Underhanded REALORS (Montgomeryville, Montgomery: house, buyer, school)

[BLUEDIAMOND64]

LCT, I really enjoyed reading your post. You offered quite a bit of good information. Never thought of hiding the prescription drugs.....not like they are in plainview, but you are right people are nosy and looking around. Excellent point! Good info about medical facilities, after I was severely injured by a doctor up here, we make it a point to travel back to NY where the best exists. Also, you are so right about the qualified buyers. I am finding out that people come to realtors to say they can afford $350,000 for a house only to find out they can afford $200,000.

The Hat

[LCT]

Originally Posted by TheHighHat

LCT, I thought of the casing that you describe. Have you seen that much of it as a realtor?? That is scary but very true of the sign of the times. When we have a showing we follow them into every room and never leave anyone alone. If there are a lot of people my husband and I split up. I cover one floor and he covers the other.

Thanks for the heads up on the casing part of showings..........

The Hat

I'd like to take credit for the casing issue, but a friend of mine [who is a retired cop] told me it's getting to be a big deal around here with so many people trying to save money on commissions by selling their own home. As I stated earlier, at least in the warmer weather, I was told that these thieves work in pairs. One poses as a buyer and tours the house, making sure to unlock an easily accessibly from the outside window. [Lots of homes have those new, fancy replacement windows here that have those little "stops" you pull out to keep a burglar from opening the window more than 3-4 inches.] Then, either the so-called buyer comes back after dark or his/her partner does the deed. The "buyer" would have had an opportunity to see what goodies [DVD, computer, camera, etc] you had and exactly where they are plus probably good guesses about where other valuables are likely to be found. Don't forget, also, that a good selling feature of a home could well be a fancy alarm/security system that the broker would probably talk about [but hopefully doesn't explain in too much detail--that's my cop friend 'talking'].

For me, the only thing worse than getting robbed would be to get robbed while I was in the house!

It is just awful that we have to even think of these things never mind talk about them with each other. I live only 9 houses away from the local police station and have always felt quite safe as the patrol cars are up and down the street frequently. I was a little taken back this summer when one of the cops told me their personal cars are broken into right in the police station parking lot!

I really must stop reading crime novels and watching cop shows on TV.....
lol.

[Summering]

I think it is best to put things you want safe and not noticed into a locked closet. One that is just yours and you won't open.
I am afraid that if someone followed me all around a home I was looking to buy. I'd just not buy it. LOL..........I know, I know. I should not feel that way. But, that is how I feel in a store also. If I am being followed, or if someone is giving me the big sales pitch, I just walk away.
I want to leisurely look around. No one over my shoulder.
I have heard those stories, and mostly it was from TV, not personally anyones local story.
I think it is a good thing to think about. No one has to have access to a small closet you have locked and define as personal.
I am just never going to follow someone around.....( if I were to sell)
When I look ,I need to have quiet thinking, my mind is changing the paint, putting things of mine here and there.
I don't want to even have that feeling, that the homeowners would consider me a future robber of their home.........Yikes!

[ff18wife]

When we had our other house listed in NJ, our realtor said it was better if we weren't there...go take a walk, run to Walmart, etc...

Also he did say to lock up valuables. Usually, it took max 20 mins for people to walk through. Then again, that house was small...under 1000 sq ft so it wasn't like there was a lot to look at.

[Gretchen570]

Originally Posted by TheHighHat

Hey Gretchen, why would you tell people to wait until 2009 if the school district isn't that good and the neighbor is changing for the worst??? If people have the reasons to move they should, because there will come a time when they can't because of property values and school districts that are not favorable.

Hi Highhat,

I hear where you are coming from , believe me....and then some!!!!!!

The state laws actually "prohibit" realtors to say such things (a)(did you know that!?)
But dont think that I made those laws!!!!!
Yikes!
I am absolutely with you there.
I would encourage anyone who wants to move ..by all means!
What I was referring to indeed was in re to the actual forecast of the marketplace..
I have worked with people who have REIT's and alot at stake.
These forecasts come from experts in the field as to the economic climate.
Real estate in my opinion is never a bad investment..
unless you are talking about swampland !!!!
Of course there are exceptions,
every situation is different.
It has to be looked at as if you are in that persons shoes.

[BLUEDIAMOND64]

Hi Gretchen,

I misunderstood you. I am a little cranky dealing with some of these realtors. I wish I could have a hidden camera.....it might make for one of the funniest home videos. Winter is a good time to move, the average person can't see what is going on until the thaw....what do you think? I know the forecast isn't as rosy as it should be....but we all know when it is time to go! Thanks for the clarification.

[BLUEDIAMOND64]

FF, I hear what you are saying, but most of the time the realtor does not know anything about the house and therefore we answer all the questions the prospective buyers has. The other issue is that we have animals, and I certainly don't want to see any accidents so that is why we are home. There are only 2 agents allowed to show our home if we are not home so they usually call us and then go with the other realtor and prospective buyer.

[Gretchen570]

Originally Posted by LCT

Gretchen,

If I ever get my act together and move back to PA, can I hire you as my realtor?

It's been about 14 years since I've done any home buying but I can honestly say I'd rather go for root canals on every tooth in my mouth before I hook up with another realtor, lol. Present company excluded, realtors are right up their with sleasy used car salesmen in my book.

I want to ask did I see in this thread that in PA you do not lose your deposit if you back out of a sale? I live in MA and can tell you they hold your feet to the fire around here. When a buyer decides to put in an offer [written, of course] the buyer has to cough up a deposit. If I recall, it's not a huge amount. I think I had to write a check for $2K last time. The broker has 24 hours to get the offer to the seller via the seller's broker. If the two brokers can't get their act together, you can get your deposit returned but a fight usually ensues. The seller has 24 hours to accept/decline your offer or make a counter-offer via their broker & your broker, etc, etc. This goes on until either the seller accepts the offer or the buyer decides the price is too high. MA is quite strict about the time frames involved. I cannot recall exactly how things work if a second buyer puts in an offer but the first buyer gets their deposit back if they get outbid. If all goes well, the deposit is held in escrow and the buyer doesn't see the money again until the closing when everything gets tallied up. A buyer cannot just say "never mind" and walk away with their deposit.

BTW, around here, everyone recommends you revisit the house you're buying as close to the closing time as humanly possible. I can personally say I learned this the hard way when I bought my first house. I didn't go to my "new" house for about 4-5 days before the closing, and after the closing I was in for a rude surprise. The sellers had taken all kinds of things they weren't supposed to including light fixtures, digging up shrubs/plants in the yard, removing outdoor spotlights, and they swapped out the nice range that was in the kitchen for a piece of junk. The sellers also left so much garbage [literally, garbage] and junk that I had to hire a truck to haul it away. I had to use a shovel and rubber gloves to get some of it out of the house. The nicest touch was they'd let their dog crap all over the basement. I was only 24 years old and an immature 24 at that. I should have screamed and jumped up & down and threatened to sue but I didn't know any better, then.

I also learned not to close on a Friday. When whoever went to the Registry of Deeds after the closing [early Friday afternoon] they found a problem with the deed and all hell broke loose. I had no place to sleep Friday night and all my possessions were in various pickup trucks, cars, etc. [First house, bargain move, lol] It took months to resolve and a lot of grief. I dearly regret NOT suing both the broker and the seller because the entire problem had been caused by the seller years ago when he "appropriated" part of the adjoining lot [they owned both lots at the time] for a driveway. The seller was too cheap to have the two plot plans redrawn to show the change. He was an idiot, a cheap idiot.

I 100% agree about no lockboxes! Hardly anyone uses them around here any more because there's so many theft/B & E problems. Last time I sold, I also made it clear that no children under the age of 18 were to be allowed in my house. I'm slow, but I do learn. That caveat came about because the time before I happened to walk in on two brats leaping up & down on my brand new couch. They were having a grand time standing on the back of the couch, jumping onto the arms, then onto the cushions and then leaping mid-air onto my favorite recliner. The parents of these two were standing right there at the time as was their broker; none of them said one thing. I also had an incident with some little kid letting my parakeet out of his cage when I wasn't home. Then I had a hand-made [by my mom] beautiful cloth doll stolen along with an antique doll baby that was my mother's when she was little. Didn't the parents even wonder where these two dolls came from? Anyway, no more kids in my house and no more than one broker and one couple at a time during a showing. Anyone else and they can just wait outside or in their cars. People snoop in bureau drawers, etc, when your back is turned. When I sell next time, I'm sure I'll think of other restrictions because I have a lot more "stuff" now, lol.

I really want to move but the thought of going through all the nonsense just tuckers me right out. I could probably do a half-way decent job selling my home myself but I've heard horror stories about people posing as potential buyers and then casing the place or unlocking a window and later on, bingo--you get robbed.

Maybe I should just pack up personal items such as photographs and clothes and have an auctioneer come in and sell everything else, move, and start all over again some where else.

Decisions, decisions....I just want to move back to PA.....

I am so sorry to hear that you went through all of that!!!
There is alot to consider when you move,yet it does not have to be too perplexing.
In reference to deposits..every situation is different. It is in the fine print and you need to have a lawyer go over it sometimes, whether you hire a realtor or not.If you do not a mess can ensue(pardon the pun)..and not every realtor knows about this stuff either..just the facts ..
I have seen deposits kept with some of my clients.
If someone ties up your house and commits to buy it and it results in a forfeiture you can keep the deposit in certain circumstances.
This does get technical.It has variations.
Contract law and all that.
State Statutes.
As far as moving back..don't you like taxachussetts??
I have met some folks from MA.
Seriously though the folks here would be more than happy to sell you their homes.Some of them...
I would help you any way that I could..I am working very hard on a contract for the people at Dunkin Donuts right now. Right around Christmas that should be wrapped up. If you want I would be more than happy to help you to at least narrow down a few homes to look at.
Just lean back, close your eyes, and picture exactly what you want.
Then describe that to me.
I will do my very best to find you a property
and it does not necessarily have to be a LISTED property.
That is my specialty!
I do a walk through with my clients AND provide heavy stipulations in the contract so that if they do anything like you described they have to make compensation for it.(The fixtures,garbage,appliances,ect..) and the walk through is the EVENING or AFTERNOON prior to settlement.

Gretchen

[Gretchen570]

Originally Posted by TheHighHat

Hi Gretchen,

I misunderstood you. I am a little cranky dealing with some of these realtors. I wish I could have a hidden camera.....it might make for one of the funniest home videos. Winter is a good time to move, the average person can't see what is going on until the thaw....what do you think? I know the forecast isn't as rosy as it should be....but we all know when it is time to go! Thanks for the clarification.

Thanks Hat. Appreciate that, and LOL on the funniest videos!!
There are still plenty of buyers out there.The market is still there.

[LCT]

Originally Posted by Gretchen570

I am so sorry to hear that you went through all of that!!!
As far as moving back..don't you like taxachussetts??
I have met some folks from MA.
Seriously though the folks here would be more than happy to sell you their homes.Some of them...

Gretchen

Taxachusetts, lol!! I guess that's one of the worst kept secrets on the East Coast. Actually I was floored when I dug into what some places in PA have for taxes. I started my "search" in Pittsburgh and they pay, pay, pay. A relative has a decent size older home in Washington County (SW PA) and his taxes are over $6K. I just about fell off my chair.

MA probably passes PA if one added up all the little ala carte taxes [ever so cleverly hidden under the AKA of "fees"]. Pittsburgh and Allegheny County may charge a lot but at least they tell you what each little charge is for and where the money is going. Most of us around here figure it would be more equitable if, when we paid our assorted taxes/fees, we just had a politician's name to put on the check. It would be so much more efficient to just direct the money right to the appropriate political hack and eliminate the middle man.

I think I pretty much know what I want in a new house but my big problem is the where, not the what. My mom can't do the stairs at all any more so I'd definitely require a good-size bedroom & generous bathroom on the first floor. Between the two of us [we live in separate houses today], we have enough furniture to easily fill 8 rooms. We're both collectors of all kinds of stuff and I'm a pack rat of sorts so we need lots of storage space to stash what's not on display. I will not live where there's no city water/sewer. I'm tired of scraping ice/snow off my car, so I'll take a garage. Flood zones or areas prone to flooding are out. Blah, blah, blah.

When I get my act together, I'll have to send you my list of wants/don't want. I'm quite sure at my current pace, that nothing is going to happen until after the New Year. A brother who lives in Orlando thinks my mom & I are heading his way. When he comes home for Christmas I'm going to have to break it to him that I don't see FL in our future. He used to live in Lancaster and knows both my mom & I like that area. Except for the sometimes nasty weather, Lancaster is so centrally located: reasonable distance to Philly, Baltimore, Harrisburg, Hershey, Poconos, even NYC isn't too far via the train. If not Lancaster County, Pittsburgh here we come, lol.

I just know I can't survive here financially or mentally for too much longer. Property taxes are going up almost as fast as gasoline prices. Food costs are getting so bad that at this rate it will shortly be cheaper to eat our money. The only thing reasonable is electricity. My town has it's own electric company that's run more or less like a co-op and we have the cheapest rates in all of New England.

I've lived in MA almost 35 years and I still don't feel like I fit in. Unless you're born here, even if you've lived here for 60 years you're considered an outsider. I'm kind of like a square peg in a round hole.
I don't fall into line politically, I'm a Methodist, and, the worst sin is I like the National League, lol.

I'd like to thank all the new folks I "met" today for making me feel welcome. It's been a while since I've found nice, intelligent folks to chat with and it's enjoyable. Hopefully, I can continue to be a part of this forum. My birth certificate does say Commonwealth of PA, lol.
If I get out of line or get too blabby, just tell me to be quiet. I'm not usually this chatty.

Linda