Distinction Without With a Difference: “A,i” vs. “P” Once a “For Sale” home is under contract, Sellers are required to tell prospective Buyers (and their agents) of that fact. Otherwise, Buyers who view the home and write an offer — only to be told it’s already sold — tend to get upset! (and do things...Read More
Not Necessarily “Open & Shut” One of the issues that can come up during the Buyer’s inspection is a loose thread — or several — concerning previous work done on the home. Exhibit A: an open permit pertaining to a past remodeling project or home addition. For the Buyer, the approach is easy: stipulate that...Read More
Pre-Closing Checklist Test your mastery of real estate minutiae, and answer the following multiple choice question: What’s the last (if not most important) pre-closing detail to get right? A. The client’s net number on the HUD-1. B. Still-needed signature(s) on any last-minute Purchase Agreement Amendments. C. The listing agent’s sign riders from the “For Sale” sign (once the...Read More
Unpaid Property Taxes: When Credits are Bad and Debits are Good Normally, credits (getting money) at closing is good, while paying money (debits) at closing is bad. When is that not the case? When the Buyer is getting a credit at closing from the Seller for the Seller’s pro rata share of the property taxes...Read More
Question #2: How Many Months Between October and March?* The answer to “how long should the listing be?” is easy: long enough to sell the house (duh!). But that just begs the underlying question: how long will that take? Practically, the listing contract needs to be long enough to properly prep the home for market...Read More
“Turtles All the Way Down” (Also Known as “Infinite Regress”) As a faithful agent, I’ll always do what my principal — the client — instructs me to do. But, that doesn’t mean I necessarily endorse their chosen strategy. Two cases in point: 1) so-called “asterisk clause” offers, in which a Buyer in multiple offers promises...Read More
