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    Thursday, March 4, 2021

    UPDATE: Astronomical water for first month in new home. Error or major problem? Real Estate

    UPDATE: Astronomical water for first month in new home. Error or major problem? Real Estate


    UPDATE: Astronomical water for first month in new home. Error or major problem?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 04:54 PM PST

    Several months ago I posted here about a $532.66 water bill we had received for the first 38 days in our new home. Now this seemed a smidge high so after doing some of the helpful things people suggested I was able to determine that it was indeed a leak on my property. The irrigation system we have installed has drip irrigation that would run for 1 hour every other day, and when the company that installed it came out to check they found several breaks in the line that looked like raccoon teeth marks or something similar.

    They fixed the issue, I notified the water bureau that a leak had been found and fixed, and they notified me that they would send someone out to come do another reading, wait two weeks, and then come back out to read it again. Based on the usage in those two weeks they would adjust the reading accordingly. Hooray! That was back in November.

    I did not hear anything from the Water Bureau about the adjustment until I got our next bill, which still had the $532.66 charge from our first month (we didn't pay it because I wanted to see what the adjustment would be and they aren't shutting off water due to non-payment because of covid). Called them up, they were like "oh haha...whoops looks like we forgot to adjust that for ya." I waited about a week for them to touch base with billing and they emailed me saying that they adjusted our bill by $448.89, so we now only owe $83.77 for those first 38 days! Needless to say I'm very happy to only have to pay 15% of that original bill.

    TLDR; got charged $532.66 for 38 days of water use last year, found a leak and fixed it, told the water bureau and they (eventually) reduced my bill by 85% down to $83.77 for that billing period.

    submitted by /u/SeriouslyImKidding
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    Is it hopeless to buy a house now for those who are middle class?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 10:36 AM PST

    My husband and I were hoping to buy a house this summer, we have the 20 percent down payment. However, everything I'm hearing and reading about is extremely bleak. Bidding wars, houses getting multiple offers within hours of being listed, people offering to buy homes outright and over asking price. This seems to be a problem everywhere. Is there any point of even trying? I'm worried that since we only have 20 percent down payment, we aren't going to stand a chance against the people who are buying outright or over asking price. What are our chances of finding a reasonably priced house? Is this going to get better? Should we wait until next year?

    submitted by /u/Snow1Queen
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    One tip for finding a new home if you can wait a month or two (NC)

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 04:07 PM PST

    After about a month of looking in one of the more desirable towns in North Carolina, we weren't seeing hardly anything come in the market.

    Last week I decided to email about 20 of the local builders to see what spec houses they had upcoming that fit what we were looking for. Of the 20, about half of them had something under construction that was a possibility. We decided against a few due to price/location but we followed up on 4-5 of them.

    We just went under contract today, before the house hit the MLS, so there was no bidding war. Additionally, the builder has agreed to make a few small modifications we'd like. We're going to have to wait a bit (end of April), but considering what the market was looking like we may have had to wait that long to find a suitable home that was already built.

    Just thought I'd plant the seed for anyone else who is having a hard time finding inventory that matches what they are looking for.

    submitted by /u/softmoney
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    Watching old episodes of Property Virgins.

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 04:20 PM PST

    The real estate market have definitely changed the last ten years or so. Watching old episodes of Property Virgins are almost surreal.

    Host: This property was listed for $750,000 two years ago. The asking price today is $395,000.

    Buyers: We love this house. It's everything we wanted in a home. Let's give them a low ball offer of $365,000.

    Host: The seller countered with $375,000 and will leave the washer and dryer.

    Buyers: We are worried that the market might drop even more. $365,000 is still our best offer.

    Host: The seller decided to meet in the middle and now asking $370,000.

    Buyers: This home is perfect, but $370,000 is too much. We are walking away.

    submitted by /u/FlappingHands
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    Where is all the cash coming from????

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 08:51 PM PST

    The market seems to be getting worse..I understand interest rate is still low but where the hell is all the cash coming from???

    submitted by /u/caseforanewstrategy
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    A quick update on the San Francisco condo market

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 08:48 PM PST

    Started the search in early Jan. Approved for financing at up to $1.3m at 20% down, contingent on moving my personal banking to them which annoyed me.

    First weekend out, saw a place we loved, listed at $1m flat that was clearly going to go over that. Offers were due the next day, selling agent said they sent 60 disclosure packets.

    We wrote an offer 20% over asking. We lost, the condo had 27 offers and was going for $1.3m all cash no contingencies.

    Next weekend, see two units we like that came on the market that week. We actually had to see the units on Monday because Sunday showings were booked up.

    Tuesday one unit accepted an offer for $1.25, 200k over ask. Offers were due on the second unit on Wednesday, which is listed at $1.2m.

    I call my lender and get approved for an extra 50k so we can make a $1.35m offer with no contingencies (other than financing appraisal). This worked out to about $1,400 per square foot.

    Condo gets 17 offers, were apparently "within a group of 5 near the top" but seller was going with an all cash offer that was "significantly higher than the rest". Selling agent said it was good it was all cash because the unit would never appraise that high.

    We are taking a break from the search, as you really need to be dialed in every weekend to be competitive. Our premise was we could still get back into condos before vaccines rolled out and everyone flooded back — but I think that window has now closed.

    Good luck everyone.

    submitted by /u/BTCFinance
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    My house buying journey

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 09:56 PM PST

    (louisiana) It all started when we had 90 days left on our lease. At first only my fiance was preapproved for 150k with USDA rural development loan.

    The very first property we saw was a new construction that was 35-40 minutes away. Once we were within one mile of the neighborhood, we passed a polystyrene plant. The house was ok, but the commute and the giant industrial smoke clouds a stone's throw away were way too much to compromise on.

    At this point, I joined in my name for the financing and we were approved for 225k. We found a great place at the top of our budget and decided to bid list price. Right when we got home from the showing (we were the first to look at it), I noticed it already went pending.

    We then looked at several houses in a neighborhood that I found kinda sketchy, but still rural development and a little closer commute. Turns out all the houses were flooded zone AE, so we moved on from that nonsense.

    Then we bid on a FSBO place in flood zone x with a contract printed out at the showing, but unfortunately, they decided to sell to their friends. Our agent even offered to only take 2%. This house was perfect but at the high end of our budget (209k). This is when I discovered r/realestate and saw exactly how hot the real estate market was all over the country. My partner was devastated, tears and all. I decided to take over the house search and vowed not to get too emotionally invested in any property. We also changed our priorities at this point, that being good schools and flood zone x.

    Finally, we found a place 1 mile down the road from the previous, updated and at the low end of our budget at 175k. Our agent found out that there were 4 other offers currently in the mix. We put our best and highest of 183k with no closing assistance. Offer accepted and we just trimmed 26k off our loan! Our interest rate was set at 2.75 and we were ecstatic. We paid 3.8k in closing costs and to be honest it still hasn't set in how lucky we were.

    submitted by /u/SpeechUnlucky7271
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    Can seller walk away from low appraisal?

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 02:50 AM PST

    So we're under contract for a house. It was listed at 199,900 and we offered 235 (everyone knowing it would not appraise for that) and we had a gap clause that said something along these lines "buyer will pay $1000 over appraisal value, not to exceed $235,000". The seller asked us to pay their closing costs, so we're doing so. They also wanted a quick closing, so we're doing that as well. We've paid for inspection, appraisal and home insurance and closing is in 7 days.

    The house appraised for 205, which makes our offer 206, and now the seller is demanding that we pay 210 or they walk away for a backup offer.

    We've all signed the contract, and my husband and I have held up our side of the bargain. Can the seller really just walk away? Our realtor said her legal team was apparently unsure of whether they could or not. My understanding is that they agreed to our appraisal gap, and there is no contingency where the seller can walk/cancel if it appraises below a certain amount.

    Wouldn't them walking be breach of contract? We've already put 2000 into this process, and now we're going to lose that and the house just because the seller wants more than what was in the contract?

    submitted by /u/DaisyOfTheSea
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    Sale by owner listing shows .99 acres, but county assessor shows .76. How can I find the correct lot size?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 04:49 AM PST

    The owner owns an adjacent lot and I'm not sure if that's factored into the approximate acreage listed, but both lots combined are around 1.6 acres. This is a new one for me.

    submitted by /u/Throwaway2254065406
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    Is it ok to send seller wine prior to reviewing offers?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 08:05 PM PST

    Because if it is, I need to jam it with Zoloft.

    We were high. I mean, high with our offer. Even got the lender to waive the appraisal! Yesterday we were strong. The seller's broker had ours take off his offer to credit the seller some cash at closing saying we were sitting that good.

    And then we got the news.

    They went with a higher offer.

    Dammit.

    This market is jacked up.

    Is it bad of me to hope these knuckleheads throwing down cash waaaay over asking go belly up in the next 18 mos so we can swoop in and get it for a reasonable price?

    Tl;dr: sour grapes from a buyer outbid AGAIN

    submitted by /u/kathieblog
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    Thoughts on new construction

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 02:06 PM PST

    Where I live it costs more money to buy an existing house, even if it's 20 years old, versus building a brand new one. I live in a large metropolitan area with a lot of surrounding suburban land for development. I know this does allow for more opportunities of new construction. I also know that some people have a short amount of time to find a new home.

    But I was wondering why everybody so wrapped up in buying an existing home versus a brand new one. There's no bidding wars, surprises upon closing, and faulty inspections, etc. Also, 10 - 15 year structural warranty on the new home. On top of it, in my area a brand new built home will go for $150k more than what was paid to build it, pretty much immediately.

    I see people on here who put their heart and soul into bidding on their dream home only to lose out. I also saw today that somebody had an unsolicited offer $50k above appraisal!

    I saw somebody suggest that OP lower the price range of home for buying in order to put more down than another person on a house. This takes away benefits of buying a more expensive house with commodities they were probably looking for.

    Am I missing something here?

    submitted by /u/includedoyster
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    Sale price in a nondisclosure state

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 04:07 AM PST

    We just purchased a home in Texas, and to our understanding Texas is a nondisclosure state. However, it seems like Redfin is somehow able to publish the purchase price. Zillow and other listing sites do not publish purchase price, but Redfin does. Why is Redfin able to publish the purchase price, and is there anyway to make sure the purchase price does not get published? We are currently in escrow, and closing in 7 days

    submitted by /u/f_stopblues
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    Seller Non-Disclosure in California

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 09:14 PM PST

    TL;DR: we've been told (by a previous owner!) that our seller knew but didn't disclose that our home needs a full foundation replacement. We're wondering what proof we'll need and how to find it.

    We bought our home in the bay area last fall and while the seller didn't disclose much, we knew they were short-owning flippers and we instead got full pre-sale inspections which came back relatively clear. The seller/agent were related - likely a father/son team.

    A few months later we had a foundation contractor out for some small repair work (identified in the pre-sale inspections) and they discovered that our pre-sale structural inspection was wrong and we need a full foundation replacement. They're a reputable company and we got a second opinion which confirmed the problems.

    We thought we were SOL unless we went after our inspector (possible but likely would cost more $$ than we'd get back), but I ran into the previous-previous owner today and he told me straight-up that he'd disclosed the bad foundation to our sellers. Unfortunately he doesn't want to be involved and didn't want to offer me proof.

    Does anyone know what proof we'll need ... and where to find it? We'll talk to a RE lawyer asap (and share to r/legaladvice) but would appreciate your perspective.

    Things we've tried already: MLS doesn't have record of the previous sale, our seller's permitted work didn't touch the foundation, we know we'll be going through mandatory mediation, we know there's a time limit but we're within it, and the title agent used for our sale was also used in the previous sale.

    Lemmie know if I biffed any of the rules and TIA!

    submitted by /u/zoule
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    Building a modern style house in SF Bay Area (hillside in San Jose or Los Gatos/Boulder Creek)

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 11:04 PM PST

    I was browsing in the real estate market and I don't seem to see much modern style houses. Is it because it's more expensive? Or is it because it violates some sort of building code in the area or something?

    I would really love to have a modern style home. And there's not much choices out there, I wonder if it's possible to build one. Land is expensive, I know. But it seems like the land up in the hill is not as expensive(East San Jose/Los Gatos,Boulder Creek). Just building cost alone(land cost excluded), I wonder how much it costs to build something like these in the picture(not crazily huge/fancy, say a 3bedroom house). Would love to hear what people think/know about this. Thanks!

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/3j629tdabj3kk7g/96a2bac94fda16052e5bbda614cde785.jpg?dl=0

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/48d373ydm33jcxo/download%20%281%29.jpeg?dl=0

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/hzsz5y6s8d46vvn/images.jpeg?dl=0

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/llflk75uks7cene/modern-contemporary-house-ideas-exteriors-sebring-design-build-11.png?dl=0

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/hcuf3c6m83tagjb/modern-house-architectural-design-sina.jpg?dl=0

    submitted by /u/CalligrapherSolid103
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    5 Sneaky Ways to Create Perfect 360 Virtual Tours

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 02:43 AM PST

    In this article, we will explain how to create perfect 360 virtual tours for real estate projects. Contact us for real estate virtual tour services.

    submitted by /u/virtualdecors
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    Can a seller lie in the listing description

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 02:22 AM PST

    I am a first time homebuyer and have been shopping around. As the title says, are sellers able to lie in the listing description about upgrades/renovations they completed? For example, what happens if the description says "blah blah rarely available blah blah... new flooring, new granite countertops in kitchen, etc.," but the things they list in the description are not actually new and can be proven through pictures from years prior or something? What should you do as the buyer if you are interested in the property? Just curious.

    submitted by /u/redditalker
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    Which realtor should I choose to sell my house?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 09:47 PM PST

    So I've got 2 realtors I've decided on but they seem to have very different approaches to it. One is with Redfin where the total commission is 5% (4% to realtors and an extra 1% for the concierge program) and the other is a local agent for 4.5%.

    The Redfin concierge lady (not the realtor) wants to do over $10K in repairs (new carpets, patch some holes and repair all interior walls, garage door repair, beautification)

    The local agent said in this market I can get by with just new carpets and fixing the holes in walls and garage door repair and said she would make sure her contractors beat Redfin in price.

    Both believe I can get around $440K but Redfin wants to do more work which means more money out of my pocket. However the local agent seems really confident that I don't need to do much and doing all that work would be wasting money. I know it is a sellers market but I just don't know.

    I am in pierce county WA FYI.

    Any sage advice would be lovey y'all. Thanks in advance.

    submitted by /u/BUDABEAST
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    Where do you park your cash while waiting to buy a house?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 02:55 PM PST

    This may be a silly question, but since it looks like it will take a long while before many will get a house, what do you do with your down payment money in the meantime? Just let it sit in the savings account? Put into CD with minuscule interest? The thought of letting a ball of cash sit without investing just makes me cringe, but I'm assuming putting it in stock/funds will be risky and jeopardize my pre-approval?

    submitted by /u/expressionexp
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    What are the pros and cons of buying a corner lot single-family home?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 09:13 PM PST

    Need help identifying possible Rental scam

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 12:50 AM PST

    As title suggests I think I may be in a scam with a house I'm interested in renting.

    This is in the Bay Area for a 4 bedroom house listed at $2000 a month. At first I was like there is no way this house is renting this low. Then I got in contact with the person listed on the Zillow post. The person stated that they he and his family had to move for a work contract that is going to last 4-5 years out of state. He is an engineer. He originally wanted to sell the home, but his wife changed his mind because they would eventually be coming back. He stated he did not want to rent with the original agent he was working with because she was charging way to high of a fee and listing the property to a high of rent and no one was responding. He stated to me via email, " If you notice, you will discover that the price we are offering is far below standard price and this is enough for you to know that we are not after the rental fee but the absolute care for the property."

    He attached a renter application in which I filled out. The most personal information it asked for was DOB, current address, and full name.

    I am now thinking that its a scam. Later this evening the house is now listed for $3500 a month rent on multiple real estate websites.

    The house is very local and me and my wife planned to drive by it tomorrow.

    Any tips on how I can identify if this is truly a scam. Obviously at this point I am no longer sending any more personal information, and what information I did send was pretty stupid at this point.

    submitted by /u/dr7s
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    Listing Photos Bad?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 07:36 AM PST

    Can someone explain to me--agents, please chime in.

    I see so many listings online in my area, where the clients have all kinds of unsightly issues in their house that are visable for all to see. If I am hiring an agent for their expertise, and the houses could sell for more, and faster if they just cleaned up their shit???

    Can someone explain to me, why listing agents put these kind of pictures online? If I saw an agent's awful pictures on someone else's listing photo, that would deter me from hiring them because I think they are bad at marketing the property.

    1. Dirty dishes
    2. Counter Clutter
    3. Kid's toys
    4. personal photos
    5. clutter in the bathroom (bathroom items, facewash, etc.)
    6. Low quality pictures that look like a camera phone from 2000.

    This irks me so much that agents are putting listing photos online and are not telling their clients to at least remove those items temporarily for the listing photos. I think buyers can deal with paint, and some touches of home that someone lives there.

    But really. I see so many cluttered pictures with crap everywhere and it is distracting.

    submitted by /u/Csherman92
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    Buying from a dual agent who is also the homeowner?

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 12:31 AM PST

    So i was looking at homes and found one that i was interested and just threw a random offer at the sellers agent who also just happens to disclose that she's the homeowner as well. If i decide to use her as my agent will there be any complications? Her counter offer to me was also pretty cheap in my opinion which i assume she is able to do that because she's a buyers agent, sellers agent, and the homeowner? I guess i'm just worried that i'll get screwed here as this is my first time buying a home.

    submitted by /u/tyloner
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    As a loan officer - jumbo loans !!!! Worth doing??

    Posted: 04 Mar 2021 12:28 AM PST

    As a loan officer, are jumbo loans worth doing? What % do most loan officers make on jumbo loans??

    submitted by /u/Confident-Noise6
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    Is a porch a good investment?

    Posted: 03 Mar 2021 11:25 AM PST

    I've owned my home about 3 years, and I've been going back and forth on getting a porch built or not. Recently several of my neighbors have built their porches, and it's making me a bit jealous. The problem I have is that I'm looking to change jobs in the next year. There's a good chance I'll be moving out of the area or thinking of buying a nicer house, so I'm likely going to sell my house.

    So do porches generally add value to a house? I got quoted at about $4,000 to build it. There's a good chance I'll only get 6-8 months of use out of it myself, so will it add enough value to my home to offset the cost of building? Or should I just pass?

    submitted by /u/arentyouangel
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