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Old 01-06-2014, 02:03 PM
 
Location: 42°22'55.2"N 71°24'46.8"W
4,848 posts, read 11,744,265 times
Reputation: 2961

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Quote:
Originally Posted by miu View Post
Having just bought a house in NH, I'd say to have a good amount of money saved for moving and also fixing up your new place. And whatever amount your bank or you think that you can afford to pay for a place, buy something for much less. In other words, don't max out your buying budget.
Definitely agree with this one. I moved into my house less than half a year ago and have already spent the following on just maintenance:

$1600 to fix a water main break
$450 to fix a broken skylight
$450 to install 2 bathroom vent fans (the old ones were 30 years old and not powerful enough)
$250 annual heating maintenance warranty/contract
$300 to fix a broken part in my furnace
$250 on chimney cleaning (2 flues)
$500 to prune back shrubs/branches
$225 for 3 snow plowings
$270 for 6 lawn mowings

That's over $4k right there. Now add another several thousand to buy basic things you'll need for your house (shelving, curtains, etc..). Oh yeah, did I mention I also paid $3200 for a moving company? Easily $10k just to get started in this new house!
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Old 01-06-2014, 02:04 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,523 posts, read 13,894,869 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by Beachcomber4 View Post
I totally agree about interviewing agents. While someone might be a "best" agent in the area, they may not be the "best" for you. You already know that buying a house is very emotional. As important as it is to have a good business person guiding you, it is important to have someone you are comfortable with during the process. A great example is MikePru. He takes a lot of time on here to answer questions. He's not doing business here he just seems like a good guy who is happy to help people out on a public forum. It is important to have an agent who will guide you and understand your point of view and needs in the process.
Thanks. I appreciate the kind words. I did win $500 recently. So, I guess in some way I've been paid to be here.

Quote:
Originally Posted by tikaram View Post
Talk to re agents. If you find someone you trust, it will be great help for you. If you don't trust them - their expertise, their professionalism - then don't work with such agent, and look for another one. I think it's very sad when people are not thrilled with the agent to begin with, yet they work with him/her against their gut feeling (or obvious signs of a bad match), then things take wrong turns.
I see this all the time. Consumers need to be willing to fire their agent if it's not a good fit. This is entirely too important of a transaction to settle for a less than good job by your agent.

Quote:
Originally Posted by jfitt View Post
To Mike, they have changed the requirements for ABR designation. It is not as simple as sitting at a computer for a few hours and passing a test. So, this designation, does have more meaning than most as there is an actual field component.
Yes. Aside from taking a test, an agent must have 5 transactions where they solely represent the buyer within three years of earning the designation. Here are the requirements in full:

How to Get Your ABR®: Designation Requirements

Anyway, five transactions within three years is something any real estate agent should be able to do. I maintain that the bar is set very low in order to get the designation.

The more important question to ask an agent you are thinking of hiring is: "do you do this full time or part time?" You don't want to hire an agent who does this around shuttling the kids to soccer or their other job. You want someone who will be available to answer your questions and show you houses when you want these things done and not when it's convenient for your agent. A full time agent will also have significantly more knowledge and experience than someone who dabbles in this.
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Old 01-07-2014, 01:10 AM
 
404 posts, read 1,188,233 times
Reputation: 320
Quote:
Originally Posted by Parsec View Post
Definitely agree with this one. I moved into my house less than half a year ago and have already spent the following on just maintenance:

$1600 to fix a water main break
$450 to fix a broken skylight
$450 to install 2 bathroom vent fans (the old ones were 30 years old and not powerful enough)
$250 annual heating maintenance warranty/contract
$300 to fix a broken part in my furnace
$250 on chimney cleaning (2 flues)
$500 to prune back shrubs/branches
$225 for 3 snow plowings
$270 for 6 lawn mowings

That's over $4k right there. Now add another several thousand to buy basic things you'll need for your house (shelving, curtains, etc..). Oh yeah, did I mention I also paid $3200 for a moving company? Easily $10k just to get started in this new house!
You may want to look into getting a home warranty on any home that you purchase. Out here in the southwest they are common to include and cover any unknown defect. Look at the one offered by the largest home warranty company.
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Old 01-07-2014, 08:23 AM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,523 posts, read 13,894,869 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cape Cod Todd View Post
Another thing is you will want an attorney that specialises in real estate. We once had a deal where the buyers attorney was dragging the process along. He was chosen by the buyer because he was a friend. We finally got a hold of the attorney and turns out he couldn't get to the paperwork because he was tied up in a murder case.
I agree with Todd. This is a common pitfall many real estate buyers & sellers fall into. They hire a general practitioner or someone who is a friend for their attorney and it just continually throws wrenches into the works. It's one thing to know the law. It's another to know how to use it. Just like a good agent, a good attorney (for this purpose) will be fully committed to working in real estate and will have the experience to know where you can be tripped up so as to prevent it.

Quote:
Originally Posted by jfitt View Post
You may want to look into getting a home warranty on any home that you purchase. Out here in the southwest they are common to include and cover any unknown defect. Look at the one offered by the largest home warranty company.
For some reason, home warranties just aren't that common out here. If they actually cover what they say they will, then they're a worthwhile investment. So, I'm not sure why they're not more widely accepted here.
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Old 01-07-2014, 09:54 AM
miu
 
Location: MA/NH
17,758 posts, read 40,005,634 times
Reputation: 18033
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
For some reason, home warranties just aren't that common out here. If they actually cover what they say they will, then they're a worthwhile investment. So, I'm not sure why they're not more widely accepted here.
I am suspicious of home warranties as I am of used car warranties and pet health insurance. Those companies aren't in the business of giving anything away for free. A much better way to manage your money is to put aside the amount asked for those warranties and insurance policies into a rainy day savings account.

I think that home warranties are more popular with people buying new or much younger homes that come with new or younger appliances. In New England, the housing stock is much older. My washer and dryer in the Newton house are almost 20 years old and still going strong. But I think that under a home warranty policy, they would only give me a pro-rated value for them if they ever broke. But anyway, I've definitely gotten my money's worth out of them many years ago.
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Old 01-07-2014, 10:10 AM
 
Location: Ohio
2,310 posts, read 6,788,254 times
Reputation: 1949
From the point of view of being a first time buyer last yr, I'd say start going to Open houses even before you are ready to buy to get educated on what you can get at your price point. This helps you recognize what properties on the market is asking a fair price or too much when it comes time to buy. If you moved from another part of the country where houses are more pretty and cheaper, you may spend a lot of time looking for something here that just won't happen... It can be like "WTF... can't believe this ugly 900 sq ft house with a dirt floor basement costs $400K", for example.

For me, I finally upped my target price after looking in the mid-300's for awhile. Also, I was not even considering townhouse style housing which gets me a newer house (better condition) for about the same price as a single family which would have needed a lot work/improvements. If I had my sights set broader, I may have found something much sooner.
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Old 01-07-2014, 10:13 AM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,523 posts, read 13,894,869 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by miu View Post
I think that home warranties are more popular with people buying new or much younger homes that come with new or younger appliances. In New England, the housing stock is much older. My washer and dryer in the Newton house are almost 20 years old and still going strong. But I think that under a home warranty policy, they would only give me a pro-rated value for them if they ever broke. But anyway, I've definitely gotten my money's worth out of them many years ago.
I'm not sure that a home warranty would cover an appliance that's not considered a fixture (a/k/a a part of the house) like laundry machines. I can't recall. I've sat through a couple of presentations from home warranty companies but no one has ever wanted one so I've never dealt with one and don't remember the particulars.

New Englanders do tend to be more educated consumers. So, it's entirely possible these warranties are not worth it if they're not popular in these parts.
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Old 01-07-2014, 03:53 PM
 
Location: Ohio
2,310 posts, read 6,788,254 times
Reputation: 1949
Quote:
Originally Posted by Parsec View Post
Definitely agree with this one. I moved into my house less than half a year ago and have already spent the following on just maintenance:

$1600 to fix a water main break
$450 to fix a broken skylight
$450 to install 2 bathroom vent fans (the old ones were 30 years old and not powerful enough)
$250 annual heating maintenance warranty/contract
$300 to fix a broken part in my furnace
$250 on chimney cleaning (2 flues)
$500 to prune back shrubs/branches
$225 for 3 snow plowings
$270 for 6 lawn mowings

That's over $4k right there. Now add another several thousand to buy basic things you'll need for your house (shelving, curtains, etc..). Oh yeah, did I mention I also paid $3200 for a moving company? Easily $10k just to get started in this new house!
Parsec, Thank You for sharing this... great info for newbie homeowners on what to expect to pay for various out-of-the-blue repairs. [wish I can give you a rep but the system won't allow]

For my first year of owning my Townhouse, here is my recollection:

Pruned back shrubs/trees myself. Took 40+ hrs for a really small yard. The lawn guy quoted us $200 to do 1/10th of what I did.

Never needed to call in professions to repair anything since I did various small fixes on my own. What I spent were like 15 bucks here, $20 there for supplies - probably under $1000 so far.

Example of what I spent:
- Replaced all toilet flappers
- weatherstripping for doors, caulking
- new door locks
- paint and supplies that I plan to use
- new energy efficient light bulbs
- new snowblower
- various gardening tools, etc.

Also, just discovered how to clean off the green moss on the exterior vinyl siding. I used Simple Green and 30 mins later the entire front area was clean like new. Now I just need to buy something long enough to reach the 2nd story. This would've cost hundreds (one of the neighbor wanted to hire someone to pressure wash and the bill was $1000+ split 3 ways).

A small surprise is how costly the lawn upkeep is. We have a lawn mowing guy who comes around more than we really need @ $40 per mow. Then the mulching in Spring, leave cleanup in Fall etc. probably added up to $1000+ between our 3 units and this is for a really tiny yard. I also purchased fertilizer and extra soil/seed to patch up the bald areas (these were pretty pricey as well). Come next yr, I'll try shopping around for the mulching and leaves cleanup since I think our lawn guy is gorging us knowing no one has complained about his fees.
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Old 01-07-2014, 04:07 PM
miu
 
Location: MA/NH
17,758 posts, read 40,005,634 times
Reputation: 18033
^^^ Yup. It helps to be really handy. Our house in NH was built in 1919, and it's a well built house but sat empty for 16 years. Luckily, my boyfriend has been able to fix most of the issues himself. And a good friend from Maine hooked us up with his special roofer (they went to high school together) so our barn roof leak was fixed for a very minimal cost.

I think that buying any sort of real estate has to be approached like buying a used car. Expect to have to fix a few things, no matter how well the home inspection went. And be ready for the unexpected. There is no such thing as a maintenance free home.
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Old 01-09-2014, 01:20 AM
 
404 posts, read 1,188,233 times
Reputation: 320
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
I agree with Todd. This is a common pitfall many real estate buyers & sellers fall into. They hire a general practitioner or someone who is a friend for their attorney and it just continually throws wrenches into the works. It's one thing to know the law. It's another to know how to use it. Just like a good agent, a good attorney (for this purpose) will be fully committed to working in real estate and will have the experience to know where you can be tripped up so as to prevent it.



For some reason, home warranties just aren't that common out here. If they actually cover what they say they will, then they're a worthwhile investment. So, I'm not sure why they're not more widely accepted here.
I get that as I lived in Worcester for 55 years. Think it is Yankee skepticism

We use them in the SW/W and they really cover everything as long as there was no known defects prior to the policy purchase. Actually, most realtors in Nevada take advantage of these and have the seller add them when their homes are listed. These warranties have saved many a homeowner during this time.
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