House hunting--deal breakers (building, houses, neighborhood, California)
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I wouldn't want that either but we don't have it here.
I don't have an HOA, but I pay an average of $120/month for lawn care plus $42/month gym fees. So on the surface, if an HOA had a gym and took care of the lawn, $160/month sounds OK. But I guess I'm a cranky old lady because I prefer handling these things myself. I like having the choice of who to hire for the yard, and what gym to go to. So, I prefer no HOA and they aren't very common down here anyway.
it is ironic isn't it......the public speaks, says no more astounding property tax increases and the legislature "creates" a new source of funding.
I wouldn't want that either but we don't have it here.
I don't have an HOA, but I pay an average of $120/month for lawn care plus $42/month gym fees. So on the surface, if an HOA had a gym and took care of the lawn, $160/month sounds OK. But I guess I'm a cranky old lady because I prefer handling these things myself. I like having the choice of who to hire for the yard, and what gym to go to. So, I prefer no HOA and they aren't very common down here anyway.
two story
steep lot or steep road leading to house
too close to noisy commercial areas or major roads
tight kitchen
a house that needs major upgrades in the kitchen or bath
poorly maintained home
inefficient floor plan
family room too small for our furniture
These things were all considerations for various homes we looked at.
There's definitely a story (or several) here. Wait, let me get the popcorn......Ok, I'm ready. Can you share? We're house hunting right now and I'd love to hear about the emotional sellers you've had the misfortune to stumble across. 😁
Lol.
Here is one about 3 months ago. Husband and wife divorcing. (Found out later)
560 asking price.
I offered
550k 20 down and 30 day escrow. Good job no issues closing. I pay my closing/costs they pay theirs (I though I was reasonable) house needed some work but it fit our wants.
They came back with
559,500
60 day escrow
Release of property 8 days after escrow close with no out of pocket cost on their side (they wanted enough time to move. I guess 60 day escrow wasn't enough)
AND
escrow timeline to start after they find a house to buy. I inquired about the expected timeline of finding a house. they came back wanted a open ended timeline as they each had to secure independent housing
Totally crazy. I just thanked them for their time. (They came back two times offering same terms but took $500 off the price each time. I finally told my agent to ignore any more contact as I will not be purchasing)
Went to see this one house week ago. Made appointment got there on time. Was looking outside from the driveway. Homeowner pulled up in a really mad aggressive way. Gave me a look. But I dont GAF and really don't intimidate easily. So I walked in the house. House was nice but his body language simply said i'm not selling. Started talking to him. Ends up the house was his dream home. Wife wanted to move to Hawaii or some far away land.
And this guy was just mad and standoffish. I didn't even bother bidding.
first house is still for sale. The second was pulled.
Some things that are listed here as deal breakers are things that would prevent me from ever looking at a house in the first place, like location. The first think I can think of that would be a deal breaker is a busy street, front or back, a tiny yard, or a garage that's too small.
Lol.
Here is one about 3 months ago. Husband and wife divorcing. (Found out later)
560 asking price.
I offered
550k 20 down and 30 day escrow. Good job no issues closing. I pay my closing/costs they pay theirs (I though I was reasonable) house needed some work but it fit our wants.
They came back with
559,500
60 day escrow
Release of property 8 days after escrow close with no out of pocket cost on their side (they wanted enough time to move. I guess 60 day escrow wasn't enough)
AND
escrow timeline to start after they find a house to buy. I inquired about the expected timeline of finding a house. they came back wanted a open ended timeline as they each had to secure independent housing
Totally crazy. I just thanked them for their time. (They came back two times offering same terms but took $500 off the price each time. I finally told my agent to ignore any more contact as I will not be purchasing)
Went to see this one house week ago. Made appointment got there on time. Was looking outside from the driveway. Homeowner pulled up in a really mad aggressive way. Gave me a look. But I dont GAF and really don't intimidate easily. So I walked in the house. House was nice but his body language simply said i'm not selling. Started talking to him. Ends up the house was his dream home. Wife wanted to move to Hawaii or some far away land.
And this guy was just mad and standoffish. I didn't even bother bidding.
first house is still for sale. The second was pulled.
Wow, thank you--I needed that. Very entertaining! I think I need to add emotional sellers to my list of deal breakers.
I have some house hunting stories to share, but I'm going to start a new thread. This could be really therapeutic.
My deal breakers were and I wouldn't even go look at the home/houses:
no swimming pool
must have an attached garage
basement access without having to walk through the house, I wanted to come in the house and be able to access the basement from garage door entrance
1st floor laundry
gas heat and central air conditioning
NO septic system
NO well water
NO corner lot
must have sidewalks
NO ridiculous HOA's~
We ended up with a decent HOA~not terribly restrictive and maintains green space, entrances and cul de sac landscaping, pays for street lights, keeps people from parking recreational vehicles on their property. When there is a good board we have a proactive voice with the township/municipality in which we reside. Dues are less than $100 year.
I wouldn't want that either but we don't have it here.
I don't have an HOA, but I pay an average of $120/month for lawn care plus $42/month gym fees. So on the surface, if an HOA had a gym and took care of the lawn, $160/month sounds OK. But I guess I'm a cranky old lady because I prefer handling these things myself. I like having the choice of who to hire for the yard, and what gym to go to. So, I prefer no HOA and they aren't very common down here anyway.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cargoman
it is ironic isn't it......the public speaks, says no more astounding property tax increases and the legislature "creates" a new source of funding.
But the proper people are paying for it now.
In a nutshell, to summarize this part of it, if a new development came to town, frequently it placed a burden on the existing infrastructure with new or expanded roads, libraries, schools, etc. Previously, they just raised the property taxes in the whole town to pay for it. Part of the argument that lead to the passage of Prop 13 was the existing homeowners should not have to pay for the new schools to be built in the new neighborhood that their kids were not even going to attend, or roads that lead to the new development. etc.
Mello Roos basically says the new developer has to pay for any infrastructure that the development needs. Sometimes they take out bonds, maybe 10 or 20 year duration, and stick the new homeowner with them. At least the homeowner knows he is paying the bond when he is buying the house. Sometimes the developer just pays them and adds the cost to the price of the house. But existing homeowners are not stuck paying for something that a new neighborhood requires.
Sometimes, they are not that big a deal. It might show up as a $600 yearly expense but there may only be a year or two left on the bond. That is peanuts on a $800,000 house. It needs to be evaluated when buying, not avoided at all costs.
Sometimes, they are not that big a deal. It might show up as a $600 yearly expense but there may only be a year or two left on the bond. That is peanuts on a $800,000 house. It needs to be evaluated when buying, not avoided at all costs.
If mello roos taxes were that cheap around here, it wouldn't be a deterrent to own a home burdened with them. "Cheap" is $180 per month. That's what it would have cost us if we purchased this place at $450K that we're currently renting. But some of the new developments have mello roos as high as $900 per month. The bond is supposed to be paid off in theory, but in practice rarely is.
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