251 replies to this topic

[Rize]

Good point. Also, I just realized the PMI is no longer required once you've got 20% of the principle paid off. I could make extra large payments for the first year and get the principle up to 20% quickly. So I guess that isn't an issue anymore.

i think you can also get rid of it by refinancing if your home value increases - they'll count the increased value as equity. i think (?)

I wonder if it would be beneficial to work with multiple real-estate agents. After my first/previous car buying experience, I'm incredibly wary of commissioned sales people.

you're too cynical. i don't think any self-respecting realtor would go for that. while i'm sure there are bad apples, i know that there are lots of good ones, too - and it's an industry that runs on referrals. if somebody feels like they got screwed it's not good for business. i don't even know you, and i'm sure you know enough people to find a reliable and trustworthy reference.

Don't be so sure. I'd probably end up with the realtor whose name is on the sign of the first property I want to look at

Oh well I am too far from that point to worry about it right now.

even if you dont intentionally go through multiple real estate agents you probably will anyways. if you have an agent that is not showing you what you want to see then you get a better one, and sometimes you have to do that more than once. i think that's the nature of the game.

word to what jacki said. i was specifically saying don't try to work with two at the exact same time.

well, certainly I wouldn't try to approach the same property/homeowner via two different real estate agents. I might consider two different properties with two different agents.

[Rize]

So I saw some listings for houses with pools (in ground) and did some reading up on that possibility. Looks a bit daunting. You have to take care of the water every day (ph testing and balancing) or the plaster will deteriorate. Besides the cost of chemicals, there's the time investment. An aging pool will actually decrease the value of a house (as it needs to be either fixed or removed). But a still usable pool might be totally worth it for a few years. Anyone have any experience owning a pool (especially an in ground pool)?

[Tony]

So I saw some listings for houses with pools (in ground) and did some reading up on that possibility. Looks a bit daunting. You have to take care of the water every day (ph testing and balancing) or the plaster will deteriorate. Besides the cost of chemicals, there's the time investment. An aging pool will actually decrease the value of a house (as it needs to be either fixed or removed). But a still usable pool might be totally worth it for a few years. Anyone have any experience owning a pool (especially an in ground pool)?

i have a pool. i've never, ever, tested the ph.

[Rize]

So I saw some listings for houses with pools (in ground) and did some reading up on that possibility. Looks a bit daunting. You have to take care of the water every day (ph testing and balancing) or the plaster will deteriorate. Besides the cost of chemicals, there's the time investment. An aging pool will actually decrease the value of a house (as it needs to be either fixed or removed). But a still usable pool might be totally worth it for a few years. Anyone have any experience owning a pool (especially an in ground pool)?

i have a pool. i've never, ever, tested the ph.

I guess your pool will eventually fall apart then

No, I don't know. Maybe the articles I read are blowing things out of proportion. I just read that the ph has to be within a certain range for the chlorine to work well (the purpose of that is to kill algae). Also, if the ph becomes too acidic, it can (slowly over time) deteriorate the pumps (and I read somewhere else the plaster walls/floor of the pool).

*shrug* ... maybe it's not that big a deal. it doesn't sound like that big a deal to test ph now and then anyway. I'd probably do it at least once a week.

[Tony]

So I saw some listings for houses with pools (in ground) and did some reading up on that possibility. Looks a bit daunting. You have to take care of the water every day (ph testing and balancing) or the plaster will deteriorate. Besides the cost of chemicals, there's the time investment. An aging pool will actually decrease the value of a house (as it needs to be either fixed or removed). But a still usable pool might be totally worth it for a few years. Anyone have any experience owning a pool (especially an in ground pool)?

i have a pool. i've never, ever, tested the ph.

I guess your pool will eventually fall apart then

No, I don't know. Maybe the articles I read are blowing things out of proportion. I just read that the ph has to be within a certain range for the chlorine to work well (the purpose of that is to kill algae). Also, if the ph becomes too acidic, it can (slowly over time) deteriorate the pumps (and I read somewhere else the plaster walls/floor of the pool).

*shrug* ... maybe it's not that big a deal. it doesn't sound like that big a deal to test ph now and then anyway. I'd probably do it at least once a week.

chlorine impacts the ph. you put in enough chlorine, it kills algae. not enough, algae grows. i watched my dad do that measurement bullshit on a regular basis for years and the pool was always fucked up because he was constantly tinkering with it - adjusting the ph up or down by adding acids, etc., and trying to get it "perfect". when he finally gave up and just started letting the chlorine do it's work, the pool leveled out and has been fine ever since. i applied that logic to our pool and it's been fine. and not overly-chlorinated either.

the only time it turned green was when the filter was broken due to a mechanical issue (which was totally unrelated to the chemicals). i'm more concerned about the white hot fury of the sun on my pumps/plaster than any chemicals.

oh, and yes, my pool will eventually fall apart - but that's because it was poorly designed and installed, not because i don't measure my ph.

[Rize]

*shrug* I guess if I end up with a pool I'll find out the hard way. Would be sweet to have a pool though

[jeremx]

*shrug* I guess if I end up with a pool I'll find out the hard way. Would be sweet to have a pool though

that's the one regret i have about the house we bought. no pool. we did some pricing after we moved in last summer and it was just too expensive to have one put in. we've looked at some of the fancier above ground ones but i'm not too sure about those yet. i've had the crappy above ground ones and they're fun for a bit but they get really dirty really fast. they have some now that you can bury though and put a little deck around it. apparently that'd run closer to $5k instead of $35k to have a full size plaster pool built.

[Rize]

Yeah, I don't think I could justify adding one from scratch, but when I go house hunting, I might as well check out some houses that already have one.

[jeremx]

Yeah, I don't think I could justify adding one from scratch, but when I go house hunting, I might as well check out some houses that already have one.

i definitely would. i wouldn't make it a deal-breaker if you found an otherwise bad-ass house but both my gf and i are pretty bummed that we don't have one. we've got neighbors who do though and they don't mind us crashing so it could be worse.

[Rize]

I'm afraid I won't be able to afford a bad ass house anyway. But I'm really not sure what I'll be getting into. All I've done so far is look at listings and square footages and acres, but I don't know what the insides of these houses look like. There are houses in my neighborhood (the one I'm renting in) selling for less than 200k with 4 bedrooms, and 3 bedroom houses selling for 300k (that don't appear to have an extraordinary amount of square feet or acres). Most of the houses are old, so maybe the really expensive few were knocked down and completely rebuilt. And of course, there are a couple of mansion lots in the subdivision that are 2 or 3 times the size of an ordinary lot... not counting those.

[Tony]

I'm afraid I won't be able to afford a bad ass house anyway. But I'm really not sure what I'll be getting into. All I've done so far is look at listings and square footages and acres, but I don't know what the insides of these houses look like. There are houses in my neighborhood (the one I'm renting in) selling for less than 200k with 4 bedrooms, and 3 bedroom houses selling for 300k (that don't appear to have an extraordinary amount of square feet or acres). Most of the houses are old, so maybe the really expensive few were knocked down and completely rebuilt. And of course, there are a couple of mansion lots in the subdivision that are 2 or 3 times the size of an ordinary lot... not counting those.

have you looked at any sites like zillow.com? most everything for sale (officially listed) is going to have tons of pictures of the inside. it's not the same as seeing it in person, obviously, but it's a free way to get an idea if the place is a shithole or not.

[Rize]

I'm afraid I won't be able to afford a bad ass house anyway. But I'm really not sure what I'll be getting into. All I've done so far is look at listings and square footages and acres, but I don't know what the insides of these houses look like. There are houses in my neighborhood (the one I'm renting in) selling for less than 200k with 4 bedrooms, and 3 bedroom houses selling for 300k (that don't appear to have an extraordinary amount of square feet or acres). Most of the houses are old, so maybe the really expensive few were knocked down and completely rebuilt. And of course, there are a couple of mansion lots in the subdivision that are 2 or 3 times the size of an ordinary lot... not counting those.

have you looked at any sites like zillow.com? most everything for sale (officially listed) is going to have tons of pictures of the inside. it's not the same as seeing it in person, obviously, but it's a free way to get an idea if the place is a shithole or not.

I had been using realtor.com. They appear to have listings from all realtors in the area and they have the pictures and such. I guess I should take a closer look at the pictures and make notes about square footage, acres, location and the apparent quality of the house.

I'm still trying to figure out how living space (in square feet) is calculated. Found this about page but a few of the terms are fuzzy: http://homebuying.ab...are_footage.htm

[jeremx]

This dude did a crazy bang-up job on our yard. Seriously, I think he underquoted and overworked because he went way above and beyond what he charged us. I'm guessing he didn't realize just how much work our yard was going to be but he totally knocked it out and it looks amazing. Highly recommended! http://snipsnipmowandclip.com/

oh yeah.. hi.. started the new position and i don't have much time to surf anymore. you'll likely see most posts from me around 3 in the morning when i start my new shift friday night. :-/

[Rize]

So much for home ownership. I just signed a rental agreement for a new apartment with a 13 month lease beginning in November

Maybe in 2013. Besides, after doing more research, it's really pretty crazy to buy a house before you have that 20% down payment. The monthly note is much higher because you owe more principle and interest and you also have to carry special insurance of 75 to 150 a month until you pay the principle down to 80% or less the value of the house.

[fatguyaz]

hey y'all. Anyone know a real estate lawyer? I'd like to have someone look at some short sale paperwork.

My wife and i have been considering using this company: http://www.housingangels.com/

They broker a deal between an investor and a homeowner who has a mortgage/payment/loan that's too high and wants to short sale but wants to stay in that house. Then they broker a deal that lets you buy the house back from that investor at the end of two years (for 20% more than they purchased it from you) when your credit is repaired.
Anyone have any experience? Heard anything about them? I can't find any kind of scam reports about them, but it seems too good to be true...
Thoughts?