Answers by Chris Yochum

203k loan can be a good option. Also connect with Feeasy that can do loans like this.

It can be a good idea to have a roof inspection or assessment. Some companies do this at no charge. If you get 3 contractors out there to assess and give you an evaluation of the roof condition and life remaining then you can disclose appropriately. If buyers have any concern then you can show what the contractors had said. If they recommend replacing then at least you will know what the professional say and can find the best quote. Having a new roof can certainly make the home more appealing and attract more buyer interest.

Its not a bad idea to replace the locks when purchasing a home to ensure you are the only one with access. Some home warranties will provide new locks on a new purchase.

Many experts are saying that there is a housing shortage, which means that the inventory is low compared to the population demands. As inventory is low and demand is up then usually prices follow the demand.

There are becoming more and more vacation rentals, though the demand for vacation rentals seems to continue to be high. The rent does fluctuate with the market and seasonal attraction to the area.

It is fairly common. Wire fraud is the most common.

If you invest the $200 into something that has higher returns than your mortgage rate than it will be a good investment. I personally would pay off my mortgage to allow myself to eventually be debt free.

In some cases solar panels can increase a homes value depending on the specific market. I have seen in my market where similar homes have sold for the same amount where one home had solar and another didnt. It can largely depend on the energy cost in the area and how much sun light is available.

Every country is going to have different laws in regards to real estate. Agents that are licensed in the US will not be able to help you in other countries. Hope this helps.

High appreciation areas like Farmington New Mexico, Sarasota Florida, and Naples Florida are some hot flip areas. Any high appreciation areas have great upside though big risk if the market turns.

Wholesaling is when you obtain a contract on a property with a seller to purchase, then you find another buyer that is willing to pay more for the property and profit from the difference the contract you have with the seller and new buyer. Most of the time there is no agent, though sometimes licensed agents will wholesale. In those case, usually just the one agent.

The average home in that area is going for about $935,000. Depending on what you like and what your looking for it could be a bit less and a bit more. If you need connected to a great agent in that area, happy to connect you to one that can help you find what specifically your looking for.

You will want to find a business broker licensed to do so. Often you can get a great referral from any commercial broker in your area.

Every market is going to be different. For the most part in my market I have seen that if you put about $50,000 into your kitchen you will get about $50,000 more for your home. In most cases, I havent seen where it makes sense to upgrade items unless they are in bad shape and damaged. If the kitchen is outdated, you will usually get less for the home. If the kitchen is updated you will usually get more for the home. In many cases its the same amount you put into upgrades.

You can certainly get a fair price. To get a lot will depend on what you consider to be a lot. Often when pricing a home competitively you can get full price and in many cases over asking. To find out specifics on your home you will want to ask a great local agent.

Great question. You can talk with a great agent that knows the area. Walking the neighborhood a few different times can help to get a good feel. Get familiar with the closest shopping center, schools, parks or other amenities. Definity best to talk with some people that have lived their and ask about the people, what they like about the area, if they have had any concerns, ask about the HOA if there is one and if they might have done anything different if just moving into the neighborhood. Everyone is going to have a different perspective so talking with a few people can help.

Each MLS can have a different policy, though my MLS system requires 30 days off market to refresh as a new listing with the same company. If going with a different company it can be relisted with no wait period at all and refresh as a new listing. In most cases there is really no benefit to waiting unless looking to refresh the listing to "New".

Debt to income is calculated on how much you make monthly or annually and what your current debt payments look like. For instance, if you make $1,000 a month and your car payment, school loans and credit card payments is $500 all together then your debt to income is at 50%. The lower your debt is the better.

Setting up showings to give ample notice can certainly help. Depending on your specific market and price point, location and expected activity sometimes you can schedule showings for certain days and times, though the more accessible the home is for showing the better. Again depending on your specific market usually pricing it more attractively can allow you to get all showing quickly and under contract quicker and eliminate this painful process and in many cases get multiple offers and get more money for the home.

In some states it does. I believe in Florida it may. In my state you must have at least a temporary closet space to be considered a bedroom.

It depends on the overall picture of your landscape. Its a good idea to have a great agent look at your property specifically to advise. Though in general if you can clean up the yard for minimal amount of money is preferred. Replacing landscape or putting in new landscape can be costly and you never know what the buyer is going to want. Often it will make more sense to price the home accordingly rather than put landscape in. Though each case is going to be unique depending on your market.

It is very normal to do most everything through email. Many great lenders will pick up the phone and make a personal connection at different stages of the process. I prefer to connect with someone over the phone to address questions and have some personal interaction. If you feel the same, you should hopefully have a phone number to connect with someone.

You will certainly want to do inspections and several types depending on what is recommended in your area and type of equipment. Your agent should be able to recommend appropriate inspections to be done. Read and understand the by laws, association budget, if they manage it well or not and if any law suites current pending on the association. Sometimes its a good idea to talk with people with in the community to see what others think about the association and how its ran.

Its really going to depend on your lifestyle. Condos have association fees that will often account for exterior maintenance, landscape, roofs and some utilities so depending on the community you wont have to worry about those items, though they will often have more rules on what kind of pets you can have and where you have to park your car. Single family will often have more freedom on these things depending on the community though you will likely be required to handle your own maintenance.

San Francisco is so expensive because of supply and demand. There are only so many homes available in San Francisco and lots of people want to live there which causes values to go up accordingly.

Reno Nevada is the best place on earth if you ask me. Other that Reno, some good options are Tampa Florida, Sedona Arizona, and Las Vegas Nevada. Some things to consider when retiring is affordability, taxes, weather, activities available and access to good healthcare.

No contingency usually means that a home is being sold and not wanting to have the purchase contingent on the buyer selling their home. Though there are technically several contingencies in a transaction, so this could mean a variety of things. Inspections is a contingency, appraisals are usually a contingency, loans can be a contingency. Though usually its referred to a buyer selling their home.

Every area is different in what you will pay for taxes when selling. Generally you will have a transfer tax that will apply specific to your area, city, county, state.

Most of the time ceiling fans are completely fine. If you are looking to replace items like this to add value and allow the home to sell for maximum value you may want to have a great local agent view the home to see what is recommended. In general, its rare that I recommend replacing anything like ceiling fans unless its broken/damaged. You never know what is going to be important to the right buyer for your home, though if things are broken/damaged then any buyer is going to want to see to it that they are fixed or offer less then would have if fixed.

Great question, it will depend on what is causing the smell. Many times the old house smell is either some old flooring, paint, pet odors, or moisture. I would recommend talking with a great realtor in your market that can give you some specific recommendations. Sometimes replacing the flooring and painting can help. Other times there is something else going on that is causing the smell.

Some resources to find out more about the property are the county assessors, county recorders, google search, a title company can pull a property profile or do a title search, talking with a great local agent that is familiar with the neighborhood and talking with neighbors is a great resource.

There are many factors that affect the appraisal, condition, location, size, upgrades, lot size and age. Best things to prepare for an appraisal are to have a list of upgrades, inspect inside and out and make any repairs needed, clean up and declutter and improve curb appeal best and as practical as possible.

Home inspectors are meant to give you a general overview of the condition. They are not typically a specialist in any particular area of your home, like hvac, or plumbing, foundation or roofs. They dont open up walls or fix things just observe and report what they see. They will usually look at anything you ask them to on a property and at minimum give you a recommendation on who specializes in that area.

Commission is completely negotiable. When listing your home with an agent you will want to discuss this with. If you so decide to not offer out a commission to a buyers agent there are some concerns with. If a buyers agent shows your home and there is no commission offered, then they will ask the buyer to pay for the commission. If the buyer doesnt have it, they cant make an offer on the home. If they do have it and other sellers are offering to pay the buyers agent then the buyer interested in your home will often offer less for the home to compensate for this charge that they will have to pay. As a sell you dont have to pay for anything or accept any offers you dont want to, though just consider why they may be in place as a benefit for both buyer and seller.

I have found that different areas refer to Brokers differently. In my area we have Brokers and Broker sales persons. A broker is an agent who has also passed their broker license exam. Some Brokers are owners of the company, some are managers of the company, some are the same as an agent with additional qualifications that passed the exam.

Hi Brent, you certainly can and a great lender can advise best on how to go about. They would need to look at your situation specifically and advise appropriately. If you can save up a down payment without doing so would be preferred, though it can help you get in a home and start building equity. Each are good investments if you ask me. You may be surprised by some of the lending options that often require minimal down payment.

You will generally have withholdings, though the best person to answer this or any tax questions would be an accountant or CPA. "What percentage will I pay an agent to sell my unit" is a completely different topic. Commission is completely negotiable between you and the agent you hire.

Its not typical to inform your mortgage company, though when selling your home it will generally be required to get a demand statement for the up to date payoff information which is in essence informing them that you are selling the home.

If you owe money after the sell you should have money left to buy another house. If you owe money at closing then you will need to write a check to actually close. If you owe and need to sell, then you will want to discuss with your agent and likely proceed with a short sale. A short sale can allow you often to be forgiven on or effect your taxes appropriately.

It would depend on why selling or moving. If looking to upgrade then you would want to account for how much you need for down payment and make sure with the amount you have would allow for your new mortgage payment to be acceptable to you. You dont need any equity to sell, though if you can help it usually you want enough equity to cover the closing costs and down payment for next home.

Staging can definitely help to make home show better, attract more interest, and help to get a strong price. I would recommend connecting with a realtor first. The realtor can advise on what kind of staging is going to be best, give you recommendations on staging companies if desired and depending on your specific market whether or not staging is going to benefit you or how much staging will benefit you.

Hi Mary, getting a pre-listing inspection can be a good idea. You will be able to see what items come up and let buyers know everything that has been addressed. The benefit of this is that when a buyer goes to put an offer on your home, they would have the chance to know the condition of the home up front, rather than them coming in thinking "what if there are issues with the property that need to be addressed?" This thought process from a buyer can cost you sometimes well in excess of what it costs to get an inspection and fix a few things that come up.

When selling a home, usually the buyers lender will order an appraisal which is often an expense of the buyers. If getting an independent appraisal you can just google appraisers in your area to order one.

You can often cancel by notifying your agent that you no longer want to work with them. You will want to review the contract you initiated with the agent to know what the cancelation policy is. Many times if someone is not happy with their agent they can simply just ask them to no longer represent and withdraw the listing.

If asking an agent if they work part time, they should answer truthfully. Being part time can make a different, though just because someone is part time in the business doesnt mean a lot. They could be retiring from real estate or a variety of other situations. I would look at each agent independently to see if they are knowledgeable about the market and can serve you well. Being full time in real estate can mean in some cases that they are better equipped to help though best to talk with a couple agents to find the best for you.

Best resources are County recorders office or county assessors office. Or you could pull a preliminary title report with the title company.

You might be setting yourself up for failure, not giving yourself enough time. You can certainly lock up a rental in a matter of a day or 2 in many cases, though if your not familiar with the area moving to and moving to quick, it can be a recipe for disaster. Couple thoughts, maybe stay in a motel for a little while till settled in the area. Another idea, maybe contact the property owners of interest in advance to moving and discuss the situation and lock something up prior to moving to the area.

Hi Ryann, you will want to refer back to the offer and read it thoroughly, talk with your agent representing you and even a real estate attorney to advise for your specific situation. Depending on your state and the contract you accepted, generally you can accept back up offers that would go in back up position. This means that if the the buyer defaults or backs out for any reason you are able to move the back up offer into first position and proceed with it. Generally in my area, it is not recommended that the seller back out for a better opportunity or they can be liable for actual damages to the buyer.