Answers by Emily Matthews

Theoretically, yes. But talk to a mortgage broker.

At this stage in your life, it might not make sense to try to buy a house. Can you try Section 8? If I had a prospective tenant who was a senior citizen who had Section 8, I'd jump at the chance to have them as a tenant. Is there any housing that's specifically for low-income seniors available? There is in my area. What about a condo? There are some economical condos also in my area. But to your question. Yes, VA & USDA loans are 0% down. Talk to a mortgage broker.

Do you mean $2000/month or purchase price? Even tax sales are usually not that cheap. Even bare land is not that cheap. The worst & cheapest foreclosure I was in, had part of the roof in the bath tub & sold for over $40K. In WI, not some expensive place like NY or CA. If you are looking for cheap property, try going to sheriff sales, usually held in the county courthouse. This will be a way of educating yourself on that process. Or go online & search tax delinquent sales in each state. Note, each state has different rules re. tax sales. Some are liens, some are deeds, and some are redeemable deeds. And you have to know the laws & rules pertaining to the sales.

I don't like to see pre-approval letters from big national banks. And what they advertise may not be what you'd get. Try a mortgage broker: they can shop rates for you. Or find a local lender that can provide a deal. Consider an ARM with a long term, because most people move anyway before the balloon payment would be due.

Do you have a lease or are you MTM? If the landlord sold the building, then it would be the new owner doing this, right? Landlord-tenant laws vary from state to state, but it doesn't make sense that you'd owe rent "due May 1" when it wasn't even sold til after that. (I assume you paid May 1?) It sounds as if you need a lawyer!

PLEASE have a lawyer draft an agreement for you that protects your interests and clearly states their obligations. Don't bother using a real estate agent; we can't practice law and something like this requires a lawyer.

Chattel mortgages. Many trailer parks have info on where to find lenders. Usually pretty high interest rate.

Short answer, no. Not if the deed is in all their names. If one person is a personal rep or trustee, that person technically could list the property without input from the others. But in my experience with probates, they usually WANT to be in agreement, to avoid family feuds. Bear in mind, state statutes would be where you'd want to start doing your own research. And talk to a lawyer.

Any agent can ask their broker to sign up on the site, and then they can access it. It has to go through the broker

Is it on its own land? If not, it won't be worth all that much, and is not considered "real estate" because that term refers to the land. I.e., the dirt is the real estate, and anything on it is considered "improvements." You might want to explore places that sell mobile homes. If, however, it sits on e.g. an acre of land, it'll be worth a lot more and an agent can list it.

If you removed a bedroom, it IS a 3-bed. Have your agent do comps for 3-beds vs 4-beds and look at the price differences. That will show you how much that 4th bedroom is worth, according to market data.

I'd always advise a buyer to pass on flood zones, because the insurance would be prohibitive. And they could raise it at any time. PLEASE, just don't go there! You have no idea what you could end up paying in 1, 3, or 7 years.

You don't need to hire professional cleaners to address odors. You can use an ozone generator, but everyone, including pets, must be out of the place while it runs. The agent mentioning odors is being honest, not rude. There are other odors buyers also object to: smoke, plug-ins, cats, dogs, musty, fish, grease...and we have to let the owners know that buyers will object. It's our job, to help them get the highest price. Telling a cat owner they have a problem with a cat smell, is not "being rude to cat owners." It's being practical. So...if there IS a spice odor that most buyers won't appreciate, take care of it if you want top dollar. It doesn't hurt to have a professional do a deep clean & shampoo carpets before listing. You want to make your house the best it can possibly be. Besides, lots of buyers want professional cleaning. But find & hire your own. I know cleaners that are a lot cheaper than that.

I am so sorry that you weren't explicitly warned/informed about their rules. Almost all/all HOAs have rules like this. Were you given the HOA documents prior to closing? They should have been provided in the MLS. Did you read them? Did your agent point them out to you? (If you had an agent). A Buyer Agent has a fiduciary duty to their client. That rule should have been stressed.

If you don't pay taxes, there will be a tax lien placed on the property, it goes to auction, and the winning bidder gets a redeemable deed. If you don't redeem the deed, they can petition to get ownership. See if you can prevent this cascade of events by contacting the municipality. Maybe they'd agree to a payment plan. Otherwise, sell it if there's enough equity, and the back taxes automatically get paid at closing. But there has to be enough equity.

This is very market-specific. Is there any other garage? Carport? In WI, homes without a garage sell for less.

What are your municipality's rules? Some don't require permits for anything under $4000; some require permits for everything, in my area. If you establish that you should have got a permit, then you can retroactively apply for one, or follow the municipality's advice if that's not possible. Does your state's Condition Report have a question about un-permitted work? Answer it truthfully. A home inspector is not a code inspector. Their job is to report what they see & flag defects and safety hazards. They won't look up records of permits, at least in my state. Appraisers' job is to determine the market value so if the buyer defaults, the lender won't be stuck with more money lent than what it's worth. I doubt they bother to look up permits as a rule. They look up comps, measure sq footage, and determine condition compared to the comps. Short answer: make sure you disclose this on the condition report.

Your lender should have explained this to you. They can be rolled into the loan, but talk to the lender.

"Cash is King." They say that for a reason. I tell my clients , "Never trash cash." Usually rent-back is done to try to help the sellers. Was a monthly price mentioned? If not, then maybe the buyer is just trying to sweeten the offer. I'd plan on finding someplace to live in case the house you want doesn't materialize. I know it sounds like a hassle, but you will be in a super-strong position as a buyer, because then you won't have a house to sell. Bear in mind that if you rejected a full price cash offer with no contingencies in WI, you'd still owe compensation to your listing firm.

You can sell "as-is" but expect an as-is price. "Renovating" can be as simple as painting cabinets. That's cheap and it works wonders. It can generate a lot more buyer interest which can drive up price. If the counter tops are beat up, they can also be painted. I've seen this in homes that I showed.

What color is your paint? White paint always helps. How many lights do you have? Try increasing the number of lamps, have them all on when showing, and use "daylight" bright bulbs/LEDs. Use light-colored furniture/spreads/throws. Light colored area rug.

Absolutely. With peeling paint, any buyer with any govt loan probably won't even look at it. Overgrown yards cost plenty in terms of buyer interest. I had a $925K listing that went for $905K because the yard was a jungle. All the buyers hated it, and many drove by without booking a showing because of it.

What do the HOA rules say? If it's a city street, you can't stop people parking, but you could talk to them and ask if they'd refrain when you have an open house.

Short answer...YES. people will see it as "something they'll have to remove," and anything in poor repair is a drawback.

Please talk to a lawyer.

NO. Open houses are exempt. In my state, there are 3 forms for private showings. I usually have ppl sign what I call the "door opener" form. Because they don;t know me & I don't know them. Later, we can get to buyer agency

That is encroachment. It would need to be disclosed on the condition report. Did you know where the lot line was before they put it up? IMO, it would need to be addressed before listing.

A contingency is something included in an offer to allow for the buyer to re-negotiate, or in some cases, cancel the contract. Common ones are inspection, appraisal, loan commitment. SO, if the inspection turns out badly with lots of defects, the buyer can then re-negotiate price, ask the seller to fix things, or even deliver a notice & walk away. If they can't get a loan, they have to provide the rejection letter so they can cancel. If it doesn't appraise, the seller can "cure" by changing the price to match the appraisal, or walk away. OR, the buyer could offer an appraisal gap of some extra money. There are other possible contingencies: specialized inspections or tests. Country properties will have well & septic contingencies. There could be a contingency of a shared driveway agreement, easement, condo docs, or other property-related issues.

Yes, the bank can refuse to lend if the debt-to-income ration doesn't work. That's different than an appraisal. Say the sale price is $375K, and it appraises at $376K. It met appraisal, but the buyer still might not be able to get the loan because of the ratio. You will have to decide if a different price can be negotiated based on what the buyer IS able to pay.

The agent should proof read it and make sure everything is accurate. I write my own descriptions, then run thru AI to see if it improves it, then edit again, before I put anything in the MLS. I remove all cliches (like "nestled;" a house is not a nest of baby chicks). If there's something in the description you don't like, ask the agent to change it.

I TELL people they should interview agents. I expect it! Maybe she has a thin skin. I'd just drop it, since you did pick her.

Nope, they should not be guaranteeing a BA firm anything. That was the whole point of the recent lawsuit. The accusation was "price fixing" by offering all BAs the same percent. Our state has the BA ask in the offer. Any BA that asks a listing firm for a "guaranteed fee" could be accused of "colluding" so it's safer just to have it in the offer. BUT if you have subagency in your state, that's the only way for that SUB agent to get paid: for the listing firm to split off some of what they make & give to the subagent firm. So that is reasonable, because no cooperating firm=no buyer. No buyer, no sale. In my state's listing contract, I specify "x% to subagents only. Seller reserves the right to negotiate directly via the offer regarding BA fees." And then I include language that my firm's higher compensation rate does not apply if the cooperating agent is a BA. It drops to 3%. BAs can just ask in our offer: there's a box for that. Then the seller can negotiate down the BA fee if they want to. It works well if the seller has to net a certain amount. Remember, everything's negotiable. It actually always was, but now this conversation is front & center. And yes, you MUST sign a listing contract for an agent to market the home.

Yes, you could. Do not trust the builder to represent your interests: they won't. What you'd want to do is negotiate that they'd repair/replace for FREE, anything that becomes a problem within the first 6/9/12 months. You'd be wise to hire an agent that has either built their own hose, or that deals with new builds. E.g. one thing to watch for is tax prorations. You don't want a credit merely for the taxes they paid on the bare land (which will be super cheap). You'd want the tax credit to reflect the current appraised value. That's just one example of how an agent can help you.

You don't HAVE to, but it might be wise. In my state, the official state Offer form we must use has a box for the BA to ask for their fee. I tell them "ask in the offer" which is what they should do anyway. If the seller feels what they ask is too high, they negotiate down. It works well. Last listing that closed, she negotiated down to 1.5% because she had to net a certain amt & the buyers made a lower offer. On the other side, I've had a couple listing agents tell me the seller was only willing to do e.g. 1.8% or whatever. In those cases, my buyers usually pay the small difference. (I don't ask more than 2% on purpose because I want my offers to be competitive: I have to ask in the offer). If there's a huge problem, I can also re-negotiate the fee with the buyers. The reason to be willing to offer SOMEthing is that if they can't afford to pay their agent the full amount, they might just walk & make an offer on a house where the seller IS willing to pay something. No buyer=no sale. Most buyers in my state could never pay the full BA fee.

In theory, a person could do that. But it makes more sense to have follow up specialized inspections based on what the inspector finds. Just make sure you have enough time to get them done. You might need an extension of the inspection contingency

If there are unexplained deposits, underwriters do not like that. Get receipts for everything

Best idea is to get your own estimates from contractors you trust & propose having the seller fix using that contractor. Cracked heat exchanger is serious! Leaking roof is serious!

NOPE. "Cost does not equal value." Will an appraiser allow more value for a specific thermostat or lock? Highly unlikely. What "get points" in WI are: HW floor, FP, patio, finishes (e.g. nicely done rec room vs one with paneling & ceiling tiles), number of bathrooms, replacement windows, new roof...

FEMA flood map. And make the offer contingent on not being a flood plain. Your insurer should be able to tell you if it is.

Have a good agent that will take their fiduciary duty to you seriously. I do video walk thru quite a bit, and I comment on how it smells, what the street is like, if I think the place is just weird, etc

If you're not handy, why look for one? Unless it just involves paint & flooring. Then it should be OK

Just talk to him

What it means is that you can negotiate directly via the contract re the BA fee. Don't plan on refusing to pay ANYthing, because no buyer, no sale. One of my sellers needed a certain net amount, so we negotiated the BA fee & purchase price to be a certain amount vs what he asked for. If you're in a state with SUBagency, it's only fair to offer that agent something...because no buyer, no sale. (Subagents' fiduciary duty is to the seller by default, so they are working for you not the buyer).

You can list as-is, but plan on an as-is price. It's possible a buyer's lender could refuse to fund it if these are bad enough. But you can escrow to have the work done after closing and see if they'd accept that.

It might affect buyers' willingness to take on something like that. No matter how it appraises

Usually the photos are labeled as "virtually staged" when they are, so buyers will not feel "tricked." AI staging can be quite good. In my MLS, the method is to have the staged photo, then the real one, for each room. So ppl can see what it could look like vs what it really looks like. It helps give a sense of what furniture could fit in. But real staging is usually worth every penny.

I made a list: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P174zvL8ZDI

There's no way to predict this. Even if there was a momentary slump in your area, by the time you were ready to sell, it could uptick again. The overall trend for all real estate is gradual appreciation, even with momentary ups & downs. Rather than worrying about it, focus on keeping it nice or even improving it incrementally. If a person just buys a house & sits in it without maintaining it, the value WILL go down due to deferred maintenance. Any agent should be able to calculate appreciation/depreciation using MLS data. It's super easy, so just ask. But it will be a moot point because you're not ready to sell now.

You can make a secondary offer (at least in WI), which means you have to sit there waiting to see if the primary deal falls apart. Usually this is a waste of time. You don't want to be tied up in a secondary offer, when you could be out looking at other possibilities. You could have your agent ask the listing agent how solid the offer is. If they indicate it's shaky, you might have a chance, but don't hold your breath. If no other property turns up, you can keep watching this one to see if it goes back on the market. In the meantime, just keep looking, and don't wait too long to make an offer if you find something else that you're interested in.

Statistically FSBOs net the same amount as ppl who list with an agent. In other words, a FSBO sale is about 6% lower than an agent-listed similar one. But bear in mind, not all agents ask 6%, so you'd be ahead hiring an agent. Because agents are experts (or should be) in the market, their job is to market the property, pack in as many buyers as possible in the shortest amount of time, and generate competition to drive up the price. Of course, the listing price plays a part. If there's zero traffic, that tells you the price is too high. Most FSBOs I've seen are either way too high or too low in their asking price. Also, if a house is listed with an agent, they are qualifying who comes in there. A FSBO gets asked by every Tom, Dick, & Harry, to let them in. Perfect strangers that you don't know. So lots of people prefer the safety of listing.