Builder Lookup - Who built my place? (HOA, loan)

[scuba steve]

With all this builder talk, I'm really curious who built my place. It's not a regular subdivision where a single developer did it all. My paperwork just says "Custom-built." All I know is that the parade of homes was in the neighborhood twice in the early '90s. Are there any county records offices I could swing by to try and figure this out? There have to be construction records out there somewhere, and I have a pretty good idea about the time of year it was built in. Thanks for helping me satisfy my curiosity!

[ShaneSA]

You should have gotten a deed at closing. The deed will detail the property, including who built it and when. If you do not have the deed the title company where you closed will have a copy of the closign and a deed will be in the papers.

[scuba steve]

Thanks, I'll be sure to check the stuff at closing (I haven't closed yet; its less than two weeks away). I did get a ton of survey-related stuff from back in the '80s when they divided up the land but didn't notice anything in there.

The reason I'm curious is just because... I'm curious. I wonder if they're still in business, who they were, if the house was on the tour which I doubt since it was built in '92 and it looks like the parade skipped that year.

But thanks a bunch, I'll look into the papers after closing on the 23rd.

[ShaneSA]

If your concerned about anything, you have the right to review all the papers, including the deed before closing. Most people just take everything at closing and sign thier life away. You can ask to review everything, including financials and deed documents before the day of closing.
The survey should also list who the land owner was and how it was divided into plots. I like looking at that stuff. It's always such good history.
Congrats on a new home, enjoy it.

[scuba steve]

That's what I did the first time I bought - just sign at the line a bunch of times and walk away with a big bundle of papers that I filed away never to look at again.

I'll have to peek at the survey to see what that says. I had a good time reading the great big stack o' stuff so far. This is actually the first time that I've read through HOA paperwork and didn't find anything overly intrusive in there. They had common sense about fencing and roofing, even. Amazing that they acknowledged that fences can in fact be made from something other than wood, and that roofing technology might change over the years so various types are ok.

Financials were the most interesting. It looks like the current owners 100% financed the place unless they overpaid (assuming appreciation has been 4-6% / year over the last 4 years), and took out a $25K loan on it less than a year ago. Taking into account seller-paid closing costs and 3% for the buyer and seller's agent they're walking away with $10K if they're lucky. The thing is, the house has been on the market for a year so they had to pay PITI and utilities while dropping the price ~$50K over time. Moral of the story... price your place right when you hit the market because holding costs over time can get pretty big.