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Old 01-09-2014, 03:24 PM
miu
 
Location: MA/NH
17,762 posts, read 40,025,663 times
Reputation: 18060

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Quote:
Originally Posted by jfitt View Post
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.
Well, these companies selling the home warranties are doing to make profit, not to lose money. The majority of homes covered by these policies are never going to need to file claims.

Also even if a homeowner is happy about being able to file a claim and get a payout, they should add up how much they've been paying all along with their monthly premiums before anything broke.

It's just like having a winning scratch ticket. Unless you hit a truly big jackpot, most likely the small winnings are not covering the cost of all the losing tickets ever bought.
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Old 01-09-2014, 07:26 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,525 posts, read 13,910,379 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by miu View Post
Well, these companies selling the home warranties are doing to make profit, not to lose money. The majority of homes covered by these policies are never going to need to file claims.

Also even if a homeowner is happy about being able to file a claim and get a payout, they should add up how much they've been paying all along with their monthly premiums before anything broke.

It's just like having a winning scratch ticket. Unless you hit a truly big jackpot, most likely the small winnings are not covering the cost of all the losing tickets ever bought.
I think you could say that about any kind of insurance or warranty. If you buy in (or not) you're playing the odds one way or another. Sometimes you don't have a choice like health insurance and sometimes you do have a choice like an extended warranty on your TV. Sometimes you make out by buying the insurance/warranty and sometimes you don't.
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Old 01-10-2014, 09:02 PM
 
28 posts, read 42,927 times
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Wow, thank you all for your thoughtful advice. I am sorry I've been off for a few days, working extra to get those savings to a better number! . I totally agree with not spending everything that the bank tells me that I can; after all, the bank is not going to take into account paying daycare for 2 kids, which can add up to $3000/mo. That makes a big difference. I think I will add an extra step, which is meeting with a financial planner. It's something we were thinking of doing anyway, trying to plan for retirement/college savings, etc. Now it seems like a good time to get our long term financial plans in order. I also got a reference for an agent who worked with a friend of mine, and who sounds like a great person, so I'll meet with her and see how that goes. You are also right that it really depends on the RE agent, if I trust him/her then I have no problem following their recommendations for attorneys, inspectors, etc. Then it's time to go to some open houses. Whew. Buying a house is another full time job!
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Old 01-11-2014, 09:49 AM
 
1,768 posts, read 3,220,332 times
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Sorry, if someone already mentioned it. I did not read through the whole thread.
Some might say I am giving you an impossible advice but please consider it, and if you can a. read "Two Income Trap" book; b. try to buy on one salary or as close to one salary if at all possible; that will give you (and your mate) so much more freedom and flexibility, plus be huge silver lining if something bad happens. You do not need both parents on a forced hamster wheel/rat race if at all possible. If you buy very conservatively, but still can bring in two incomes, you are golden.
Hope it helps.
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Old 01-11-2014, 11:26 AM
miu
 
Location: MA/NH
17,762 posts, read 40,025,663 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
Sometimes you make out by buying the insurance/warranty and sometimes you don't.
No. It's more like once in a while you make out buying that sort of insurance, but mostly the majority of the buyers never ever need it. It's not a 50/50 proposition. Again, the insurance companies are there for the profits. They'd quickly go out of business if the payouts were more than what they take in for the insurance premiums.
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Old 01-11-2014, 11:28 AM
 
613 posts, read 937,682 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kvader View Post
We are slowly getting ready to dip our toes in the scary process of home buying. We have zero experience with home buying and find even car buying stressful. I've already learned a lot by reading the forum - hire your own "team", don't rely of the RE agent to do it for you!
You definitely need to find a good home inspector; & don't just rely on the RE agent to recommend one--maybe unless you have a really good agent; but that's a whole other issue that can be difficult. There have been discussions here before about good home inspectors--if you give the area you're looking in, people may have suggestions.

BTW, the [i]best[/I,] & the very worst, home inspectors I ever encountered were recommended by 2 different agents. The bad one was the agent's "buddy", & almost completely useless (for $460). He is however with one of those big inspection cos. on the N. shore that a lot of agents recommend. The really good home inspector I had is in Maine tho.

Someone suggested going to a lot of open houses--YES!--do that--go to dozens--make every weekend about that. Amongst other things; you'll learn about neighborhoods & towns. Also--you need to get to where you can ID obvious problems with the house yourself. How old does the roof look--old, brand new, etc.? Does the heating system look like it was leftover from the Titanic, or new-ish? Water problems in the basement? Modern electrical, or an old fuse box? A lot of things are obvious. (I'm not saying not to get a home inspector tho if you buy).
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Old 01-11-2014, 02:31 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,525 posts, read 13,910,379 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by kvader View Post
You are also right that it really depends on the RE agent, if I trust him/her then I have no problem following their recommendations for attorneys, inspectors, etc. Then it's time to go to some open houses. Whew. Buying a house is another full time job!
If you hire an agent and at some point you decide you wouldn't trust them to recommend a home inspector then you should fire them. You want to work with someone you can trust entirely.

Quote:
Originally Posted by miu View Post
No. It's more like once in a while you make out buying that sort of insurance, but mostly the majority of the buyers never ever need it. It's not a 50/50 proposition. Again, the insurance companies are there for the profits. They'd quickly go out of business if the payouts were more than what they take in for the insurance premiums.
I never said it was a 50/50 proposition. With these companies it's all a numbers game. The majority of policy buyers will make claims sometimes at all and sometimes not in excess of what they've paid in premium. I can't recall exactly, but I think the average cost for a home warranty is around $600/year. If your boiler breaks that could be a $10K repair. If you have warranty in this situation you've made out like a bandit. If you don't, you certainly didn't save enough money to pay for the repair.

A person has to decide what's the best situation for them. If everything in your house is brand new, it probably doesn't make sense to buy a warranty. If you live in an older house where all the systems are as old as the house, the odds may be more in your favor that a home warranty would make sense.

Quote:
Originally Posted by WoodyWW View Post
BTW, the best[/I,] & the very worst, home inspectors I ever encountered were recommended by 2 different agents. The bad one was the agent's "buddy", & almost completely useless (for $460). He is however with one of those big inspection cos. on the N. shore that a lot of agents recommend. The really good home inspector I had is in Maine tho.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that you weren't (home inspector recommendation aside) 100% happy in general with the agent who recommended the bad home inspector. I don't have a problem with someone recommending their "buddy" or a relative who's in the business whether that's a plumber, home inspector, attorney, garbage man, or whatever. What I do have a problem is when people recommend someone based solely on their personal relationship with them and not at all based on the quality of their work.
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