[ddlove01]

I posted this is a previous thread, but I'm creating a new one to get some opinions...

Does anyone think the amount of a down payment matters? If someone is only able to put $500-$1000 down, does this make them higher risk? Our potential buyer came down from CT this Sunday and made us an offer for 10K less than our asking price, but that's fine with us....

What worries us is she only wanted to put $500 down. She also didn't bring any of her necessary paperwork with her....ie. loan information, preapproval letter, contract on her own house that is scheduled to close on Aug 24th. She is headed back to CT tonight and said she would fax all the paperwork tomorrow morning. Is she for real? Do you think this is the type of person who looks for desparate sellers (yes, us) to see who will accept? Would anyone be able to accept this deposit without the necessary proof?

She is starting work in FL in three weeks and has been eyeing our house online for 3 months. We are pretty confident she is serious as she previously came down in April and couldn't find anything she liked then. We listed in May and she has been calling our realtor weekly to make sure it's still available.

She was going to buy it in June, but still had to sell her home, and couldn't secure financing with two mortgages. Two weeks ago she sold her CT home in ONE DAY! She didn't even have a chance to put the sign out, she had an immediate buyer.

What kind of vibe should we feel? Nervous? I am very much so. Her friends have looked at over 20 houses for her in the area and this is the only one they recommended to her over the last 3 months. We've been listed for four months and this has been our only offer, probably the only shot we have with this market....

Anyone have any words of wisdom/experience? Please. Pretty please. : )

[MrTudo]

These types of people have no stake in the property and therefore nothing to lose but a few points on a credit score.

One of the most important pieces of the foundation of this country, PROPERTY has been reduced to being almost nonexistent. It started with income tax in 1913. That marxist plank that started small and now has a spot in the mind where people call them "my taxes" without even realizing what this means. Then more and more government regulations on our homes, ( you must get a PERMIT, ie" permission from the state to paint it, tile it, put a roof over your head) reducing the individual to an obedient servant. Then automobiles. I grew up in the car business. NOBODY leased( rented) an automobile. Nowadays how many people actually OWN their cars? I bought a new Jeep 7 weeks ago and wrote a check. Got the title in the mail last week. I own it. Now there's a large percentage of people who rent their cars, or as they call it, "lease" and even the ones that call it own, what they own is a payment everymonth. Then we finally evolve to property as in real estate. How many people have zero equity and whatever equity that were lucky enough to see because of an abberation in the market, went out and "refi'd" and blew it all?

Foreigners come here and pay cash. Just like the old days they come thet work there butts off, doing things most people here will never even consider, they save and then they own. I have the highest respect for those who do that as they are the true Americans.

What a tragedy. So many peoples around the world have given it all to fight for a little property and freedom. These people have given it all up without so much as an argument. Shame.

[ddlove01]

thanks for the response, but I don't really understand everything you've written. Is is shame on the buyers or shame on the sellers in my situation?

[robbin68]

ddlove01,
all you need to do is put a contingency in the contract that she produce all the docs you're looking for by XX date or the contract becomes void. in this market, if someone offered me a $1 good faith deposit i'd take it - my house has been on the market for a YEAR. i'm a realtor, and i say take the offer, but NEVER count on a closing until you're at the table with the check in your hand!

[MrTudo]

How can anyone think they own a home with no stake in it? The money you just mentioned them putting down isn't enough to buy an ounce of gold. Much less a house.

I'd be looking for a buyer if I were you and acting as though nothing at all is happening with this wannabe from Ct.

[SKB]

Originally Posted by ddlove01

thanks for the response, but I don't really understand everything you've written. Is is shame on the buyers or shame on the sellers in my situation?

I think he meant people with little or no skin in the game (no down payments) are people that are the higher "flight risk". People that don't care about saving money, buy everything on credit and if things don't work out (normally that is what happens when you put everything on credit) they walk away.

"Foreigners come here and pay cash. Just like the old days they come thet work there butts off, doing things most people here will never even consider, they save and then they own. I have the highest respect for those who do that as they are the true Americans."


I actually really liked what he said, but since him and I have "had words" I will not tell him directly. But if I did tell him directly, I would say that I really respected his post and agreed 100% on his thoughts and that last part put a lump in my throat.

[ddlove01]

Sorry it was a deposit, not a down payment...my crazy brain taking over my typing fingers. The down payment would be a significant amount, this was just a good faith deposit as posted before...but shoud we take the house off the market or issue a kick-out clause, that keeps the listing active, but allows more buyers to make higher offers and buyer #1 still gets first dibs? Our realtor explained this to us and it seems pretty safe for both parties.

One thing I was confused by is that the broker told us we were not allowed to verbally tell the buyer we were interested in the offer, without proper documentation...Is that normal? Couldn't my realtor have told her the offer is okay with the seller, but you need the docs before we proceed? And who would have held the deposit? Us or our realtor?

[MyHomeIsInOcala]

"Earnest Money" should be large enough to show the seller you are serious, but not large enough to place significant funds at risk... But, there is no set minimum, I have seen everything from $1 (One Dollar) to the entire offered price deposited as Earnest.

I would be more concerned with the loan, is it 100%, 90% or 80%??? If they have a good bit of down payment money coming in, then they are serious and ready to buy.

[Prichard]

The absolute minimum deposit that I would accept would be nothing less than 1%. So, on a $300,000 house, I'd take at least $3,000. If the buyer balks, I let them balk and walk. Here's why.

First, I won't accept a financing congingency in a contract with anything more than 90% financing. It's simply not my job to make sure that the buyer doesn't have to come out of pocket anything to buy a house, or to make sure that the house appraises out to the dollar. Nor do I have any intent on helping "no-money-down" seminar idiots screw around with my property. I only sell to people who can buy. So, if the buyer might have to come up with 10% down ($30,000 on a $300,000 house) anyway, then what's the big deal if I ask him for a deposit of 10% of what he's going to have to come up with. If he can't cut this then this means one of two things: 1) He doesn't have the money and he's screwing around with MY property; 2) He is not sure he really wants to close on the house. Either way, I'm kicking this "buyer" to the curb.

[jkwing]

she sounds ok to me, I moved to Columbia SC, I put $500.00 earnst money down ( which I got back at closing ) and basicly had a Zero Down contract on a $135,000 home with an just an OK credit score, had to fax all the paper work because I forgot I needed to bring it. And closed on my sale here in 13 days
My mortgage broker had me in and closed in record time. and this is with starting a new job for me and my wife only having a letter of intent for employment