Caga issue 3

1
MARKET UPDATE Aug/Sept 2013 Jennifer Helton, Realtor / Broker in Charge — Choose A Good Agent, Inc. Watch Out!!! Inspection hurdles can kill a transaction! In the last few decades, home inspections have become more and more important in a real estate transaction. When I started my career in 1991, inspections were limited to specific components of the house that could produce major problems for the buyer — roof, heating/air conditioning, termite, structural, well and septic — each with a specific trade doing the specific inspection. Now, home inspection companies inspect every aspect of the house, and when sensing an issue they recommend further inspection from specific trade experts. The cost of the inspections for a Buyer can build, and build, and build…..and if they do not purchase the house in the end, they still owe the inspectors their fees. The Seller has to endure the inspection process, which sometimes takes hours, and results in many inquiries about aspects of the house that they may not even know about (crawl spaces, especially, pose a problem — who climbs down there on a regular basis??). So — how do you clear the hurdle of inspections on your purchase or sale? Stay practical — if you are buying a home over 15 years old, keep that at the forefront of your mind — it will have issues — items that dont meet current code (electrical in particular always gets noted), parts of the house that may pose a safety concern (handrails on steps, handles that are loose), bad insulation issues (broken window seals on thermal panes seems to crop up on every house these days) and moisture in the crawl space (this will be our biggest issue this year with the insurmountable rain weve had). Should the Seller repair EVERYTHING on the home inspection report? The answer is no”. Our newest revision—7/2013 to the NC Offer to Purchase and Contract now states Buyer acknowledges and understands that unless the parties agree otherwise, THE PROPERTY IS BEING SOLD IN ITS CURRENT CONDITION. That means, if the Buyer finds some problems after their inspections, the Seller doesnt necessarily have to make the repair, however, it s in both parties interest to negotiate repairs if problems are found. Emotions can run high during this period of the transaction. So, the best way for a Buyer to make a practical request of the Seller for any desired repairs is to say to themselves Is it currently operating for its intended use?if there could be a FUTURE problem with something, but it is CURRENTLY operating fine, the Seller shouldnt have to repair it. The same goes for the Seller — this is a discovery point — there are things the Seller has lived with that are NOT operating properly. Those items should be repaired for the Buyer. And the role of the Realtor should also be to STAY PRACTICAL and LEVEL HEADED during this period. The Buyers Agent should educate their client on the realistic aspect of the desired repairs, and the Sellers Agent should keep their clients calm and help them to not take a defensive stance. One other item to remember — sellers CAN make their own repairs — if its feasible — the Buyer cannot dictate who makes the repairs and if this is important to the Buyer, they may want to negotiate a dollar amount credit from the Seller and make the repairs AFTER closing. More transactions fall apart at this juncture than any other these days. Keep a level head and keep it practical and choose a good agent to assist you through this process. Cell 704-996-4469 Email [email protected] IF YOU ARE NOT IN THE MARKET TO BUY OR SELL A HOME, MAYBE YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO COULD USE A GOOD AGENT — REFERRALS MAKE MY DAY! JENNIFER HELTON REALTOR—BROKER IN CHARGE Licensed in NC & SC Specializing in: Buyers & Sellers all over Charlotte First Time Home Buyers New Construction Relocation Expertise 15+ years of solid experience! On the Upswing! Closings continue to happen on a regular basis, AND in a more timely manner (we still have delays, but they make sense now!) I anticipate a lull in the mar- ket in the fall — a plateau — which is typical. But full steam ahead in January for another good spring/summer period of increasing prices and more buyers coming into the market. PRICE REDUCED ON COTSWOLD LISTING! NOW $227,500! 3 bedroom, 2 bath LARGE master suite Wired workshop out back Terrific Cotswold location FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT MY WEBSITE WWW.CHOOSEAGOODAGENT.COM Acreage with Extras! Close to Uptown, too! $240,000 3 bedroom, 2 bath Inground pool Several auto shop buildings Easy access to 485 To view the Virtual Tour, go to: http://www.tourfactory.com/1034363 OR visit my listings page at www.ChooseAGoodAgent.com

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August/September 2013 market update, Charlotte, NC

Transcript of Caga issue 3

Page 1: Caga issue 3

MARKET UPDATE Aug/Sept 2013

Jennifer Helton, Realtor / Broker in Charge — Choose A Good Agent, Inc.

Watch Out!!! Inspection hurdles can kill a transaction! In the last few

decades, home inspections have become more and more important in a real estate transaction. When I started my career in 1991, inspections were limited to specific components of the house that could produce major problems for the buyer — roof, heating/air conditioning, termite, structural, well and septic — each with a specific trade doing the specific inspection. Now, home inspection companies inspect every aspect of the house, and when sensing an issue they recommend further inspection from specific trade experts. The cost of the inspections for a Buyer can build, and build, and build…..and if they do not purchase the house in the end, they still owe the inspectors their fees. The Seller has to endure the inspection process, which sometimes takes hours, and results in many inquiries about aspects of the house that they may not even know about (crawl spaces, especially, pose a problem — who climbs down there on a regular basis??). So — how do you clear the hurdle of inspections on your purchase or sale? Stay practical — if you are buying a home over 15 years old, keep that at the forefront of your mind — it will have issues — items that don’t meet current code (electrical in particular always gets noted), parts of the house that may pose a safety concern (handrails on steps, handles that are

loose), bad insulation issues (broken window seals on thermal panes seems to crop up on every house these days) and moisture in the crawl space (this will be our biggest issue this year with the insurmountable rain we’ve had). Should the Seller repair EVERYTHING on the home inspection report? The answer is “no”. Our newest revision—7/2013 — to the NC Offer to Purchase and Contract now states “Buyer acknowledges and understands that unless the parties agree otherwise, THE PROPERTY IS BEING SOLD IN ITS CURRENT CONDITION.” That means, if the Buyer finds some problems after their inspections, the Seller doesn’t necessarily have to make the repair, however, it’s in both parties interest to negotiate repairs if problems are found. Emotions can run high during this period of the transaction. So, the best way for a Buyer to make a practical request of the Seller for any desired repairs is to say to themselves “Is it currently operating for it’s intended use?” — if there could be a FUTURE problem with something, but it is CURRENTLY operating fine, the Seller shouldn’t have to repair it. The same goes for the Seller — this is a discovery point — there are things the Seller has lived with that are NOT operating properly. Those items should be repaired for the Buyer. And the role of the Realtor should also be to STAY PRACTICAL and LEVEL HEADED during this period. The Buyers Agent should educate their client on the realistic aspect of the desired repairs, and the Sellers Agent should keep their clients calm and help them to not take a defensive stance. One other item to remember — sellers CAN make their own repairs — if it’s feasible — the Buyer cannot dictate who makes the repairs and if this is important to the Buyer, they may want to negotiate a dollar amount credit from the Seller and make the repairs AFTER closing. More transactions fall apart at this juncture than any other these days. Keep a level head and keep it practical and choose a good agent to assist you through this process.

Cell 704-996-4469 Email [email protected]

IF YOU ARE NOT IN THE MARKET TO BUY OR SELL A HOME, MAYBE YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO COULD USE A GOOD AGENT — REFERRALS MAKE MY DAY!

JENNIFER HELTON REALTOR—BROKER IN CHARGE

Licensed in NC & SC

Specializing in:

Buyers & Sellers all over Charlotte

First Time Home Buyers

New Construction

Relocation Expertise

15+ years of solid experience!

On the Upswing! Closings continue to happen on a regular basis, AND in a more

timely manner (we still have delays, but they make sense now!) I anticipate a lull in the mar-

ket in the fall — a plateau — which is typical. But full steam ahead in January for another

good spring/summer period of increasing prices and more buyers coming into the market.

PRICE REDUCED ON COTSWOLD LISTING! NOW $227,500!

3 bedroom, 2 bath

LARGE master suite

Wired workshop out back

Terrific Cotswold location

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT MY WEBSITE

WWW.CHOOSEAGOODAGENT.COM

Acreage with Extras! Close to Uptown, too! $240,000

3 bedroom, 2 bath

Inground pool

Several auto shop buildings

Easy access to 485

To view the Virtual Tour, go to: http://www.tourfactory.com/1034363 OR

visit my listings page at www.ChooseAGoodAgent.com