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Al
08-13-2013, 01:00 AM
As the title states, I believe I'm in a good position to buy a house.
I have enough saved for a down payment + closing costs + a year's expenses (all, not just the house) and more. I also have very little debt.

The type of house I think is "ideal" would be a small ranch with a two car garage in the back yard (no alley).
If you've ever driven down Halsey or Carpenter in Milwaukee, you know the type of neighborhood I like. I prefer these houses because they tend to be easy to work on. I also don't mind a pink bathroom.

I've noticed a large number of houses around the 100k price that are in nice neighborhoods of Milwaukee (most areas south of Oklahoma, Bay View and west), Greenfield, Hales Corners, the niceparts of Stallis.

I was in West Allis, near Greenfield, a few hours ago and noticed lots of people outside. A few were wrenching on their cars and others were cooking on the grill.

I talked to my bank and another last week. They said that all of my finances are in ideal condition.

So. . .I still have a certain degree of uncertainty. I'm assuming that there are things I don't know that I should know.

One thing I'm sure of is that I don't want to live in the suburbs anymore. I drive about 500 miles per week. The savings alone will cover a significant portion of the mortgage payment. Having a garage is also nice when I want to fix my car.

I've contacted a few realty companies. I'm hoping to buy soon.

pOrk
08-13-2013, 05:48 AM
Hwy 100 and Hampton area has lots of big houses for 125 ish, some in tosa and some Milwaukee. I love I there, quiet close to freeway and pretty big yards

michelle
08-13-2013, 07:06 AM
Good luck in your search!

Cutlass Queen
08-13-2013, 07:07 AM
Biggest thing is to watch for the rentals around the neighborhood - that's what turns the neighborhood to shit fast. Good luck on the purchase of a house! It's definitely exciting!!!

blackmage
08-13-2013, 07:16 AM
Im in the middle of buying right now as well. Its fun and stressful as fuck at times. Good luck! hah

95 TA - The Beast
08-13-2013, 09:01 AM
Yeah, I had a *serious* search for housing just over a year ago... We looked at 78 houses in 2.5 months time. Only made offers on 8, and we were usually stomped out not on price, but on other "conditions" (such as others being able to close a week earlier than us, having cash vs us financing, etc).

I will totally agree, check on the neighborhood as much as possible. With one of the homes we really liked, it was just west off 124th in Brookfield, just north of North ave. Great house, big, not touched since 1965 in decor, but VERY well maintained. My big concern was all the apartments on 124th around that area. One call to the police department, talked to an officer there and got the low-down on neighborhood. Sure enough there have been a ton of burglaries, break ins, home invastions, etc in the past 3-5 years in the Brookfield neighborhoods just west of there. Great looking neighborhoods, lots of land per house, older neighbors for the most part so it is quiet, but just too damn close to those that cause problems because they don't have an investment in the neighborhood.

The financing side was the least-stressful aspect of buying a house, but we also had everything in order as well. Here is a reality check though... Whatever you think you have is enough saved is probably not enough. Just being brutally honest. Houses are HUGE expenses. Heating/cooling, thermal efficiency, windows, doors, landscaping, repairs, painting, plumbing, wiring, networking, etc, etc... ALL are headaches once you own a house. In our search there was only 2 homes that gave us no cause for any concerns, and that is because they were both either brand new or almost brand new. But both had stuff we wanted to change (like landscaping), or finish off (like redoing a upper deck that was 1/3 the size it should have been), and in both cases that meant a ton of cash in fairly a short time. There was also the question of equity with both as it would have taken years to accrue since you were buying at near market value.

Ultimately we ended up buying a house in a great neighborhood (no rentals and we are smack-dab in the middle of the subdivision) at well below market value (it was a foreclosure), so there is a ton of built-in equity. The construction of the house is second to none as 99% of people never build a house like this, so we made out in thermal efficiency, build-quality and equity. Downside is it was basically untouched since 1988 when it was built, in regards to things like doors/windows/furnace, but things like the AC were newer (2001) as well as water heater (2004). So maintenance items are a big concern and I have put a ton of cash into redoing things (for example the water heater was too small for the family, so I redid the entire system with dual water heaters), with a ton more coming into focus...

Owning a house is great, as long as you understand the work and expense involved.

DerangedPony
08-13-2013, 12:16 PM
It is a good time to buy but I would do it quick because rates are going up. I work for a team at shore west and homes that are priced well go quick. I live over by West Allis hospital so I understand what your looking for and prices around here are reasonable.

If you don't have a realtor yet, I work for one that it very good. I do not work for commission so this is not a advertisement or anything, just want to help. Let me know.

Sent from my Evo V 4G using Tapatalk 2

Korndogg
08-13-2013, 03:23 PM
I live around 82nd and Morgan in Milwaukee. I like it. Obviously not my dream house but its a good neighborhood for starter homes. There are a bunch of houses for sale around here also.

Feature Pony
08-13-2013, 11:13 PM
I would sell you my house on 14th and grange, 1100sqft brick ranch, pella windows and pella screen doors, 3bdrm, central air, 1/4 acre lot, finished basement, 2 car detached garage, fenced in yard (privacy) with a shed behind my garage. 145,000 all may tag appliances included all bought in 07. I would even throw in a home warranty. Lmk I don't have it on the market, just thinking of selling, but I was going to get a realtor next spring and put it on the market. I need 5+ car garage, and since residency lifted I can build my dream house.

jbiscuit
08-14-2013, 07:50 AM
Awww snap another gearhead in Mount Pleasant/Caledonia? Almost seems like you need to own a muscle car or hot rod to live down here now! Guy just moved in the front park of the neighborhood with a 385" 67 Nova 5-speed, lowered, Wilwoods etc etc. Always funny to see the moving truck and the classic car/hot rod parked right next to it hahaha!

Al
08-14-2013, 12:44 PM
I will totally agree, check on the neighborhood as much as possible. With one of the homes we really liked, it was just west off 124th in Brookfield, just north of North ave. Great house, big, not touched since 1965 in decor, but VERY well maintained. My big concern was all the apartments on 124th around that area. One call to the police department, talked to an officer there and got the low-down on neighborhood. Sure enough there have been a ton of burglaries, break ins, home invastions, etc in the past 3-5 years in the Brookfield neighborhoods just west of there. Great looking neighborhoods, lots of land per house, older neighbors for the most part so it is quiet, but just too damn close to those that cause problems because they don't have an investment in the neighborhood.

Over the past month, I've been spending a large amount of time riding through the areas I'm interested in. I'll literally ride up and down every street in a subdivision. I'll stop and talk with the locals about the neighborhood and what they like/dislike. I've heard a few people talk about about petty crime, which is a red flag to me. Other people will talk about a crazy person on their street or that people drive too fast down the street.

Some neighborhoods seem to be a tight-knit group of people. I'll start talking with one person, but soon the passers-by join the conversations. Such gatherings usually end with the people saying that they want me in their neighborhood.


The financing side was the least-stressful aspect of buying a house, but we also had everything in order as well. Here is a reality check though... Whatever you think you have is enough saved is probably not enough. Just being brutally honest. Houses are HUGE expenses. Heating/cooling, thermal efficiency, windows, doors, landscaping, repairs, painting, plumbing, wiring, networking, etc, etc... ALL are headaches once you own a house. In our search there was only 2 homes that gave us no cause for any concerns, and that is because they were both either brand new or almost brand new. But both had stuff we wanted to change (like landscaping), or finish off (like redoing a upper deck that was 1/3 the size it should have been), and in both cases that meant a ton of cash in fairly a short time. There was also the question of equity with both as it would have taken years to accrue since you were buying at near market value.
Owning a house is great, as long as you understand the work and expense involved.

I've performed just about every from of household maintenance. I usually leave plumbing and electrical to the professionals.

Thermal efficiency is something I think about when I look at houses. I disregard 75% of the listed houses because they date to a time when heat was cheap, insulation was omitted and being "drafty" was a good thing.

I prefer ranches because they are easier to work on than other designs, such as a bungalow or split level.

Woodworking and metalworking are two big hobbies of mine. Unless the previous owner's basement layout was inspired by Norm Abrams woodworking shop, I'd prefer an unfinished basement. I intend to set up a complete workshop down there with a large number of professional tools.
Basements that are wide-open (with maybe a support post or two in the middle) are ideal. Basements with a cinder block support wall down the center are less practical. 220v three phase power is also a plus, but not necessary.

I sometimes look at a house and think "how am I going to move a Bridgeport Mill and an engine lathe into the basement?"
Exposed basements are a HUGE plus. Garages with heated shop space are also nice.

I greatest concerns are along the lines of the liability of forgetting to shovel the sidewalk in the winter.

BoosTT
08-14-2013, 05:00 PM
I’ve been looking to buy a house for about 14-18 months now. I’ve been picky, because I’m holding out for something waterfront. I had an accepted offer on a house on Fawler lake, but I backed out after the inspection.

Honestly, I think the time to buy mortgage rate wise has passed by about 3-4 months. Its slightly turned into a sellers’ market. I do not think mortgage rates are going to sky rocket any time soon though, at least not until next spring.

It sounds like you are in a good financial position to buy though. IMO 15%+ down with 6+ months cash savings and 6+ months liquid assists is the minimum requirements for a house. Things get expensive quick. Landscaping alone is $$$. Don’t forget to plan for your snowblower, zero turn, etc.

kevcuda
08-15-2013, 08:28 PM
14th and grange, 1100sqft brick ranch...145K??? Thats outrageous. I have been looking for a couple months you should be able to get something comparable/decent for 110-115.

kevcuda
08-15-2013, 08:31 PM
I’ve been looking to buy a house for about 14-18 months now. I’ve been picky, because I’m holding out for something waterfront. I had an accepted offer on a house on Fawler lake, but I backed out after the inspection.

Honestly, I think the time to buy mortgage rate wise has passed by about 3-4 months. Its slightly turned into a sellers’ market. I do not think mortgage rates are going to sky rocket any time soon though, at least not until next spring.

Waterfront is a whole different animal, hard to ever compare the 2. I was looking out where I live now on the water and its a good 30 - 40 percent up charge so I gave that dream up for now. Good luck finding your beach!

It sounds like you are in a good financial position to buy though. IMO 15%+ down with 6+ months cash savings and 6+ months liquid assists is the minimum requirements for a house. Things get expensive quick. Landscaping alone is $$$. Don’t forget to plan for your snowblower, zero turn, etc.

Feature Pony
08-16-2013, 08:47 AM
14th and grange, 1100sqft brick ranch...145K??? Thats outrageous. I have been looking for a couple months you should be able to get something comparable/decent for 110-115.

Houses in my neighborhood are selling for 155-179k. I'm not right on grange, but that is the area. I don't think that is outrageous, my house is a turn key ready to go not some dive shack that you have to spend $$$$. Fmv for milw has the house at 160k, so next spring when it gets listed with realtor fees it will go on the market for $168k. so why would I sell my house for 115k???

kevcuda
08-16-2013, 10:39 AM
Just going off the Comps the professional realtor has shown me in the area. Does not matter to me what you sell anything for. Turn Key is what she has been showing me. Next spring who knows what the market will be but you can put anything on the market for any price I guess. Unless you have a crystal ball could be way high could be way low for spring time. Taxes are just stupid in Milwaukee so right now just decided to save more and look elsewhere.

Korndogg
08-16-2013, 10:48 AM
I live in Milwauke and pay about $3500 in taxes. That's not high at all compared to the suburbs around me.

kevcuda
08-16-2013, 10:55 AM
Not bad but all depends to what the value. I was looking out in the burlington area and they were a little cheaper but I also look at the roads/what you get in MKE compared to Burlington/Norway they are way better. Not to mention lower crime.

Korndogg
08-16-2013, 11:09 AM
Eh, I have a pretty low crime rate where I am at and they are redoing all the roads around me so I can't complain too much. It's just a starter house for us anyway. The value was in the 140's when we bought it 2 years ago and now it's in the 120's. My taxes went down a little bit but if I remember correctly, they were in the $3500 range when we bought it and last year I think we were around $3400 or so. My in laws live in Norway and yeah there are defiantly some nice houses out there with some big yards but I don't see houses out there going for under $145k that don't need work. I paid just under $135k for this house which was right about what it should be two years ago. I have friends that live in Greenfield not too far away from me and their house value is about the same as mine and they are paying 5k+ in taxes if not over 6k.

Irish
08-16-2013, 12:21 PM
Awww snap another gearhead in Mount Pleasant/Caledonia? Almost seems like you need to own a muscle car or hot rod to live down here now! Guy just moved in the front park of the neighborhood with a 385" 67 Nova 5-speed, lowered, Wilwoods etc etc. Always funny to see the moving truck and the classic car/hot rod parked right next to it hahaha!

Caledonia here as well.

wrath
08-16-2013, 02:15 PM
You need to look at the payment for what you get. Sure, you can get a decent house in Johnson Creek for cheap, but the cheapness disappears when you burn it up in fuel. There is no equity in an empty gas tank.

My wife likes the city life. We own up to the neighbor's house and if we were living in the city we'd have at least three houses between us and them. Heck, there would be two houses between our house and detached garage. She's been saving her pennies so we can buy their house when they put it up for sale "because their house is just too close to ours".

I don't think people should buy "a starter house". Buy your last house. Each time you sell and buy you lose many year's worth of equity.

Korndogg
08-16-2013, 02:28 PM
I would rather buy a starter house than waste 10 years in an apartment throwing away money while trying to save for a "last house." I get what you are saying but for a lot of people, that just isn't feasible. Especially when you don't know what you are going to want/need in 10 years from now. We plan on staying at our current house around 10 years or so because quite frankly, when we have a kid, we want them to go to better schools. But this is what we could afford at the time and it is in a nice area so we went for it.

jbiscuit
08-16-2013, 10:08 PM
One thing is for sure the days of owning, improving and selling for profit are gone. Owning a home in Wisconsin is great but don't expect to get much from your home when you sell. Buyers just expect these improvements now. Don't have granite counter or a remodeled bath? Plan on dropping your price way down to get it sold.

That said, nothing wrong with buying a starter home. This also teaches you how to repair things yourself and learn what you really want in a neighborhood, house, neighbors, school etc. I don't know many people that go right out and buy their last house.

We lived in Milwaukee county. We lived our neighborhood, proximity to everything and many other reasons. The taxes are just too high for a small house and we wanted some more space. Moved down to Mt Pleasant 2 years ago and couldn't be happier. In my neighborhood there is a big block LTD, a 30 ford hot rod, a zo6, a new Shelby mustang and a CTS-V, a slammed 50 Chevy pickup, 55 gasser, 68 Chevelle, 65 nova, syclone pickup, 69 Chevelle....and many more. Car lovers paradise down here. Go to the local Piggly Wiggly and see a badass nova or mustang any night of the week. The neighbor with the ford hot rod moved down here from Wauwatosa...him and his wife work in Milwaukee. They wanted more room, cheaper taxes and quieter living. I hear that a lot.

95 TA - The Beast
08-17-2013, 09:46 PM
I don't know any people that go right out and buy their last house.

We did... We lived in the apartments for 15 years when they decided to not renew our lease. Yeah, a lot of money down the tubes in those 15 years renting, but with special needs kids I felt keeping them in the schools that they were thriving was more important than buying a house and changing everything for them.

Back when I started looking to buy a house was back in 2000-2001... Then 911 happened and ran into business trouble... Then the housing market got just fucking STUPID with all the asshats thinking their $165k house was worth $300k+... And I refused to be anyones fool and know how to lookup records and quite frankly screw everyone that drinks the koolaid and thinks that just because everyone says a house is worth $xxx that is true... So I waited it out...

Ended up buying at the bottom of the housing slump, got a 3.5% interest rate, and ended up buying the last house I hope to own. Bought in a great neighborhood, it is quiet, the kids get to stay in their schools (did the open-enrollment thing), and because we are in a new district if their schools go to hell because of budgets I always have the option to have them go to the schools where we live. We aren't very far from where we used to live at all. Sure taxes are high, but that is because of the value of the house. Ended up buying a great house for a great price because it was a foreclosure. Sure, there is work to do on it still, but I have taken care of the mechanicals pretty well (just got done doing one of the 8x8 garage doors today in fact, the other gets done tomorrow), and remodeling bathrooms and such will all be done in good time, but the house itself is a "one and done" for us.

We may consider selling and buying something smaller once all the kids are gone, but having a two year old, I have quite a while before that will happen. Plus if the kids follow the current trend, they may be living at home a bit longer than most would expect, so having all the extra room is a good thing...

jbiscuit
08-18-2013, 07:11 AM
A one and done just isn't for everyone and for sure not the norm. In your case, you lived in one area for a really long time and liked it. Again that's rare. Over the years I've lived in some nice neighborhoods but not many I'd want to own a home in.

Foreclosures are a great way to get into a house with good bones but like you illuded to it will need work. Not a problem if you are handy and have the cash reserves. Which brings up a good point. I LOL at all the people that think they can afford a home, let the bank talk them into a big mortgage, no money down kinda situation and tap out their little savings account to pay closing costs and other fees rendering them broke on day one. You need a stash of cash above and beyond your mortgage. Houses are money pits. Everything costs more than the budget, shit breaks, things need replacing and yard work will cost money if you want a nice yard. Not to mention who wants to move into a house and not have any money to start improving it? I think being car enthusiasts makes this situation worse cuz car guys would want to modify a moped or a huffy if someone gave it to them. While I still enjoy working on my cars I usually prefer to work on the house! More rewarding to see a plan come together. We still have a lot to do here but that's more a lack of time than money.

One thing to never settle on is the garage if you are into cars. Cuz it could always be bigger, nicer, taller, deeper, more insulated and so on. I have a 3.5 car here and wish it had another stall

michelle
08-18-2013, 07:50 AM
One thing to never settle on is the garage if you are into cars. Cuz it could always be bigger, nicer, taller, deeper, more insulated and so on. I have a 3.5 car here and wish it had another stall

No kidding. I also suggest looking into village/town ordinances when it comes to "upgrading" a garage. We're maxed out on our second garage based on how many acres we have. Definitely need more garage space!

jbiscuit
08-18-2013, 01:16 PM
^ this. Most codes/limitations don't accommodate car guys (girls). I know in Caledonia, outbuildings and pole barns are very common where as here in Mt Pleasant we can't have pole buildings.

michelle
08-18-2013, 07:55 PM
And yet across the street, pole buildings for everyone!

Al
08-19-2013, 01:17 AM
There is no equity in an empty gas tank.

Very well said!
I could say that I spend half a mortgage payment check on fuel living up here in Cedarburg and working in Milwaukee.


I don't think people should buy "a starter house". Buy your last house. Each time you sell and buy you lose many year's worth of equity.

I disagree with this. The reason being I'm a bachelor right now. Who knows if I'll get hitched and have a dozen kids.
You don't buy a big pair of pants assuming that you will eventually grow into them. Buy what fits for now.


One thing is for sure the days of owning, improving and selling for profit are gone.

My thoughts are to buy a place and hope to come clean if I need to sell it. I'd be very lucky if I break even after the realtor fee.
Owning a house is a good way to avoid expenses. I like the idea of being able to repair my vehicle at home instead of paying someone to do it. I'm renting now, but I've also been fortunate to have a place to repair my vehicle. I would have spent about 2k paying other people to do what costed me about $200.


No kidding. I also suggest looking into village/town ordinances when it comes to "upgrading" a garage. We're maxed out on our second garage based on how many acres we have. Definitely need more garage space!

I've specifically thought of this when I see houses with single car garages in their back yard. There might be room to expand it, but what if the city ordinance says no.

Al
08-19-2013, 01:21 AM
I like the areas that are between the 894 bypass and most of Oklahoma. Closer to the Plainfield Curve, Howard is the northern limit.
Houses are around 100k for what I like and the taxes are 2.5-3.5k.

Al
08-19-2013, 01:44 AM
One other thing:
I want to throw a Mad Max themed part some day. We will use random objects to make our costumes and make foam weapons.
Once everyone is ready, we will split into two groups and walk around the block in different directions. When we catch sight of each other on the other side, we will yell at each other, charge and have an epic battle in the street.

I wonder what the neighbors will think?

jbiscuit
08-19-2013, 06:53 AM
^ This just got weird.

wrath
08-19-2013, 07:19 AM
Wisconsin is one of the few places where renting is cheaper than owning. It's almost like they think it's New Yawk City. There is nothing wrong with renting. In fact, renting in a neighborhood before you buy is a great idea.

If you plan on selling a house in the next ten years before you even buy it, and it won't be covered under a relocation package, then the idea is fairly terrible in a financial sense unless you got an awesome deal on the current house. You *should* factor in costs associated with the home selling/buying process if you are planning to sell it.

One of the nice things about living in a more expensive neighborhood is that the cost of entry keeps people like me out.

Anyone that buys a starter home wants to "leave their mark" or "make it their own". So there is no incentive to have a "finished starter home". It's a money losing prospect unless you need shiny whizbangery in your starter home to show off to your punk friends that still live with ma and pa and don't care about the fact that no one likes your Ikea cabinets. It isn't until you get one step beyond a "starter home" that having a house that is "finished" makes sense and that's because the people buying that house already went through the pains of "finishing a starter home".

Buying a 2 bedroom 1 bath house is a terrible idea, unless you're old and plan on biting the bullet in it. Buying a 3 bedroom 2 bath house is fine, that is reasonable to have a few kids in if you so choose.

95 TA - The Beast
08-19-2013, 07:52 AM
One other thing:
I want to throw a Mad Max themed part some day. We will use random objects to make our costumes and make foam weapons.
Once everyone is ready, we will split into two groups and walk around the block in different directions. When we catch sight of each other on the other side, we will yell at each other, charge and have an epic battle in the street.

I wonder what the neighbors will think?

Unless it is on Halloween I would think the cops would get called pretty quick in any decent neighborhood... If they didn't then good luck living in a slum where it is obvious that no-one cares about much...

Honestly, it is that kind of stuff that tends to upset others... Do that out in a field somewhere, that way you aren't making a spectacle... But to start "roaming" like that and then "mock battle" in the street is a public disturbance... Same goes for drag racing and burnout contests...

jbiscuit
08-19-2013, 11:33 AM
^ Exactly this. I am a car guy and I will NOT tolerate or allow wreckless driving in my neighborhood. PERIOD. Why? Cuz we don't have sidewalks by me and there are a LOT of kids in the neighborhood. Bikes, walking, riding scooters you name it. Thankfully everyone seems to get this and drives slowly and cautiously through the neighborhood which is good. Only once have I seen a tool driving way too fast through the circle. The way I see it, a residential area is NOT the place to try out the new tires or the new tune. Take it out to the country somewhere. Within 1 mile of my house I'm in farmland with so sideroads and fresh asphalt.

Putting on mock fights or battles in a neighborhood isn't going to earn you any approval from the neighbors. People that are loud, obnoxious, create disturbances, play music WAY too loud and are generall inconsiderate to others get the same in return as far as I'm concerned. Plenty of options like parks and other areas to carry out your airsoft fantasies or Magic the Gathering meet n greets where you won't disrupt others.

Al
08-19-2013, 03:52 PM
^ This just got weird.

Weird, but harmless. I'm having a little fun.
I do wonder how the locals would react if I ever parked a rat rod in the driveway (i won't torment the neighbors with a loud exhaust).
I'd hate to be the person that makes everyone else say "there goes the neighborhood."
But still, I can be a bit eccentric at times. In some areas, standing out can work against you.


But to start "roaming" like that and then "mock battle" in the street is a public disturbance... Same goes for drag racing and burnout contests...

Thanks for the advice.
Truth is, I know some off-beat people. No hard-core biker or punk types. Rather nerd and sci-fi types.

If not Mad Max, it will be a bunch of Storm Troopers.

Al
08-19-2013, 04:22 PM
Wisconsin is one of the few places where renting is cheaper than owning. It's almost like they think it's New Yawk City. There is nothing wrong with renting. In fact, renting in a neighborhood before you buy is a great idea.

If you plan on selling a house in the next ten years before you even buy it, and it won't be covered under a relocation package, then the idea is fairly terrible in a financial sense unless you got an awesome deal on the current house. You *should* factor in costs associated with the home selling/buying process if you are planning to sell it.

One of the nice things about living in a more expensive neighborhood is that the cost of entry keeps people like me out.

Anyone that buys a starter home wants to "leave their mark" or "make it their own". So there is no incentive to have a "finished starter home". It's a money losing prospect unless you need shiny whizbangery in your starter home to show off to your punk friends that still live with ma and pa and don't care about the fact that no one likes your Ikea cabinets. It isn't until you get one step beyond a "starter home" that having a house that is "finished" makes sense and that's because the people buying that house already went through the pains of "finishing a starter home".

Buying a 2 bedroom 1 bath house is a terrible idea, unless you're old and plan on biting the bullet in it. Buying a 3 bedroom 2 bath house is fine, that is reasonable to have a few kids in if you so choose.

I have no intention of trying to flip or "invest" in property as if I wanted to make a profit off of such dealings.
I've looked into renting the proper facilities for my hobbies and interests and found that it would be much more expensive than owning. My break-even point is 5 years out. If I were to sell the house and move to another of equal value, I'd expect the realtor cost to be about 3-6%, which is acceptable. This pushes the break even point out another 6 months to a year.

When it comes to interior renovations, I have professional grade tools. I typically purchase rough-cut lumber and go from there. I've made my own cabinetry in the past and I want to do so again. I think the Home Depot/Lowes/Ikea and other mainstream cabinets are absolute crap. I can produce Clive Christain grade results for less than the cost of Hobo.
I want to perform such renovations for ME, not for equity (althought that is nice), resale or keeping up with the Joneses. I also like the 50's & 60's style bathrooms.

Al
08-20-2013, 01:25 AM
The Mad Max post was influences by a Straw-ber-ita. If you don't know already, they are really good.

Back on topic:
I've been weighing the pros and cons of buying all day today.
The BIG question is What if I have to move in 9 months? How much will it really set me back?

pOrk
08-20-2013, 05:47 AM
Lol at public disturbance. Glad you guys aren't my neighbors, we have 80 year olds that are more interesting then you to be around :).

As for starter homes, that's what ours was 4 years ago. Now I can't see leaving anytime soon, we grew roots in our neighborhood and absolutely love it. Only downfall is small garage, but the huge yard makes up for it IMO

jbiscuit
08-20-2013, 08:30 AM
Nobody said don't do what you enjoy, just use common sense. Staging a mock battle in the street would win you over pOrk? lol

I have car guys, loud vehicles etc over all the time. Its not a problem at all. Just how you go about it. I'm respectful of my neighbors.

Irish
08-20-2013, 08:59 AM
The Mad Max post was influences by a Straw-ber-ita. If you don't know already, they are really good.

Bullshit. They taste like liquid Sucrets!

Good luck house hunting! Just bought a house a few months ago. It only took me 5 months to find mine. :)

Al
08-20-2013, 12:13 PM
Lol at public disturbance. Glad you guys aren't my neighbors, we have 80 year olds that are more interesting then you to be around :).

As for starter homes, that's what ours was 4 years ago. Now I can't see leaving anytime soon, we grew roots in our neighborhood and absolutely love it. Only downfall is small garage, but the huge yard makes up for it IMO

I checked out a house on Halsey two months ago. I ended up talking with a very old man who lived there since the road was just a few years old. He said he wanted to live on that specific street because he served in the navy under the leadership of William "Bull" Halsey.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Halsey,_Jr.

"I like to tell people that the guy my street is named after can kick the ass of the guy your street is named after."

I talked with him for well over an hour. Subjects ranged from the quality of the houses to the noise of the propellers back in the day, to the neigbors' kids going to Vietnam.

Slow Joe
08-20-2013, 09:59 PM
One thing to never settle on is the garage if you are into cars. Cuz it could always be bigger, nicer, taller, deeper, more insulated and so on. I have a 3.5 car here and wish it had another stall

This. Personally I have a "3" Car Garage with a 2 car door, however since I'm in the town of Ixonia I can pretty much build whatever I want, where the neighbors across the street in Lac La Belle (a Portion of the Town of Oconomowoc) can't. The joys of living in Jefferson County.. :)

Couple things I'll throw in is that even if it's not your last home, find a place that you're good with living in for 5-10 years. The good thing is that the market is on a rebound. We bought our house about two years near the bottom, and already our neighbors are selling their houses for 20-30k more than we paid for ours (similar houses/lots). Get on it as quick as possible because interest rates are heading upward as are house prices... At least out here.

When we bought our house we drove past over 100 houses, got that list down to 10, walked through 5 and made an offer on/bought 1. No issues with other offers, etc here.

Good luck and happy house hunting!

Al
08-21-2013, 06:49 PM
I'm heading to the bank tomorrow morning to make sure my finances are in proper shape.

Al
09-04-2013, 02:26 AM
I have my sights set on a house northeast of 76th and Oklahoma. It's in the southeastern corner of Stallis.

The asking price is about 2x my annual income. With 20% down, the monthly payments will be less than my weekly paychecks. With taxes included, the monthly payment will equal about 26% of my standard income (no overtime, no income of other sources). This seems very safe to me.

There are two final details that I have looked into, but I still feel I don't know all that I should:

Home Inspector: I know one inspector, but I'm concerned that he might be busy when I need him.

Lawyer: This is the subject I've looked into the least.

DerangedPony
09-04-2013, 12:42 PM
For sale by owner?

Sent from my Evo V 4G using Tapatalk 2

BoosTT
09-05-2013, 07:56 AM
I have my sights set on a house northeast of 76th and Oklahoma. It's in the southeastern corner of Stallis.

The asking price is about 2x my annual income. With 20% down, the monthly payments will be less than my weekly paychecks. With taxes included, the monthly payment will equal about 26% of my standard income (no overtime, no income of other sources). This seems very safe to me.

There are two final details that I have looked into, but I still feel I don't know all that I should:

Home Inspector: I know one inspector, but I'm concerned that he might be busy when I need him.

Lawyer: This is the subject I've looked into the least.

Not really sure if your numbers are before or after taxes. They sound pretty conservative though. Probably wise if you are the sole source of income. My wife and I just purchased a home last week and have the inspection Friday, so I can answer probably all of your questions.

Inspector: Highly highly highly suggest Rodger @ Harthstone home inspection. This guy is far and away the best. We cancelled our contact on another house based on what Rodger found.

Real estate attorney: We used Edward D. He was ok to good. Costs are $300-$500 for all the paper work and advice from the offer to final closing. I just say just ok as we needed to review the contracts for errors and turnaround time was about 12 hours (quicker if we needed it though).

After doing it myself, I’m not sure if using an attorney vs. buyer’s agent is the correct move. It probably won me the house this time though as the commissions were as much as a brand new car. I’m suspecting the selling agent cut their commission from 3.5% (+2.5%) to something around 4.5% that won me the house in a multi-bid situation. Doing it yourself makes it more personal and less business.

PM me if you want contact info for either.

Al
09-07-2013, 03:51 PM
When I showed up to view the property on 72, the agent said that it just sold.
Anyway, there is a very similar property near 33rd and Verona that I looked at. I like it, but needs some work and I think it should be lower in price.
There is one more house 22nd and Barnard that I want to look at tomorrow.

Is an attorney/buyer's agent needed for all sales or just "for sale by owner"?
Can I trust a real estate agency to work ethically?

BoosTT
09-07-2013, 05:03 PM
You will need a attorney or agent to fill out the forms regardless if its Fsbo. You could DIY the forms, but its not worth the risk. They do some tricky things in the offer and counter offer forms.

It's up to you if you can trust an realtor.... They weren't a help for us. Pretty easy to find houses online and have the listing agent show the property.

jbiscuit
09-08-2013, 01:04 PM
Be really careful trusting a realtor. They do not have your best interest in mind. Some are good and work ethically but be sure to review all forms carefully and never sign anything until you are 110% sure everything is accurate.
If you need someone to spend a couple hours going over all the paperwork with you the. Hire a lawyer to review everything. For a couple hundred dollars in lawyer fees, its piece of mind you aren't missing something important

95 TA - The Beast
09-09-2013, 10:59 AM
Yeah, we went through a couple realtors ourselves before buying. What sucks is I am certain there was a couple homes we wanted that got sold out form under us by a realtor that showed us the homes. Totally illegal for them to do that, but hey, big dollar commissions are involved and people suck when it comes to money. We found some awesome deals on foreclosures just offered to market as well as homes that had been overlooked and had little in the way of showings... Kinda strange that a place had no looks for almost a month and a half, we look at it, go to put in an offer on a friday afternoon, the offer doesn't go in until after business hour, and all of a sudden there is a bidding war on it monday morning. Found out that after we looked at the place, someone just *HAD* to look at it later in the evening that friday and it had like a half dozen more showings over the weekend.

So, yeah, don't trust real-estate agents. The best measure is how quickly they work for you. ie, if you want an offer in, is it in and done within a half hour, or 3-4 hours later?

Also, stear clear of agents with a ton of affiliations into the real estate business itself. That was our problem, picked a "heavy hitter" that owned their own firm and was high in the ranks in the Wisconsin Real Estate politics. We put them to serious work, but we also had a buyers agency with them and there was far too many "questionable" instances of things that kept us from getting accepted offers.

I am an extremely informed buyer on things and I had more stats and facts about the places we looked at then any of the agents involved (ours or the sellers), as well as knew how the various agencies work (Fanny Mae, Freddie Mac) and the way the banks deal with offers on foreclosures (such as Bank of America, Wells Fargo, etc) and knew exactly the timetables involved in getting an advantage to buying. I had my agent "play dumb" with me on more than one instance and totally caught them admitting they knew better in a future conversation.

There are far too many agents like we used that have a string of investor-types that are just looking to buy a home and sit on it and flip it when the market turns around. Now, alot of this is all dependant on the types and price-range of the homes you are looking at, but there are investors at all levels looking to collect an inventory of homes.

DerangedPony
09-09-2013, 01:16 PM
Sorry to hear the bad experiences but just like auto sales, not all realtors are like that. I work with two that are great to work with. They are available 24/7 and always think about their client. I understand that with so many realtors out there, its hard to find the good ones but there are some.

Sent from my Evo V 4G using Tapatalk 2

jbiscuit
09-09-2013, 08:00 PM
^ I'd agree there are some good ones for sure. I meant just watch out for yourself, don't be pressured by an agent to do anything....even looking at a house you can't afford or one in a neighborhood you don't want. I had an agent that just flat out didn't listen. I told him what I wanted, where I wanted and what I could afford. He'd set up a showing for a house that 20% more expensive than I could afford, in an area I didn't want to live and so on. After a few times of him pulling that I cut ties with him. Not worth wasting your time or anyone else's looking at homes with zero intention to purchase. Classic upsell attempt I guess but that doesn't work when your client is firm on their wants. Like Dennis said, be an educated buyer, do your own research and be prepared to write offers on several homes before you actually get one.

95 TA - The Beast
09-09-2013, 09:08 PM
Honestly, there wasn't a single home that was suggested to us to see. *I* was the one to specify which homes we wanted to look at. Very different from a lot of people where the agent is the one to suggest each and every home you end up looking at.

We would go look at 2-6 homes a day, and that evening I would give our agent another 7-9 listings or more we wanted to look at and they would organize the showings for the next day or two... Out of the listings I gave them, they would come back with which ones were still available which ones could be scheduled...

Did that non-stop (including weekends if possible) for over 2.5 months. Saw almost 80 homes in that time. Like I said, for all the inadequacies we definitely put our agent to work.

Al
09-10-2013, 12:27 PM
They do not have your best interest in mind.

Interest #1 is their own.


I am an extremely informed buyer

^ This is what I am trying to be.

I have an innate distrust of middle-men, but I can also justify that sense with the phrase "conflict of interest."
My interest: get the most for my money
Their interest: get the most money for the property

I'm not going to say that the business is wrong in any way, but there are times when the ball is in their court. If they go beyond reasonable amounts, you walk away.


Inspector: Highly highly highly suggest Rodger @ Harthstone home inspection.
PM me if you want contact info for either.

Sending PM

95 TA - The Beast
09-10-2013, 01:06 PM
Well, if you do a "buyers agency" agreement, then the agent, by law, has to work at an advantage to you, ie, they help you get the property for the price you want to pay.

The problem with "buyers agency" is that if they are a shitty agent you are half screwed. I say that because unless you can prove they were not working in YOUR best interest, they have no legal requirement to let you out of the buyers agent contract. Thus, even if you no longer contact them, if you buy a house, they are due their commission.

We had "buyers agency" and felt "stuck" for a bit, but we put them to work and work they did.

DerangedPony
09-10-2013, 04:00 PM
Again, it all depends on the Realtor but many will have your best interest in mind. Not only is it in the Buyers Contract but the best realtors get a lot of their business from referrals.

Honestly, I dont know if you can look at a buyer's agent as only a middleman. From offer to closing, there are so many deadlines, contracts, dates and amendments that they are doing you a huge service for free (if you are the buyer). Unless you have somebody who knows what they are doing, you could miss something that may cost you down the road.

Example, there was a not so great realtor who worked with some buyers on a home in Vernon. It was getting close to closing and the well for the home tested high for bacteria. The buyers wanted to move in early so the realtor suggested to have the seller put $1000 in a escrow account to do any repairs on the well and the buyers closed on the house. Turns out the well needed to be lifted out, cleaned and pressure tank replaced which was going to cost the buyers at least $4000 because they already closed on the home and only asked for $1000 for repairs. If they would of had a more experienced realtor or at least one that did the research, they would have know what the cost could have been to replace the well.

I don't know. I really don't think it's as bad as you think it is. Once, you find a good agent, the amount of knowledge they offer and the work they do is huge all at no cost to you unless you plan on buying a very inexpensive home because they do work on a min. commission. Also, not only would you have to pay for a lawyer, they may not have the same amount of knowledge. I'd say you should at least interview a agent and I'm sure you can tell whether or not you can work with them. Like I said, I do know a Agent who is very good and I can send you her info.

95 TA - The Beast
09-10-2013, 10:44 PM
DerangedPony, sorry, you are completely biased because your livelihood is tied directly to an agent. Or so you stated above.

A LOT of agents screw clients left and right on little things. Such as submitting offers IMMEDIATELY. I am not talking three or four hours from when you tell the agent you want to submit an offer, which many will argue is reasonable. I am talking you talk to the agent, the paperwork is done in 15 minutes, you get a copy, you sign, you send it back and everything is in the selling agency's hands within 20-30 minutes from when you decide to make an offer. Sooner if your agent has the paperwork ready and only has to fill out property information. And yes, I know all about the addendums and everything else with some offers and all that BS, but any way you look at it, timeliness makes ALL the difference in having offers accepted.

Fact of the matter is, almost EVERYONE in the process outside of the buyer wants a bidding war. Regardless if the buyers agent wins this battle or not it is "good for the business" as a whole as houses sell for more and all parties involved in a closing make out with higher commissions. So I argue COMPLETELY that a buyers agent is ONLY working for the buyer. They are working for the buyer, for themselves, for their agency and for the real estate market as a whole. If not they are a shitty agent period.

I know the timetables involved in having Fannie Mae (Homepath), Freddie Mac (Homesteps), BoA (Bank of America), Wells Fargo, etc in regards to how they review offers and when they decide on acceptance. The absoloutlely WORST time you want to put an offer in on ANY of them is late on a friday. I won't expose the timetables involved, but after a certain time you are GURANTEED to be in a bidding war come monday morning. Look at ANY foreclosure on a friday thru sunday is complete BS. Only look at them during the week and MAKE SURE offers are in before 1pm CST on a friday if your going to make one. We lost out on over a half dozen homes because our agent fucked us and filed late in the day on a friday. We saw one James Craig home that just came on the market. Saw it at 10:30am, told our agent at 11am that we wanted an offer in IMMEDIATELY for asking price, conditions of closing within 2 weeks, $5k earnest money that day with actual cash on hand for downpayment (ie, no transfers needed, no BS, straight up big pile of cash to get it done). They sent us the paperwork, we signed, had it back to them by 12:10pm. They didn't send it in until 5:45pm. Yep, bidding war by monday. Someone came in and made a cash offer for $35k over asking price and took it. That offer didn't come in until monday morning. I know for FACT that if Bank of America had our offer in by a certain time on the friday we wanted to make the offer, they would have accepted and it would have been done. We had accepted financing at not only Bank of America, but also Chase, Wells Fargo and 3 other banks that were preferred lenders with HomePath and HomeSteps, basically everything required to buy a foreclosure with any of the big companies that have specific requirements/preferential consideration per offer. Like I said, we had the bases covered and our agent fucked us.

So, anyone that argues a buyers agency is only for you as a buyer is complete bullshit. I have no doubt you will find honest, ethical and reliable agents, but if they are that good I doubt you will get timely action to making offers and dealing with things. Unless they have a complete office that is full of people that are just as ethical and driven. VERY hard to find in the murky and ugly waters of the real estate market.

Fact of the matter is, Wisconsin is a sellers market. It is dictated BY LAW that unless you have buyers agency, ALL agents MUST work in the SELLERS best interest. Again it is all about making the most money across the board. Every single buyer is in a very ugly situation on the outset. Like I said, to maximize your money you have your work cut out for you. I have zero problem with agents making commissions, I do have an issue with an agent making a commission without doing much, and many don't do enough for the buyers.

Hell, I knew the exact market values, came up with my own set of formulas to determine if I was actually getting a deal or not and all the agents I dealt with, even with buyers agency thought I was being unrealistic because my figures were much lower than where they expected the market to be. Funny thing is, I was just about dead on in regards to most homes for what they actually sold for. That previously mentioned James Craig home was the only exception, but considering it was an early example, before they did cookie-cutter designs and with some unique features, I wasn't surprised. The home I ended up buying I got a great deal for. And yeah, I heard about all the agent BS that went on in regards to selling the home we bought from the neighbors after we moved in.

DerangedPony
09-11-2013, 12:30 AM
I work for a listing agent, not a buyers agent so this has nothing to do with my livelihood. I'm just sharing some information and experiences I've had while working in the business.

Sounds like you had a bad experience but I personally see many deals go together very smooth and in a timely matter. There was just an offer I saw submitted Sunday at 12:00 pm, counter offer sent back at 3:00 and fully accepted by 5:00 and that was on a weekend. Now, while doing a short sale or foreclose, the turnaround will not be that fast but that's because the bank is involved. The agent I work for and many others even pay for special e-signature programs that make signing offers very quick.

I'm not going to tell you that agents don't care about commission because they obviously need to make a living but to assume that they are all in a back room somewhere trying to drive up the prices of all the homes in WI is just stupid. Many will show you comps of similar homes that are for sale or sold in the area, then they call the listing agent to get a feel for what kind of interest there has been in the home and how flexible they are on the price and they relay the info. to the buyers and the buyers decide what they want to offer. Of course if the realtor thinks the offer is way to low and there is a risk of loosing to to another buyer, they will say something but the offer price is always decided by the buyer. If that is your idea of being shady, then whatever.

Again, I'm not trying to change anybody's mind and to tell you the truth, I kinda thought the same way before starting my current job but many agents I work with are very honest. It is amazing how much work goes into each deal but when we are working with another good agent, everything is just smoother and is done quicker.

95 TA - The Beast
09-11-2013, 12:39 PM
The key point is the commissions are outrageous. To earn $5k-$7k for the sale of a $300k house is disgusting. Especially when the amount of work going into a lot of sales in no way justifies that kind of payback. And that is $5k-7k is PER AGENT. Ie, the buying agent and selling agent both get a commission.

It will be argued that it all averages out considering all the sales that don't happen, all the offers that are not accepted, etc, etc... I say BS... Sales is sales, regardless if it is cars, homes or vacuum cleaners.

Personally I have little to no respect for most salespeople. Very few actually EARN what they make, and most try to work as little as possible. Most all salespeople make judgements of people and predetermine who and how much almost immediately in regards to people spending money. And sorry to use a line that "comps" are actually comparables is BS... they pick comps that justify their figures.

Sorry, I don't buy ANYTHING unless I feel I get a deal. I never pay retail (unless you have to, ie, a controlled priced product), and I will always not consider myself one of the blind "sheep" that most salespeople prey upon. I will let my friends that are in sales make more off me if I am so inclined, but I know where the money is going in that case.

I have no problem with people needing to earn a living, but I don't agree for paying for other people losing out. The sales game is about averages, and I don't want to pay for the losing side of that equation.

The house I bought was bought for just over half what it was valued at 2 years earlier, and it has been on a steady upwards trend back to that range ever since I bought it. Sure, I have been putting money into it, but considering the equity, it is only helping it. Considering what I put down on it, what I am paying on it in mortgage and the market value steadily increasing on it's own, I figure I will be 50/50 in equity/mortgage in less than 2 years. That is exactly the "best case" scenario that any homebuyer would love to be in, but most agents figure it is a pipedream since they figure a larger chunk of that should go to the sale and into their own pockets.

Hell, if most agents worked for the buyers there wouldn't be hardly any foreclosures and home prices wouldn't have ever gone out of control the way they did. The banks are to blame, but the agents (being direct interfaces to the real-estate market as a whole) are the ones to blame just as well. Housing prices didn't jump because owners thought they could get more, it was agents that figured they could get more that pushed it as hard and as fast as it spiraled out of control.

I originally looked at homes back in 2001, then had a few personal setbacks in regards to business which took buying off the table. When I started looking again in 2004-2005 I was disgusted to see homes that were $165-175k back in 2001 being sold for $280-320k... People are out of their minds thinking that was reasonable or sane. I didn't start looking again until spring of 2012 and it was at the bottom of the housing market slump. As far as I am concerned the market STILL is not corrected to where it needs to be. Home prices are still far to high. But, here we are with another upward house-price trend. I just find it hard to justify a pricing model that is so far out of whack with the increase in income and salaries. Sure lower interest rates helped people buy more home for the dollar, but that was just to keep home prices up. If they corrected down to where they *should* be then that "help" wouldn't have been as necessary. So now interest rates are going up and so are home prices. Doesn't seem to make sense, does it?

Prince Valiant
09-11-2013, 01:16 PM
Dennis vs. the world...

CannotPost
09-11-2013, 04:03 PM
Phew, quite a read. I got lucky, sold my condo with out a agent (by owner) to a buyer with-out a agent. Bought my new house from the Owner.

I find it strange so many use a Agent to buy homes? I can understand getting some one to sell for you. With the power of the internet I did not find it hard to find houses to look at. At the end it was just driving around the neighborhood I wanted that led me to my current house.

95 TA - The Beast
09-11-2013, 04:11 PM
Not really. It is just the fact that certain markets, with real-estate being one of the biggest offenders, tend to take advantage of consumers based on the fact that "normal people" don't buy new homes every couple years and with the way home prices are they are now forecasting owning homes for 6-10 years at a minimum, compared to the "boom" where people were doing 3-5 year cycles before "upgrading". They figure with people being rarely "in the market" on either side of the equation that it is "fair" to be outrageous with commissions.

Sorry, but I figure a 3-4% commission split between the buying and selling agents is MORE than fair... You are talking hundreds of thousands of dollars here, not some $30k-50k car. Even with cars the commissions aren't as high as they are in real-estate.

Like I said, after looking at over 70 homes I figure my agent actually earned their commission. Also it was worthwhile based on the price I bought the house for. But, I do believe I had so many problems due to the fact that the agent "pre-judged". I am quite laid-back, but I am very well informed, which comes off as bullshit to a lot of people that figure if you are at that level of of the game you are basically going to be an asshole and look down on everyone else. That is not the case with me. Hell, at closing they was still amazed we were actually closing. Nice part was the loan officer knew me and some of my friends and knew all to well I don't put on a front or bullshit about anything, ever. My agent was actually shocked that everything I told them was actually the way it was and that I knew what I knew.

Like I said, doesn't matter what you are selling, sales is sales... Sales-people always act the same, regardless of the product or service they are selling.

PureSound15
09-11-2013, 10:16 PM
Hell, at closing they was still amazed we were actually closing. Nice part was the loan officer knew me and some of my friends and knew all to well I don't put on a front or bullshit about anything, ever.


This is the only thing you've posted that doesn't make any sense at all.

1) your agent shouldn't be surprised you're closing if you were ever pre approved

2) your agent would be wasting their time if you didn't come to them pre approved

3) your loan officer knowing you had nothing to do with you getting approved and if you had tried to "bull shit" anything you wouldn't have been approved.


For the sake of anyone that hasn't been through this... None of that matters at all. Carry on.

pOrk
09-12-2013, 04:35 AM
If you haven't found an agent yet my father in law just got his realtor lisc and is excited to be starting out in real estate. He is retired from west Allis pd and looking for something fun to do, lmk if you want to get in contact w him. He's green, honest, and not out to take advantage of anyone

95 TA - The Beast
09-12-2013, 07:36 AM
Puresound15, no, you misunderstood...

The financial side was never in question. Sorry if I left that impression.

It was more the 'being taken seriously' aspect. Like I mentioned before my agent "acted dumb" on a few things where they obviously thought I did not know what was going on. It was from that perspective that they ended up trying to "take advantage" of the situation and do as little as possible. I just used the loan officer affiliation as kind of the "wow, he wasn't bullshitting about knowing what he knows" aspect.

Seeing over 70 houses with an agent you tend to talk quite a bit about everything. I know that quite a bit of what I talked about wasn't taken seriously. I mean our agent did the whole, "well, this needs to be done and it can be quite expensive", and when I replied that I knew people that did just that and it is not a concern I pretty much got a dumb-founded look like I didn't know what I was talking about. Until I went back to take a second look and brought a friend whose business is just taking care of those kinds of things and then I would get a "oh, so you do know someone to take care of this" kind of reaction.

Again, the agent "sized me up" based upon my soft-approach to things and figured I didn't know what end was up. Most people end up having to pay through the ass for everything home related, and if you get a few people that know how to do things, they a lot of times don't even go with an agent. Being my first home purchase I decided to go the agent route and ran the gamut of bad experiences. Not only the agent I mentioned before, but two other agents that basically either a) didn't want to make time to show homes or b) wasn't motivated to try to find homes that meet our steep criteria, thus I got in the groove of finding the listings and pre-qualifying them to determine if we wanted to take the time to go check them out.

Prince Valiant
09-14-2013, 11:48 PM
1) your agent shouldn't be surprised you're closing if you were ever pre approved

2) your agent would be wasting their time if you didn't come to them pre approved

3) your loan officer knowing you had nothing to do with you getting approved and if you had tried to "bull shit" anything you wouldn't have been approved.


For the sake of anyone that hasn't been through this... None of that matters at all. Carry on.You must be part of the illuminati.

michelle
09-15-2013, 07:04 AM
I'm thankful I purchased my house from my uncle and also have a land-contract. He gave me a great deal on the house/property and he gets the interest instead of the bank. Also skipped that whole "starter home" step, which was a huge plus after seeing friends and family my age still having troubles selling their "5 year" house for what they originally paid for it.

Less stress and I love where I live. It may not be the fanciest house, but it has everything I need at the moment. A larger second garage would be nice, but I will argue with the Village when I am financially ready to upgrade it.

Al
10-23-2013, 03:46 PM
I placed an offer on a duplex in 'stallis.

This whole process has been severely hampered by a bogus bill from Aurora. They charged me for a wide range of services I did not receive. Although my finances are still sound, the bill reduces my reserves.
^ I should probably start another thread about this. I'm sure it's going to take a very long time to straighten it out. Keywords: bad faith, conflict of interest.

95 TA - The Beast
10-23-2013, 07:56 PM
Oh yeah, medical bills and old collections are some of the BS that goes with buying a home...

In our case there was an old disputed medical bill as well. Luckily, I had the reserves to take care of it immediately. Basically heard from the loan officer and had it paid with a receipt back to him within an hour or so. He was shocked and said most people fight billings like that with the provider and the insurance company, but I didn't want any issues with the home purchase, so I paid it and then went through the hassle of getting reimbursed... Worked out overall, but without a certain amount of reserves that kind of stuff can tank ya... Especially fraudulent billings. I cannot believe the amount of billing fraud that happens between the medical providers and the insurance companies. I have caught that myself more than few times.

Old Guy
10-23-2013, 09:02 PM
Well said.

jbiscuit
10-23-2013, 09:10 PM
Worth noting, you should NEVER pay a bill that you feel you are being wrongly charged. Billing errors and flat out fraud are a big component of medical billings. Why you would willing pay a bill for services you did not receive is something I would never advise doing. If anything, try and handle the situation yourself. If that doesn't work, lawyer up. For a fee, most lawyers will work quickly. (Faster than normal) to handle a situation. I would also suggest you examine all medical bills very carefully cuz I have seen on two occasions a situation where we have been overcharged. Basically two different departments tried billing for the same service. All lumped together it's tough to see the double charge. Medical billing and the issues it brings with home purchase is really bad in this state

Al
10-24-2013, 06:18 PM
My offer was accepted!
I need a home inspector.

---

Here's my brief medical bill situation:
I had ulnar nerve subcutaneous transposition surgery to alleviate cubital tunnel syndrome.
If you've ever hit your elbow on something and felt a shock through your hand, you understand how that nerve works. Half of my hand was numb and some of my fingers were weak.

Procedure was outpatient with local anesthesia and took 1 hour. I was charged for general anesthesia, an overnight stay and ulnar nerve submuscular transposition surgery.

Bad Faith:
To make matters worse, my insurance said "you did not pay your premium." I have two receipts from them plus my checking account records which prove I made the payment.

I have since fought off half of the unnecessary charges.
The remaining bill was passed to collections which is threatening to report this on my credit at the end of the month.
The charges are being "disputed," which should put a hold on the credit report, but the collectors do not seem to be following this.
The clinic said that they'd get back to me within 4-6 weeks of the dispute filing, but I filed 8 weeks ago and have not heard back from them.
Supposedly, a "disputed" bill can't hurt your credit rating. I'm not sure if I want to test this.

blackmage
10-25-2013, 07:12 AM
congrats on the accepted offer!

We needed our land resurveyed before the appraisal was finished. Survey needed to be approved by the town board that meets once a month. Because the surveyor did not get the information to them 2 weeks before the meeting(which he has had done for almost 6 weeks now, and he gave it to them last Friday) they looked at it Tuesday night, said they couldn't do anything and pushed it off till their next meeting in 30 days... Closing date was Oct 31st, now its Nov 29th. Sweet....

BoosTT
10-25-2013, 10:15 AM
Congratulations. Have Rodger inspect it. He is very good.

Al
10-25-2013, 05:32 PM
Could you remind me which one of yous is Rodger?

MY FYN 79
10-25-2013, 07:44 PM
Al,

Hope it all works out. We were in a much better position to make a move a few years back, but several events have set us back in a major way. Nothing happening here for a lot of years now.

Beast, with all due respect.. can I ask a question?

Do you approach these housing people coming across as a know it all blowhard? I know that sounds disrespectful, but I just need to ask. Cause if I was in "housing" and you came to me speaking like you do here, I wouldn't give you the time of day either... and I honestly don't know how you could expect otherwise. I could be totally off base because I don't post much here or know you personally, but just playing devils advocate. No doubt there are some slimy business people out there, but its been my experience that if you go looking for it you'll find it.

95 TA - The Beast
10-25-2013, 08:42 PM
MY FYN 79, no, not at all... That is the biggest part of the problem. I come across quite "softly" in that I ask respectful questions, I let people explain as they will, I ask to clarify, etc, etc... The problem is when I find the limit of their knowledge and I start filling out beyond that, they don't believe it since they feel that if I know it so well why did I even ask them in the first place (which was to find out how much they knew and to make sure I am talking to someone knowledgeable enough to take seriously). Basically if I started out being a "smartass" or coming off cocky right from the start they would have no-problem giving me the respect and be cautious not to pull shit. I end up having to back people into a corner if games are being played because I would rather not play games at all. About that time they figure out I can backup what I know and then they are like "well, damn, I guess he wasn't all hot air after all"... Plus I know that a lot of these people can ultimately be used to my advantage, even if they think they are getting the upper hand. So I let them play their games and buy my time until I need them.

I know a lot of people from various walks of life, so I can usually talk to enough "people in the know" to know not only the facts, but the angles used by those trying to take advantage of others. I have enough experience to not be duped into being taken advantage of. Not that people don't try and they get away with it enough to get me pissed at times, but never far enough to cause me anything I would care to go ballistic over.

In business either you come across as cocky and arrogant and a know-it-all and people give you enough respect to not piss you off, but ultimately, they think you are a dick for acting that way. Which can work against you in many cases because people can hold grudges. Or, you can come across as being respectful, polite, inquisitive and ultimately non-threatening enough to want people to work with/for you and make things work out. Not always the case as there are those that think they can pull shit on you because you are spineless. Those are the types I ultimately end up totally using and abusing the business relationship for and I am more than willing to let them know what they lost out on because of their stupidity.

Like I said before, with my agent in mind, I put them to serious work. Looking at 5-6 houses a day at times, letting them workout the viewing schedule, having them work on my clock, etc, etc... They, in the end, actually earned their commission so no blood, no foul. Could they have done more to help me, sure. Could I have had a better agent that would have gotten me into a home quicker, sure. But I am not sure I would have gotten as good of a deal as I did and I don't know if I would have seen the homes I wanted to see on a schedule that was most advantageous to me.

BoosTT
10-26-2013, 12:14 PM
Rodger at hearthstone home inspections out of the falls. I pm'ed you his contact info.

BoosTT
10-28-2013, 04:41 PM
I also recommend http://trustaplus.com/ (in Muskego and Delafield). We ended up wasting $900 in appraisal fees by trying to use lenders on bankrate.com. A+ was able to beat the rates listed on bankrate and is local.

Use bankrate to get a general ideal of rates and then contact Craig at A+ to hammer out the details. I wish I would have taken this advice in the first place and I would have saved $900 in wasted fees.