Asking price $479,000~What's a fair offer? (Westbury: mortgage broker, credit, attorney)

[ShouldIMoveOrStayPut...?]

O.K....I admit that I speed read the posts here so I may have missed it, but we have a thread here that's going three pages on what to offer under the asking price of a home and no one yet has mentioned one tiny little aspect that may play a role called.....


.......THE TERMS!!!!!!!........


Do you have to sell a home to buy this one?
Ask the seller to accept a promissory note for the down payment?
Balance to be paid with the proceeds of the eventual sale of your home combined with a mortgage held by the seller backed by the equity in your Aunt Matilda's antique toothpick collection?
Subject to full engineer's inspection and approval of every single relative and friend, no matter how distant, in your life?


Or.........

All cash close as soon as title report is in (about a week)
Funds verified and placed immediatley in escrow
Accept home "As Is".....no engineers inspection
No relatives, friends, notes, or toothpicks.....

Sometimes you juts gotta wonder with these boards......

[Kbinspections]

Originally Posted by ShouldIMoveOrStayPut...?

O.K....I admit that I speed read the posts here so I may have missed it, but we have a thread here that's going three pages on what to offer under the asking price of a home and no one yet has mentioned one tiny little aspect that may play a role called.....


.......THE TERMS!!!!!!!........


Do you have to sell a home to buy this one?
Ask the seller to accept a promissory note for the down payment?
Balance to be paid with the proceeds of the eventual sale of your home combined with a mortgage held by the seller backed by the equity in your Aunt Matilda's antique toothpick collection?
Subject to full engineer's inspection and approval of every single relative and friend, no matter how distant, in your life?


Or.........

All cash close as soon as title report is in (about a week)
Funds verified and placed immediatley in escrow
Accept home "As Is".....no engineers inspection
No relatives, friends, notes, or toothpicks.....

Sometimes you juts gotta wonder with these boards......

In the tri state area, most of the terms are the same with few exceptions:

Downpayments are made in cash....
Not contingent on sale of other property...
Most attorneys will require an inspection....
"As is" typically still get inspected.....
Everyone gets pre qualified by a bank......

I'm sure its different in other states.

[hurrahs80]

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

Hold on here, please!

Whom are you calling "co-conspirator"? If a buyer wants to see a house and I show it, and when asked about price, tell them to make an offer, I'm a co-conspirator??

Someone must have really raked you over the coals!!!

Elke.....I am talking about the LISTING AGENT being a co-conspirator with the seller in your "hypothetical" because you say that house list price is likely over-priced by $70k +......SEVENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS!!!!!!!

[Hemant]

hi there! i am a real estate agent in nj myself and i think that you can still make the starting offer of $425K and then wait for the counter offer. As it is a buyer's market, you can definitely negotiate and even make the deal at $450K. Keep in mind, closing costs of up to $10K are additional. Hope this helps!

[totallyfrazzled]

Originally Posted by Kbinspections

In the tri state area, most of the terms are the same with few exceptions:

Downpayments are made in cash....
Not contingent on sale of other property...
Most attorneys will require an inspection....
"As is" typically still get inspected.....
Everyone gets pre qualified by a bank......

IMO, anyone who would make an offer that is NOT contingent on a satisfactory home inspection is crazy. Whether it's recommended or required by a bank or attorney or not. Refusing to spend $600 or $750 or whatever the going rate is nowadays for a thorough inspection of what's probably the most expensive thing someone will ever buy in their life, is the epitome of being penny wise and pound foolish.

The only issue I have is with the last item (prequalified). PreQUALIFIED is useless. Anyone can get PreQUALIFIED because that is based on non-verified information. Anyone can tell a loan officer anything verbally, the loan officer plugs the numbers into a calculator, and presto, if the numbers fit the bank's "guidelines" then the printer spits out a prequalification letter which if you read the fine print is NOT A COMMITTMENT and is subject to later verification of EVERYTHING.

An intelligent buyer will instead get a PreAPPROVAL, which is a mortgage commitment that lacks only a specific property. Yes they will pay a mortgage application fee (because they are applying for a mortgage COMMITMENT, not a useless prequal that is based on info that may or may not be true or accurate or verifiable. A PreAPPROVAL is a mortgage commitment and is a valuable negotiation tool; a preQual is not. I could probably get a preQual for our cat if I changed his name to Jerry or Johnny and knew which numbers to fabricate for the phone conversation with a loan officer.

Yet many people, including realtors, use the terms PreQualified and PreApproved as if they are the same thing. They are NOT. They are 'apples and oranges'.

[Elke Mariotti]

I misunderstood - and you're right.

Every agent has their own limit when it comes to overpricing... not everyone is the same!

Originally Posted by hurrahs80

Elke.....I am talking about the LISTING AGENT being a co-conspirator with the seller in your "hypothetical" because you say that house list price is likely over-priced by $70k +......SEVENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS!!!!!!!

[Danielle Westbury]

if the REA agents knows the house is overpriced why would they wanna waste their time when they know it wont sell?

[hurrahs80]

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

I misunderstood - and you're right.

Every agent has their own limit when it comes to overpricing... not everyone is the same!

You see....we can agree on some things.....thanks

[hurrahs80]

Originally Posted by Danielle Westbury

if the REA agents knows the house is overpriced why would they wanna waste their time when they know it wont sell?

I believe to keep the seller happy - - remember, a home is a mans castle...its an emotional play.

Realtors, chime in I guess on her ????

[Elke Mariotti]

I couldn't agree more - buying a house without an inspection is crazy!

When my daughter and son-in-law were looking for a house, I suggested that they have an inspection done after they had an accepted offer but BEFORE the contract was signed. (I was not "in the business" at the time)

After the first house inspection revealed some unexpected problems, they didn't want to pay for another inspection when they found the second house ("too expensive!"). I strongly urged them to do it and lo and behold, there were serious foundation problems. Needless to say on the third try, I didn't have to say anything. They're still happy in their house.

Unfortunately you are right about the prequal vs. pre-approval. Most people and some Realtors don't seem to know the difference. However, more and more Sellers are now asking for a pre-approval when an offer is made - seems like the public is learning, and/or more Realtors are paying attention and suggesting it.

Both excellent points!!

Originally Posted by totallyfrazzled

IMO, anyone who would make an offer that is NOT contingent on a satisfactory home inspection is crazy. Whether it's recommended or required by a bank or attorney or not. Refusing to spend $600 or $750 or whatever the going rate is nowadays for a thorough inspection of what's probably the most expensive thing someone will ever buy in their life, is the epitome of being penny wise and pound foolish.

...

An intelligent buyer will instead get a PreAPPROVAL, which is a mortgage commitment that lacks only a specific property. Yes they will pay a mortgage application fee (because they are applying for a mortgage COMMITMENT, not a useless prequal that is based on info that may or may not be true or accurate or verifiable. A PreAPPROVAL is a mortgage commitment and is a valuable negotiation tool; a preQual is not. I could probably get a preQual for our cat if I changed his name to Jerry or Johnny and knew which numbers to fabricate for the phone conversation with a loan officer.

Yet many people, including realtors, use the terms PreQualified and PreApproved as if they are the same thing. They are NOT. They are 'apples and oranges'.