Buying A Home

Demystifying Your Real Estate Contract

Buying a home will likely be the biggest investment you ever make. So it makes sense to take the time to understand the fine print in the long and confusing real estate contract. A good agent will help guide you through the process, but save yourself time, money and anxiety by knowing these key terms and phrases....

The real estate contract offer

It should go without saying but all offers should be in writing. Oral agreements offer ZERO legal protection. Put the offer in a written contract and make sure it’s signed by both parties. Chances are the offer will be met with a counteroffer. It might take one round of counters or it may take several to finally agree to a price and the other terms of the contract....

Earnest money deposit

An earnest money check is a promise from the buyer to follow through with the terms of the contract. This tells the seller you’re a serious buyer and have the money to purchase the home. Usually, the amount of the earnest money deposit will be 1 percent to 2 percent of the purchase price but this can be negotiable. Laws vary from state to state regarding who holds the earnest money, but is oftentimes held in an escrow account by the listing firm or an attorney’s office. Never make the earnest money check out to an agent. The check is a major part of your contract. If all goes well during the purchase, the earnest money deposit will be put toward the down payment and closing costs. If things don’t go well, the earnest money check may be returned, which brings us to our next point....

Due diligence period

This is absolutely the most important period in the contract. The due diligence period provides the buyer with an option to terminate the sales contract, and in some states, an option fee is paid directly to the seller. A set amount of time is negotiated between the buyer and the seller, usually between two and four weeks. A bad inspection, an unfavorable appraisal, or a bad feeling in your stomach — it doesn’t matter what the reason is, the buyer is free to walk away during this time. The earnest deposit will be refunded to the buyer. However, the seller keeps the due diligence fee....

During the due diligence period, it’s important to get the home inspected and appraised. Even a new construction home should have an inspection. The inspection will reveal any repairs the house needs. Use the due diligence period to negotiate who pays for what in the inspection report. Asking the seller to fix everything on the list is a sure way to kill a deal. Be reasonable and figure out what needs to be addressed before you move in....

If a buyer backs out after the due diligence period expires, the seller is typically entitled to the earnest money. Again, rules differ from state to state so make sure you know where you stand beforehand. The most important thing during due diligence is to be proactive. Quality inspectors and appraisers are difficult to book at the last minute. It’s the buyer’s responsibility to get these scheduled quickly....

Final walkthrough

Schedule a final walk-through of the house a few days before closing to make sure the owners have left the house as you remember it. Note any repairs that haven’t been done as promised. Make sure any items they promised to leave behind are still there. Have the movers damaged any walls or floors? Do the appliances still work?...

Closing Day

Barring last-minute problems with financing, the closing day should run smoothly. Bring proper identification, along with a bank check for the down payment. Be prepared to sign multiple copies of the closing documents and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Once the deed has been recorded, you’ll receive that coveted set of keys to your new home....

Home Improvements, Ownership,

June To-Do List – Summer Home and Garden Tasks

It’s June, which means it’s time to relax and enjoy the kick-off of summer, but before the fun can begin, be sure to tackle this handy home and garden to-do list....

Change the filters in your air conditioning vents to help your unit operate at optimum capacity. If you haven’t already, schedule an annual maintenance check with a professional.
Check your trees, bushes and other plants for molds and other signs of distress. Spray with fungicides, if necessary.
Once trees and bushes have bloomed, it’s time to prune. Take special care to prune plantings that have grown too close to your home, heating, and air conditioning unit. Allow two to three feet for the air to flow freely around the unit.
Monitor your lawn sprinkler system to ensure it’s watering your lawn and plantings and not the surrounding sidewalks and driveway. Make adjustments as necessary. Don’t forget to check sprinkler heads that may have become clogged.
If you’ve planted a garden, thin seedlings and pull weeds daily, if possible. Remove fruits that have fallen to prevent rotting. Cover with netting to deter birds and other critters from stealing your crop. Don’t forget to install tomato cages or stakes.
Clean the dryer vent to save your machine from a premature death and reduce the risk of fire. If this is above your DIY pay grade, schedule a professional to do the job for you.
Once the kids are finished with school, inventory their backpacks and lunch boxes. Wash them and make any necessary repairs or toss them out if they can’t be saved. Sort and organize leftover school supplies so you’ll be prepared for the fall.
On a sizzling hot or rainy day, go through the kids’ closets and purge clothes and toys they have outgrown and make a list of what they need for the next school year. Take advantage of summer sales to replenish.
Remove the dirt and dust buildup from the ceiling fans in your home. Vacuum the blades and then wipe them clean with a damp cloth. Don’t forget to clean the outdoor ceiling fans on your front or back porch.
Check your home’s supply of sunscreen. Toss any that is expired and replenish.

Outdoor Living, Ownership,

Mulch is a Gardener’s Best Friend

Healthy flowers and shrubs depend on good soil and plenty of water. But you’re wasting your time and money if you don’t add a third ingredient to the mix — a three- to four-inch layer of quality mulch. Let’s dig a little deeper to explore the benefits of this material....

Importance to your Landscape

Mulch insulates plant roots from the temperature extremes of summer and winter, provides a weed barrier, and helps retain precious moisture in the ground. This becomes even more important in drought-prone areas. After watering or rain, you want that life-giving moisture to stay in the soil instead of evaporating. On the flip side, with too much rain, mulch prevents soil erosion....

What Exactly is Mulch?

Not to be confused with compost, mulch stays on top of the soil to act as a protective blanket. Compost is organic material such as food waste and plant scraps that have decayed and are mixed into the soil to promote root growth....

Types of Materials

Wood, typically from trees that have been shredded, provides an organic source of protection and nutrients. The nutrients in natural wood leach into the soil in a slow release. Cedar and cypress are beautiful mulches and have the added benefit of being a natural insect repellent. Hardwoods, such as oak, last longer than other shredded tree materials, needing replacement less often. Pine straw is an inexpensive and attractive mulch, but it deteriorates more quickly and is easily blown about by the wind. Pine straw is also flammable and has been the cause of house fires.
Cocoa, made from the ground shells of cocoa beans, provides a rich color and aroma. All organic mulches decay over time, but cocoa mulch has good longevity. Note: If you have dogs, choose a variety that has been heat treated to remove any dangerous ingredients that could harm your pets.
Straw and grass clippings provide good temperature insulation, but not many nutrients.
Leaves provide an excellent mulch when ground into small pieces in a thick layer on your flowerbeds. It decays into a nutrient-rich food source for your plants.
Rock mulch, including lava rock, river rock, crushed granite, and gravel, prevents erosion and can be quite attractive when choosing a color that coordinates with your home’s masonry and trim. It doesn’t fade or lose its luster and lasts many years but is much more expensive than natural mulches. Rock mulch also fails to provide the same insulating effect that wood mulch offers and it doesn’t deliver slow release micronutrients.

Related – Top Ten Essential Gardening Tools...

Home Energy, Ownership, Shopping Guides,

Let’s Go Shopping for a Ceiling Fan

If you watch any of the TV design shows, the ceiling fans seem to be ignored in makeovers. By omission, you could easily get the impression they have become a design faux pas. The fan industry sees things otherwise and has some sleek designs hitting the market....

Fan makeover. Forget the brass trim and pressed-wood blades. Today’s newest designs include sleek, modern and old world designs. First up: the caged fan, which borrows from the look of the vintage tabletop fan inside a circular wire cage. Single-, double- and triple-fan models are available with LED lights and metal choices in chrome, brushed nickel and oiled bronze. Prices start at $300 but go as high as $800....

For a more formal look, how about fans that look like a chandelier, with the blades barely noticeable, discreetly tucked above the sparkling dangles?...

European designs also abound. Consider the Minka Aire Lightwave with distressed KOA, a sleek wood fan with a single light centered under the motor, for $280. The Kichler Link Ceiling Fan has only two blades, made from wood, at the end of looped polished nickel rods, for $600....

Shedding some light. One of the most welcome changes has been more creativity when it comes to lights. The three- or four-bulb nests are history....

The Possini Euro Segue 24-inch brushed nickel fan has five lights mounted in a circular frame with the fan mounted in the middle. It is an elegant choice at $350. The caged fans described above are also available with caged lights underneath, all in oiled bronze for a cool, industrial look....

Install it yourself? If the power supply is already in place, with a corresponding wall switch, this can be a DIY project. Be sure to turn off the power at the breaker box and be careful on that ladder....

Bonus tip: Ceiling fans should turn counter clockwise in summer, blowing downward for a cooling effect. In winter, the blades should turn clockwise, which draws air upward, forcing the warm air at the top of the room down to floor level....

Selling, Selling Your Home,

Should Sellers ‘Pre-Inspect’ Their Homes?

While inspections are commonplace when buying a home, should you, as the seller, consider having your home “pre-inspected” before listing it? Here are the pros and cons....

Knowledge is power. Having your home professionally inspected gives you a clear understanding of its needs before you price it. Setting the right price is widely considered as the most important step in the selling process. If previously unknown problems turn up in the buyer’s inspection, you could find yourself having to make costly repair concessions....

If the house needs very little, a pre-inspection allows you to price your house confidently. If problems are discovered, you can choose to fix them now, or wait and negotiate the repairs or any price concessions later. This is a great way to alleviate stress before you are under the pressure of contract negotiations....

If you go the negotiation route, prepare documentation on how you arrived at the price of your home, including adjustments for the cost of repairs....

Knowledge means responsibility. In most states, sellers are required to provide the buyer with a property condition disclosure report on a form approved by the state’s real estate commission. You must report any known deficiencies. By having a pre-inspection done, you take on the responsibility of reporting the inspector’s findings. If you have the problems repaired beforehand, disclosure isn’t ordinarily required — with a few possible exceptions, such as termite damage or water damage....

Buying, Financing a Home, Money, Mortgage,

Don’t Be Surprised By Private Mortgage Insurance

Buyers who put less than 20 percent down on a home might find themselves with a higher-than-expected monthly payment. The extra money, which often takes first-time homebuyers by surprise, is for private mortgage insurance. What is PMI and why does the lender require it?...

Lender’s risk. When a borrower puts down less than 20 percent on a home loan, the lender is taking on a greater risk of the buyer walking away from the loan and the house during a personal financial crisis. The lender is, in effect, insuring itself against that potential loss and requiring the borrowers to foot the monthly premiums for the policy....

The policy. The borrower pays a monthly insurance premium to the mortgage company, along with principal and interest, plus taxes and homeowners insurance, if these are being held in escrow. If your loan is through government loan programs, they each have a government version of mortgage insurance. With any of these, the insurance pays the mortgage company the remaining balance of the loan in the event of default....

Equity. Borrowers are eligible to stop paying PMI once they have at least 20 percent equity in their homes, based on the original price of the home. At closing, the lender must provide you with that information. Once borrowers make the request to halt PMI, the lender is required by law to drop it once borrowers achieve 22 percent equity. Government mortgage insurance on FHA, VA and USDA loans remains — no matter the amount of equity....

Add to principal. Speed up the process of dropping PMI by paying extra money against principal in your monthly house payment. Your monthly mortgage payment slip or your online payment form should have a space to include extra money toward principal. Even $50 per month extra toward principal will accelerate your equity at a surprising pace....

Appreciation. If your home’s value appreciates significantly, that higher value in combination with your payments to principal could help you cross the 20 percent threshold more quickly. The mortgage company likely will require a professional appraisal of the home to establish the new value. The company may insist on using its own appraiser to ensure it isn’t taking on any unnecessary risk....

Savings strategy. At the point you are able to drop PMI, a good strategy is to convert that amount into more money against the principal of the loan, thus accelerating equity in the home and saving you thousands in loan interest....

Selling, Staging Your Home,

Potential Buyers Don’t Want to See, Hear or Smell Your Pets

When putting your home up for sale, it’s crucial to make a plan for your pets. While prospective buyers may love their own pets, they don’t want to see — or smell — yours when touring your home. Here are a few ideas for keeping your pet’s presence low profile....

Arrange for help. Boarding your pets might be cost prohibitive, especially when homes are on the market for extended periods of time. However, it’s crucial that your pets not be inside the home when it’s being shown. When notified of a showing, be prepared to remove the animals. If you work far from home, consider making arrangements with a neighbor, friend or family member to care for them during the showing. If you are selling by owner, insist on scheduled appointments only....

No exceptions. At best, potential buyers will be distracted by your pets, especially barking dogs and free-roaming cats. Even worse, buyers or their children may be frightened by your pets and refuse to go inside. Liability is another concern if a potential buyer were to be scratched or bitten....

Leave no trace. Beds, bowls, litter boxes, crates and toys should also be removed. Pare down your pet’s belongings before your home goes on the market so when you get the call for a showing you only have a few things to grab....

Beware of odors. Ask any experienced real estate agent and they will tell you that unpleasant odors can kill a buyer’s interest. Besides cigarette smoke, pets are probably the leading source of odors. You may have grown so accustomed to your pet’s smells that you don’t notice it. Ask friends or neighbors for their frank opinion....

Have all carpets and rugs professionally cleaned before listing the house. If your pets are permitted on the furniture, steam clean the upholstery. Ask cleaners to use solutions specifically designed to lift pet smells and stains. To keep odors from returning, bathe dogs more often, and clean litter boxes and cages more frequently....

Home Energy, Money, Ownership, Saving Tips,

Six Easy Ways to Lower Your Electric Bill

For most homeowners, the sting of a sky-high electricity bill is more than enough to prompt their interest in energy savings. Check out these easy methods to help lower your monthly bills....

Attic insulation. Most of the heat transference in a home occurs in the attic, whether it’s indoor heat escaping in winter or outdoor heat penetrating during summer. Checking the depth and coverage of your attic insulation is important for all seasons. Measure the depth of your insulation in a few different places. Also look for places over living areas of the house where insulation may be missing. Check online energy conservation sites to see what “R” factor insulation you have and if it is adequate for your part of the country. The “R” factor is a measure of resistance to heat transfer and has a direct impact on your energy usage. If you’re uncertain about doing this job yourself with rented equipment, consider hiring a professional. Ensuring that you have adequate attic insulation gives you more energy-savings bang for your buck than almost anything else.
Window seals. Take a good look around the edges of your windows both inside and out. Look for any gaps in caulk or rubber seals. Re-caulk and reseal where necessary. The same thing applies to the rubber seals around the edges of your outside doors. Unless you have old, single-pane windows, you shouldn’t have to worry about replacement window costs.
Get a programmable thermostat. Once you have a programmable thermostat you’ll wish you’d gotten one sooner. They make it easy to set the inside temperature to rise and fall on a schedule that mimics your family’s living, working and sleeping schedule. Why heat or cool the home when everyone is at work or school all day? Also, experiment with setting heating and air conditioning temperatures that test the limits of what you find comfortable. Combining this with a willingness to layer your clothing may save you a considerable amount of money.
Use fluorescent and LED bulbs. Achieve double savings by switching to fluorescent and LED bulbs. First, they both use a fraction of the electricity of the old incandescent bulbs. In a typical house with fifty bulbs, switching to these more efficient lights can save about $100 per year in electricity costs. Second, fluorescent and LED bulbs rarely burn out. While they do cost more to buy than incandescent bulbs, they will often last for years without needing replacement. The combined energy savings and replacement costs make them well worth considering. No matter what kind of bulbs you use, turn off lights when you exit a room.
Run a full load. That goes for the dishwasher and your washer and dryer. Because you’ll be using your machines less frequently, your savings will be considerable — on both electricity and water useage. With less wear and tear on your machines, you also will ultimately save on replacement costs. When you must buy replacement appliances, look for the blue “Energy Star” sticker designating that they have met the federal government’s energy efficiency standards.
Cut the power to TVs, audio systems, computers not in use. Lurking in your home are silent energy thieves or so-called power vampires. Even when not in use, TVs, treadmills, computers and other electronics still use electricity to keep internal components powered up. Either unplug them when not in use or put them on a power strip that has an on-off switch you can easily flip.

Buying, Finding a Home,

The Singles Guide to Home Buying

Buying a home can be daunting, even under the best of circumstances. Taking that big of a step alone – whether you’re single, widowed or divorced – can make the home-buying experience even more challenging....

Assess your financial situation.

Just like any other buyer, singles must do a detailed assessment of income, assets and recurring obligations to see what they can afford. Then speak with a reputable mortgage lender honestly about how much home you can realistically afford. If the light is green, then move forward with getting pre-approved for a mortgage....

What are the ongoing costs of homeownership?

Because singles are on their own, it’s wise to be extra conservative when working out a monthly budget including property taxes, insurance, maintenance, landscaping, repairs, and homeowner’s association dues, if any....

Beef up the emergency fund.

Instead of the customary three- to six-month emergency fund, single homeowners would be wise to have additional cash in emergency savings in case of job layoffs or disability....

House or condo?

Consider whether you want the low-maintenance condo life or a conventional home with landscaping responsibilities. Do you prefer living with mostly other single adults or would you rather live in a neighborhood with lots of children? Be sure to check differences in homeowners association fees. They are likely to be much higher for condo owners. And ask your insurance agent about differences in policies for houses and condominiums....

Size

When purchasing a home, it’s wise to think about what your life might be like a few years from now. Will you be getting married at some point? Do you have children from a previous marriage who will live with you at least part of the time? Do you want to consider a roommate or boarder to help shoulder costs? All these possibilities should come into play when deciding how large of a home to purchase....

Shop with a trusted, experienced friend or relative.

Along with an agent trained to help first-time homebuyers, singles should also seek advice from a trusted friend or family member. Their knowledge can be a tremendous asset in helping you decide on a home....

Buying with another single friend.

If you and a friend or relative who is not a spouse decide to purchase a home together, consult with an attorney. What happens if one of you gets a new job and moves out of state? What happens when one of you dies? Property rights for married people are clearly spelled out in most states, but purchasing with a non-spouse can be a legal challenge....

Ownership, Saving Tips, Shopping Guides,

A Calendar for Shoppers: June’s Best Buys

Father’s Day and high school graduations are big drivers of what’s on sale during the month of June. Grills, tools, coffee makers, TVs and other electronic equipment, and summer sporting goods are all marked down, making it a great time for home-related purchases....

✓ Kitchen gear. The latest and greatest home gadgets that appeal to busy dads — think grilling tools, coffee makers and knife sharpeners— are all on sale this month....

✓ Home and garden. Expect discounts on tools, lawn mowers and trimmers, grills and summer sporting goods— all classic favorites for Father’s Day gift giving. Shop for these 10 essential garden tools....

✓ Wireless speakers. A wonderful addition to backyard living, these typically go on deep discount in June, according to Consumer Reports....

✓ Windows, roofing materials, siding and decking. With warm weather practically guaranteed, Consumer Reports says sales on replacement windows, roofing materials,
siding and decking are all common in June, which is a great time to make energy-saving improvements to your home....

✓ TV time. In honor of dads and grads, expect sales and discounts on high-definition televisions, blu-ray players, surround sound speakers, and other entertainment
equipment....

✓ Shop smart. Before making any major purchase, do your homework. Consumer advocacy groups, websites and magazines such as Consumer Reports, Wise Bread, Nerd
Wallet, and Money, regularly publish buying guides and tips....

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