Any Advice? about to make an offer...

[kagedgoddess]

ok, we Finally found one! dh and i have been seriously house hunting since june and finally we have found something we Both like (rare), affordable (rarer) big snuf for our expanding family, and chickens, and NOT in a "bad" area (extremely rare)... So, the market out here has been crazy, houses go on the market, with in aweek, theyre sold. we do plan on getting an inspection done, it is a foreclosure and as such has cosmetic damage. the price the bank wants is a TEENSY bit high, but not unreasonable....

Any Advice? should we go in low and ask for certain repairs and closing costs, or close to asking with these demands, Or low and ask for nothing, if they decline it go higher with demands... oh and some of these repairs MUST be done before apprasial in order to qualify anyone who isnt on a "conventional" 20% down mortgage, so we, and our realtor,, do not feel asking for those specific repairs are unreasonable.

this is our first time buying and since we've had such a hard time finding something, and this place Really fits everything we wanted... i mean it is Almost Ideal, i'm nervous!!!!! i dont want to overbid, but i also dont want someone else to swoop in and get it cuz we will be kicking ourselves for a long time!
i ask ya'll cuz our family members, while good intentioned havent bought property in 30 years, so they dont Quite understand the market.

thanks for any advice!!!!!!

 

[goobhen]

When you buy a foreclosure, you buy it "as is". You will have to do all the improvements. I bought a foreclosure, the previous owners had taken the built-in dishwasher. The furnace was missing a piece that my ex-FIL fixed for me. It was also missing the double car garage door! You just never know what a foreclosed home will need until you are in it. Good luck!

 

[wildorchid053]

most banks don't barter on the price.. talk to your realtor and see what they say.. also get a really good inspector. he should take about 1-2 hours for inspection if he is good.. none of this 30 min. stuff.. gl with your house

 

[wombat]

Get a good home inspector. They can tell you what will need to be repaired or replaced, and will be able to tell you what it will cost.

Try to use this as leverage when making your offer. Banks may be hard to negotiate with on price, but it is not impossible, and you're in a better position to back up your offer with facts if they've come from a professional assessment. In some cases, photos may help. Whether they will accept a low offer because of listed repair costs or not will probably come down to whether there is other interest on the property.

Go in knowing the most that you are willing to pay, having considered the cost of repairs. If you can't under your maximum price, keep looking. It is still very much a buyer's market. You don't want to put yourself in a postion where you cannot afford your mortgage+insurance+monthly expenses and the repairs too. It's hard to walk away from your "dream house", but you do need to go into bidding knowing the maximum you are willing to pay, and then stick to that.

You may be able to negotiate a repair allowance as part of the deal, and you can negotiate for the seller to pay some or all closing costs, depending on the laws for your jurisdiction. Be careful with this one, you can get into a situation where you have negotiated a deal that includes closing help in excess of what is allowed, and get stuck with the deal but with the closing assistance adjusted to meet legal requirements. Know what the closing assistance limits are in your area, or use a real estate broker to prepare your offer.

 

[Amyable]

We just bought a house in May. Ditto on a good inspector - get referrals. Ours was great; took his time, answered all our questions, gave advice on maintenence. Your realtor should know a good one.
If you're really bent on this house, don't offer too low or make unrealistic demands. We put in our offer the same day as someone else and we knew it; so we offered full asking price. Didn't want to, especially with a down market, but the seller chose us hands down and made the repairs we asked for.
Good luck on the house. It's exciting and stressful, but owning is great!

 

[GrayDragon]

Get the inspector.

There could be something wrong with the house that isn't immediately visible that could make it a no-go for you, and other things that might not take it off the market for you but you would want to fix before you moved in. I mentioned in another thread finding a house where the electrical had been grounded to the gas pipe. A fairly easy fix, but... something you definitely want to find BEFORE you move in.

 

[Opa]

The most important aspect of hiring a home inspector is to check his references.