Buying a house

westside24 · 25-Feb-08, 04:18 PM

Ok this a better question considering theres many ancients <---

in here who have a crapload of advice they can give me, right?
Ive been prequalified at 3 banks so far, and preapproved for 90,000 at one of them.

my question is, when finding a house what is the realtors purpose? I understand there purpose for a seller, they are supposed to advertise the house n all. but for a buyer, what good is a realtor???I dont know if I am missing something major here, because to me it seems like they are no help.

**LiftGirl** · 25-Feb-08, 05:35 PM

Their purpose, honestly, is to get a commission. We tried to use a realtor when we bought our house, but the only house he ever actually showed us was one he was selling (so he could get the whole commission rather than splitting it with another realtor). It was overpriced and had bad structural problems as well as termite damage. They also were not allowing home inspectors. He didn't help us find any houses, and he never had time to show us ones we found ourselves and asked to see.

We ended up finding one that was for sale by owner and saved a ton of money by skipping the realtor and just using a lawyer. I think it's a good idea to have a lawyer look over everything (your mortgage too) before you sign anything. The lawyer doesn't stand to make a commission like the realtor does, so I feel they'll look out for your best interests more.

westside24 · 25-Feb-08, 07:23 PM

you had hired a lawyer just because there was no realtor involved, or do you know if a lawyer would need be hired even with a realtor involved.....

granted I got approved for 90G but im really lookin to spend 40G or under... I live in toledo ohio, and we are 17th or 19th in the nation for highest foreclosures, and were in declining market, meaning its so bad you cannot get 100% financing around here. since im lookin for 40000 and under, there are plenty of them out there, but I figured a realtor would be able to help me locate some good steals.

actually the realtor ive selected is my best friends father, but he has yet to email me, call me, or show me anything... ive been preapproved for 2 weeks now, im gettin anxious!

25-Feb-08, 09:01 PM

I am not familiar with the laws and practices in your state so I will limit my advice to one thing that is very important: make sure your agent (you the buyer) is not the seller's agent. Otherwise, your agent has a fool for a client.

Good luck.

westside24 · 25-Feb-08, 09:16 PM

ha yup.... and even if that were the case, I wouldnt buy a house without inspection (my own inspector not someone he/she recomends) and I would demand that he lowers his commision or I aint buying... I have a skill at haggling.

**Firehawk** · 26-Feb-08, 02:15 PM

You can buy alot of house for cheap right now. It's definitely a buyer's market, and I bet you in another year it'll be even better.
But there's been alot of talk on whether or not the housing market will ever turn around to how it used to be. Some people say yes, others say no. I think in the past things have always turned around, but we also weren't losing so many jobs overseas in the past either. Housing is becoming a commodity, like a vehicle. Property isn't a money-making investment anymore. I hope that turns around, but in the near future I don't see it.

**LiftGirl** · 26-Feb-08, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by westside24

you had hired a lawyer just because there was no realtor involved, or do you know if a lawyer would need be hired even with a realtor involved.....

We hired a lawyer because there was no realtor involved (Lawyer is way, way cheaper!). People usually don't get a lawyer if they have a realtor, but I still think it's a good idea. You have someone looking out for you who's not out to make a commission, who's still gonna get paid even if the deal doesn't go through.

westside24 · 26-Feb-08, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Firehawk

You can buy alot of house for cheap right now. It's definitely a buyer's market, and I bet you in another year it'll be even better.

yup, toledo ohio is loaded with houses for sale...
goto remax.com and check out the search for house menu, and then look through the map, so it pinpoints every house for sale on the map! is kind of disgusting.

**Firehawk** · 26-Feb-08, 05:50 PM

Every city is loaded with houses for sale. By the way, I live 30 mins north of Toledo (i'm in SE Michigan).

If you go to freep.com (Detroit Free Press), they have (or did) listings for every foreclosed house in the metropolitan Detroit counties. They printed all of these listings off in a Sunday newspaper and it turned out to be over 40 pages just for 1 county.

westside24 · 26-Feb-08, 08:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Firehawk

Every city is loaded with houses for sale. By the way, I live 30 mins north of Toledo (i'm in SE Michigan).

If you go to freep.com (Detroit Free Press), they have (or did) listings for every foreclosed house in the metropolitan Detroit counties. They printed all of these listings off in a Sunday newspaper and it turned out to be over 40 pages just for 1 county.

No sh!t!!! wow I didnt expect anyone from this site to live around me.... live right by the M/O Border, Are you familiar with Super Fitness at Northtowne Mall formly known as 21st Century Fitness?

Ditto about the page listings...... I just typed in search for 50,000 or under and I got well over 40 pages, just for lucas.....

**Firehawk** · 27-Feb-08, 07:57 AM

Never heard of those gyms, but I go to a special gym not like most others...

westside24 · 27-Feb-08, 01:40 PM

well its the same place, the one bought out the other?

...... Im lookin at 5 house in the reynolds corner area saturday! im too excited, they are all priced at 40-60,000 one is at 29,000.. and they all been on the market for about 2-3years...my only guess to that is, its not the perfect neighborhood obviously, but its by no means a bad neighborhood. and Im just assuming people got caught up with adj. APR's and alot of people used to go 100%financing which, it seems like its not a big loss to lose the house in that case because you dont have much put into it, assuming the owner has shortlived in the house. any thoughts?

**Firehawk** · 28-Feb-08, 07:46 AM

Here's my advice:

Find someone that you trust who is knowledgable about owning homes and can walk through a house and find flaws. Your parents may be good for this. Pick someone that doesn't care what you think and will be objective with you about it (for example, they know you love this particular house but they're not afraid to tell you to look elsewhere becasue there are too many problems with it). Every home will have flaws, even brand new homes.

Check that the furnace is going to last you awhile. New furnaces cost 4000+ and you HAVE to have it. Check that the roof is going to get you some years out of it. Roofs are expensive. I'd suggest looking for a house that has some kind of resale to it, such as 3 bedroom with full basement. 2 bedroom houses don't sell nearly as well.

Location is everything. Don't buy on a busy road. Try to live near schools. Etc Etc Etc.

And the problem with not putting 20% down is that you have to pay PMI which used to just be a fee that didn't go towards your income tax deductions (so in essence it's just a fee you pay out every month), but that coulda changed now. I thought I heard on the radio that it is now a deductible thing. Maybe someone else here knows.

Just my advice. Good Luck.

28-Feb-08, 10:50 AM

I bought my first house (actually a condo) at age 21 and it was by far the smartest thing I did at that age.

Here's my counsel. Buy the smallest and least expensive house in the nicest neighborhood you can afford rather than the biggest and best house in a less desirable neighborhood.

There's more to consider but be guided by the above first and foremost.

Keep us posted.

**Firehawk** · 28-Feb-08, 01:45 PM

That's good advice...I didnt' want to settle for a small, inexpensive house though

. I wnated my space right off the bat, and a decent looking home in a nice area.