Seller Financing Risks Require Due Diligence
A home owner asks about offering seller financing on a home he's selling. He wants to know what's involved in seller financing and who to involve in the transaction. First he needs to assess whether a potential home buyer will make the home mortgage payments and what to do if the buyer later stops…
Partnership Agreement Prevents Home Sale Woes
How do you split up the investment in a condo after it's sold? Two friends contributed to the condo's down payment but only one of their names is on the mortgage. How much of the proceeds are each of them entitled to after the sale? Can the friend who's not responsible for the mortgage claim a…
Home Buyer Protection In Short Sale
Is a home buyer protected if the home he bought in a short sale sustains fire damage prior to the closing? Ilyce helps a reader sort out what kind of protection the home buyer has in a short sale - when the home owner's insurer has the home owner make the repairs himself. The home buyer's best…
Housing Market Affects Steps To Sell Home
A home seller worries about her real estate agent changing her approach to selling a home. The real estate agent first said the home "shows well" and is now asking her to declutter her house. The housing market likely changes the approach the real estate agent takes. A good agent may change tactics…
Son Won't Give Up Property Rights
Parents should exercise caution when quit claiming property over to their children and take time to consider potential worst-case scenarios. This mother wants to sell her home but has added her son and daughter to the deed, and the son refuses to quit claim the home back to his mother. But in some…
High Mortgage Loans Worry Home Owner
A home owner has taken out several mortgage loans but is unsure of her home's value. She worries the home value won't be enough to refinance or sell and pay off the mortgage loans. How can she determine an accurate home value?
Seller Offering Home To Buyer Affects Commission
Most of the time, when you're selling your home, the buyer will come to you with an offer. In some cases, the seller proposes an offer to the buyer. Why would a seller offer his home to a buyer? How does a seller offering a home to a buyer affect a real estate agent's commission?
Second Mortgage Lender May Cause Short Sale To Fail
When you're selling a home and you have two mortgages, you have to work with both mortgage lenders. Your mortgage lenders are among the parties who negotiate a short sale. If one of the lenders who negotiates the short sale does not agree, the short sale may not occur. Second lien holders such as…
Does Seller Disclosure Include Rotten Neighbors?
When you buy a home, what does the seller have to tell you as part of seller disclosure? Does seller disclosure include rotten neighbors who are noisy and disruptive? Does a buyer in such a situation have recourse? You should contact a real estate attorney to understand seller disclosure laws for…
Homeownership With Contract For Deed
How a contract for deed and inheritance affect a home sale? Her parents bought a property using a contract for deed and she wonders whether the original seller can claim any of the money from the home sale. Sam and Ilyce advise that once the buyer satisfies the terms of the contract for deed, the…
Estate Planning May Include Quit Claim Deed Reversal
When you sign a quit claim deed to give a property to your children, your children will have the original cost basis of the property. The original cost basis may result in your children having to pay higher taxes when they go to sell the property. If your children want to sell your home and give you…
Home Buyer Or Home Seller Should Offer Real Estate Contract
A home seller asks whether he should approach a home buyer with the asking price for his home. The seller says the real estate agent wants him to approach the buyer. Ilyce asks whether the real estate agent represents both the buyer and the seller, as a dual agent. Ilyce also discusses why the real…
Real Estate Agent's Commission Can Be Reduced By Advertising Costs
A real estate agent writes that real estate commissions are reduced by real estate advertising costs. The real estate agent describes other costs that lower real estate commissions more. In addition to real estate advertising costs, real estate agents may have to split commissions with other agents…
Quit Claim Deed Transfers Cost Basis
Whenever a home owner transfers all or part of the ownership of a property using a quit claim deed, the person who they're transferring ownership to receives the property interest at the same cost basis that the home owner bought it for. While the percentage of ownership may vary, the cost basis…
Capital Gains Tax On First Home Sale
A home seller asks about paying capital gains tax on a home sale. The home seller thinks she and her husband may be exempt from paying capital gains tax. She is thinking of an old IRS rule. Now, the home seller will have to pay capital gains tax, although less if she's lived there two of the last…
Home Improvement Painting To Sell Your Home
When you're getting your house ready to sell, an easy way to update the look of your home is to paint a room. Painting is a simple way to give an old room a new look, and it can have a positive effect on buyers interested in your home. Here are some tips on how to save money and how much to budget…
Home Design To Sell Your Property
What's the impact of changing the design of the rooms in your home? Will changing the layout of the rooms in your home and their design change your ability to sell your home? Changing the layout or the design of the rooms of your home may help it to sell. You have to balance the cost of changing…
Home Inspector Inspects Fireplace Before Home Sale
A home inspector will inspect a fireplace as part of a home inspection. Home inspectors will check a fireplace to make you aware of fire hazards. Home inspectors look at the bricks and the damper in a fireplace inspection. The home inspector will tell you what repairs to make to your fireplace…
Home Improvement Projects: Do It Yourself Or Hire Handyman?
When you're getting ready to sell your house you should make a list of the home improvement projects that will make your home more appealing to buyers. You can do home repairs yourself or hire a handyman to help make home improvements. What kind of home improvement services does a handyman offer?
Real Estate Listing Agreement: Real Estate Agents Asks About Proper Length
A real estate agent asks about the length of a real estate listing agreement, which governs how long he can take to sell a home. The real estate agent says 90 days is too short a duration for a real estate listing agreement. How long should the real estate listing agreement last? Does Ilyce agree…
Consider Lease Purchase In Tough Housing Market
If you're trying to sell your home in a tough housing market you might consider offering a lease purchase. In a lease purchase the seller rents the property to a tenant who may later buy it. The tenant puts down a non-refundable option fee which goes toward the purchase of the home. Learn about how…
What To Expect From A Home Inspection
Home inspector Jamie Dunsing describes what to expect during a home inspection. You should get a home inspection before buying or selling a home. Find out what issues a home inspection can bring to your attention.
Who Has Possession At Closing?
Who legally owns a home on the day of closing? The party who possesses the home on the day of closing varies depending on where you live. If a seller stays in a home beyond the day of closing, the buyer should charge the seller substantial rent to assure the buyer that the seller will move out in a…
When One Partner Wants To Sell Home, Other Wants To Stay
A man wants to sell the home he shares with his female companion, but she does not. Selling the home is only the first of many issues between this man and his partner. First they need to decide what they are doing in their relationship, then they can think about selling the home.
Think Like A Buyer To Sell Home Faster
Are you selling your house? When selling your house you have to think like a buyer. Perhaps these house selling tips can help you sell your house faster.
