You Want to Buy a House, Now What?

You Want to Buy a House, Now What?

Buyers have questions, lots of questions, especially first time

buyers but that is to be expected. Educating yourself before

you purchase your first home is essential. Everyone that ever

bought a home for the first time remembers the thrill and the

trepidation that accompanies that first home you call your own.

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This link to 100 basic home buyer questions & answers

from the US Housing and Urban Development site has lots of

basic information.

The site above just covers the most basic questions and answers.

If you need specific answers to your questions, we would be happy

to answer them for you. As a seasoned real estate agent, years

of experience in real estate has given me lots of time in the trenches

of real estate transactions.  We have run into just about every situation

and have the skills and expertise to advise you through many unique

situations.

We have developed relationships with trustworthy lenders

and mortgage professionals, inspectors, and other professions

associated with home buying and home maintenance.

Buyers have the upper hand in this market, and you just might

be able to buy more house than you thought possible.

Additional Michigan Homeownership Resources

How Much House Can I Afford?

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The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate,

the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West

Michigan. Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan

area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services,

numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

search for Grand Rapids homes Find Grand Rapids Home Value Grand Rapids Relocation Guide

Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

Contact Terry   616-292-7263

OUR FLICKR PHOTOSTREAM

Why You Should Buy a House Video

Why You Should Buy a House Video

If you are renting and sharing an apartment with room-mates, this video will give

you a few laughs. It might inspire you to buy a home and take advantage of the

First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit up to $8000.  There are still bargains to be

had and home inventories are still fairly high.  Overall home prices are down

to 1998 levels but we have seen keen competition on well priced homes in great condition.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2nC4g_fAp8&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0]

Contact me for details about this program.

1-888-240-1968 ext 0

Video courtesy of Michigan Association of Realtors

_____________________________________________________________________________

The authors of the this blog write about Grand Rapids Real Estate,

the Greater Grand Rapids MI area, and what it is like to live in West

Michigan. Grand Rapids Michigan is a vibrant, growing metropolitan

area with a diverse business community, great medical research & services,

numerous universities, plus lively arts and entertainment of all kinds.

We believe: Grand Rapids is a Great Place to Live!

ar125812212017642 Foto Friday – What Were They Thinking? ar125812218972939 Foto Friday – What Were They Thinking? ar125812225271331 Foto Friday – What Were They Thinking?

Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate

Contact Terry   616-292-7263

OUR FLICKR PHOTOSTREAM

Diary of Buying a HUD-Owned Home = Patience

In February we received a call on a property that had been foreclosed on

by HUD (Housing & Urban Development).  The buyer was looking to

purchase the house and rehab the property.  When we met the buyer,

his thoughts were to purchase it and put  his daughter in as a tenant.

This sounded like a great idea and after looking as his 401k, he decided

a smart use of what money he still had in his account.

In Michigan the process to buy a HUD-owned home is similar to a

number of states.    The offer is presented on line -  if you are successful

in your bid you have 24 hours to supply the paperwork to the attorney

firm that is handling the process.

All went quite well and HUD accepted our offer on the property.

HUD-owned house

Now we wanted to do inspections. As is typical in vacant HUD properties, we

need to turn the utilities on to do the inspections. The local power company

would not turn the power on  until an electrical upgrade was completed.

We called the attorney firm and they indicated another department in Arizona

took care of that. It would take a few days to get the quotes in to authorize

the upgrade. As it turns out, they need  3 quotes and the guy in Arizona

only had 2 approved contractors. After a few weeks of waiting we did our

own quote and called the attorney and asked if we could do the upgrade

at no cost to HUD and then do our inspections.

electrical wires cut

The answer: No, they would not allow anyone in the house that was not

approved.

I went through the layers of management to get to a supervisor that

indicated he "was all over this" and he would make it happen. Another

month of phone calls and frustration finally got the bids in and received

a call from another department.

This department indicated the bids were in but now they had to check

with HUD to see if they would do the work since all properties were

purchased "as is". I asked why they did not mention that we would not

have the opportunity to do our inspections before we had gone through

nearly 3 months of waiting.

 

HUD foreclosure notice

He did not have an answer but would get back to us.

Finally approved but the approved contractor could not get to the job

for a while.

The buyer, totally frustrated by now, decided he still wanted the property.

With nearly  3 months of phone calls and lack of action by HUD, he

offered to buy the home without inspections, if  they would give a

credit at close for the electrical repairs.

The calls were made and the approval granted. FINALLY!!!

Now we have 3 days to get the home closed before the offer expires.

If not closed in 3 days, we would have to file for an extension of the

agreement which might cost the buyer because he had not closed in

a timely manner.

We did close on the last possible day without too much issue.

Why do we do this?

Because the buyer is so happy!  The Buyer’s daughter actually bought

the  home and has a mortgage from the parents so she can get the

"First Time Buyer Home Credit".

They are happily cleaning and preparing to move in to the home. 

The electric is upgraded and the repairs are being completed.

The moral of the story:

In this housing market, buyers that never would have been able

to buy can own a home ——- if they have patience to go through

the process.

**Having a parent or relative fund the mortgage is another option

to a bank  mortgage.

 

The $ Benefits of the First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit

Buying Foreclosed Homes is NOT FUN

 

If you have the patience to buy a HUD-owned home or a foreclosure

Home, please contact us at 1-888-240-1968 ext 0 or email us at:

terry@terrywestbrook.com

Grand Rapids Ada Real Estate ~ Westbrook Realty

Copyright 2009 All rights reserved

Are You the Perfect Neighbor?

Most of us have neighbors. You know, those folks who make your neighborhood a great place to live.  They wave at you when you are walking the dog or driving by.

neighborhoodThey keep their house in good repair.

 They paint the siding when it needs it.

 They put on a new roof before the old one gets so bad, the roof leaks. 

 They keep their lawn mowed.

They rake their leaves before winter snows bury them or before they all blow over to your yard.

They offer to watch your dog if you go out of town for a few days. 

  

 If you have really good neighbors, they shovel your snowy walk if you have the flu.painted houses

They walk their dog with their doggie bag

They agree to cook your turkey if  your stove dies the night before Thanksgiving and you are hosting your horde of  relatives.  

 Their daughter will babysit on short notice and New Year’s Eve!

They hold the flashlight for you when you get to gabbing and forget to mow the lawn until after dark.  

 They don’t get angry when your son gets his first bow and arrow set and shoots them in the leg (by accident).  

Most of us have neighbors.  Neighbors make your neighborhood a great place to live.     

 

 

Westbrook Realty Grand Rapids MI Real Estate   

Copyright by Terry Westbrook 2008

    Contact me: 1-888-240-1968 x 0   toll free  

    Email:  terry@TerryWestbrook.com

Photos courtesy of flickr – zapping your neighborhood by hp19 &  there goes the neighborhood by Orrin