the deal you want, but prices are...
Real Estate and the Four Levels of Competence
People who talk about learning skills tend to discuss a model for learning called the conscious competence learning model. It starts with unconscious incompetence. You not only don't know how to do something, you don't realize that it is...
The Mortgage Loan Market Controls the Real Estate Market
One of the things I keep telling folks about the real estate market, whatever area you live in, is that it is controlled by the loan market. If you want to understand where real estate in general is headed, look...
First Time Home Buyer Assistance Programs: Locally Based
One of the things people keep asking about is first time buyer programs. They exist, but lenders are not the first place to ask. Why? Because many, if not most lenders, actually charge a quarter of a point or so...
The Best Way To Solve Problems in Real Estate
The same as in every other area of life: Get out in front and stop it from becoming a problem. I do not understand why many people approach real estate transactions like a casual outing. Go window shopping, decide...
Real Estate Liquidation Auctions
Liquidation auctions were a big thing for a while there. They were just advertising one on all the stations around here. The other agents in my office asked if I was going, and I told them, "There will be...
The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy of Lender Fear
Most people, particularly first time buyers, want 100% financing or as close as they can get. Actually, most first time buyers don't have a down payment and couldn't put a significant down payment (5% or more) if they had...
Contingent Sales
I am buying a house. I signed the contract but the seller said contingent to sell until she buys new house? Is that normal? People do it. It's smarter to avoid the stress and complications of dealing with both...
Sellers Lending to Buyers Then Selling the Note
I am seeking to sell my properties to my tenants. I want to create a mortgage and then sell the mortgages. Properties are undervalued in this area as they have been historically fixer-uppers. Ours are in very good condition...
Differences Between Loans Look Smaller Than They Are
One of the things I keep getting told by people is that my loans are the same as everybody else's. When I originally wrote this, I had quoted a 5.625% with no points, and got told, "That's the same rate...
First Time Buyer Programs: The Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC)
This is a nationwide program for first time home buyers that helps them qualify for the loan by saving them even more money on their tax bill. With that said, however, the state of California accounts for more than 50...
Buyer's Agency, Due Diligence, and the Illusion of Comity
Somebody sent me this story via e-mail: Feeling Misled on Home Price, Buyers Sue Agent Marty Ummel feels she paid too much for her house. So do millions of other people who bought at the peak of the housing...
How Can Buyers Get the Lowest Possible Price on the Best Possible Property?
The first piece of advice I have for buyers who want to get a fantastic bargain is to find a good buyer's agent (this guy is one of the best in San Diego County). Nothing else will make as...
Buying and Selling Properties with Unpermitted Additions
Unpermitted additions are popular in California because of property tax implications. You see, due to Proposition 13 back in 1978, taxable assessments are based upon purchase price plus no more than 2% per year since acquisition (although if you...
Real Estate Agents and Mortgage Loan Officers Don't Want to Compete
It's the same reason the phone company doesn't want to compete, General Motors doesn't want to compete, Wal-Mart doesn't want to compete, Disney doesn't want to compete, and Microsoft will do everything in its power to appear as if it...
In Real Estate, You're Better Off Doing One Thing At A Time
Hi--I just found your site today. The best I've ever seen/read, etc. Thank You!! I do have a question I didn't see addressed regarding our current situation/dilemma: Our present home, which we've lived in for 8 years, is worth...
Low Asking Price on Unfinanceable Properties
At any given time, I will usually have at least one set of clients who really need to consider a condo or townhome who nonetheless have their hearts set on a single family residence. I agree to include single...
The Future of Real Estate Agency is Expert Consultants, Not Controlling Market Access
Expertise and attitude, not control of an informational chokepoint, is the way that things are going. Let's analyze this from both sides of the problem. The current owner looking to sell really needs a marketer. For better or worse, most...
Buyer's Markets Are A Great Time For Moving Up
I have said repeatedly that buyer's markets are not the time to be selling a property if you have any choice. There is one exception: People looking to turn around and buy a more expensive property. It's still better if...
Full Service Agent For Discount Price? Demand Specifics!
There is no such thing as a free lunch, but lots of people will pretend there is. It seems to me that many people consider compensation earned by real estate agents as paying some kind of toll. They think of...
Real Estate and the Tale of Aesop's Dog (Greed Envy)
At a very young age, my parents bought me a book of Aesop's Tales. Aesop has gone out of style, probably because these are stories with a moral lesson, and it seems the modern society is actively averse to moral...
Facts Of Life On Buying and Selling "Without an Agent"
I saw your article on on Searchlight Crusade about exclusive buyers agents and I have a couple follow up questions pertaining to my own situation that I am hoping you could shed some light on. I don't have any...
Automated Underwriting In Pre-Qualification or Pre-Approval Letters
It has become a trend for real estate agents who think they're being "smart" to require an automated underwriting approval. These are automated underwriting programs from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac saying that Fannie or Freddie will buy the...
Dual Agency: Using the Seller's Agent as Your Buyer's Agent
Is it unwise to use the listing realtor as your purchase realtor? A house I'm interested in purchasing is being sold by the realtor selling my house. Although she's done a decent job selling my house, I fear she...
Should I Buy A Home? Part 2: Process
Continued from Part 1: Preparation I am considering buying a home, although I have not made up my mind on the subject. This is not due to indecision, but rather due to a lack of necessary information. There are many...
Should I Buy A Home? Part 1: Preparation
I am considering buying a home, although I have not made up my mind on the subject. This is not due to indecision, but rather due to a lack of necessary information. There are many factors to be considered...
First Time Buyer Programs and Multi-Family Housing
Can I qualify for first time home buyer financing if I buy a duplex and live in one and rent out the other? I thought if I bought a duplex, lived in one side and rented out the other would...
Two Things Sellers Need To Understand About Buyers
There's an old saying in sales: "The best way to achieve your dreams is to help others achieve theirs". I wasn't able to run it down to the original attribution, but it is as true a saying as can...
Which Makes More Difference To Your Future - Buyer's Agent or Listing Agent?
Having done both, there's no question in my mind. For the average person and the average transaction, the buyer's agent makes a lot more difference. In the aggregate, a good buyer's agent has the opportunity to make a lot more...
Buying Without An Agent - My Own Experience
I had the idea for this article some time ago. It took me a long time to decide to share it publicly, because quite frankly, knowing what I know now, I was an idiot. I was still young enough to...
"Contractor's Specials"
I was looking through some real estate listings and saw one property described as: "Contractor's special, first time buyers and investors. House needs TLC." Does contractor's special mean u better be a contractor if you wanna buy this place? It...
Why All The Fuss Over Real Estate Transactions?
Why doesn't real estate just sell for the asking price instead of having to go thru all the paper work...? Wouldn't it be easier to just put a price on it and sell it for that price? We don't...
The Era of Make Believe Loans and The Law of Unintended Consequences
One of the things I've heard and read other agents complaining about is that they can't find qualified buyers to represent. Welcome to Unintended Consequences 101. The way that the market had been working is this: Young, often unmarried, buyers...
How to Avoid A Repeat of the Housing Market Mess
Scapegoating mortgage brokers or anyone else is not the answer, nor is prohibiting yield spread. We've been here before (in the early 1990s), congress did something remarkably similar except a little bit more sane. It didn't work then. Why would...
Mortgage Transaction Case Study
Note: This article was originally published November 2007, when rates were higher than currently I had been corresponding irregularly with this gentleman during his hunt. It happens he lives outside of California, and I only work inside California, so...
Some Offers Are More Equal Than Others (Even If They Are For Less Money)
The phrasing in parallel with Animal Farm is intentional. Sellers need to understand this, and so do buyers, especially in a hot real estate market. Some offers are more equal than others, and knowing how to choose between competing...
Working with Multiple Agents While Searching for a Purchase
If you have three real estate companies sending you emails with multi-listings, if you want to see one of the properties, who gets the commission? There five properties that I want to see the inside of the houses. Company A,...
Why There Is Money in Fixer Properties
I am an adamant believer in the Non-exclusive Buyer's Agency Agreement. In practical terms, as opposed to the Exclusive Buyer's Agency Agreement, it is so much to the advantage of the consumer that it isn't funny, and it doesn't usually...
Is Your Agent A Cheerleader Or An Analyst?
It's not difficult to see how some of the weakest agents and loan officers I know make lots of money. They work for an office of a well advertised chain, and when they get the walk-in traffic, no matter what...
Can You Cancel After You Sign Mortgage Loan or Purchase Documents?
what if i sign all the paper work for a house at a title agency, can i back off the house? Depends upon the laws in your state. The Federal three day right of rescission only applies to refinancing your...
Do Furnishings Convey With The Property?
If a home for sale has a refrigerator included on the listing report, and the buyer's agent does not write that it goes to the seller in a contract, is the buyer actually entitled to the refrigerator. I am...
Short Sale Negotiators and the Interests of Potential Buyers
I am seeing a very disturbing trend these past few months. Rather than do the work they should be doing, listing agents are treating the entire short sale process as a kind of "Black Box", delegating the negotiations with the...
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