My New Blog

This is a good time of year to visualize the perfect real estate transaction that is a win-win for everybody. I see a first-time homebuyer who will qualify for the $8,000 tax credit. They have been to a lender and have been pre-qualified to purchase a home up to $200,000. The pre-qualification letter was issued based on good credit, nice personal savings in the bank that will be used for a down payment, and a good job with nice annual income.

The buyers have been searching for a home for about a month and are prepared to purchase in the next 90 days. They are currently renting and are on a month-to-month lease requiring a 30 day notice. They have been searching the internet on www.olmstedproperties.com for a home and have been looking in the Post-Bulletin MarketPlace on Friday's too. They have located 3 houses which they would like a showing within the next couple of days. I set the showings with the current owners and take the buyers to each of the properties.

They have selected a home based on the three showings that they want to make an offer on. They really like the home based on its location, 4 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 2080 sq feet, 2 car attached garage and its close proximity to schools, parks, churches, and shopping. The sellers are looking for a quick close and will qualify for the $6500 homeseller tax credit as they have lived in the home for the last 6 years. Market data shows that homes in the particular subdivision are selling for about 96% of list price. Buyer makes offer in this ballpark and seller accepts without a counter offer. Since buyer has adequate savings, they are not asking the seller to pay closing costs. The home has been pre-inspected by a licensed home inspector and also has a home warranty that covers all of the appliances and other parts of the home for 13 months after the sale.

The Purchase Agreement includes the pre-approval letter and an earnest money check of $2,000 made payable to the Listing Brokerage firm. Since the offer has been accepted and the house has been pre-inspected, only the financing contingency exists for the home. The buyers are going to use an FHA 3.5% down payment loan at 4.85% Fixed rate for 30 years to finance the property. The final walk-through on the day of closing goes smoothly as the seller has all of their items removed from the property and has left the home very clean and in great shape. Closing goes very well and less than 30 days since they made the initial offer, the buyers have their new home that they've pictured owning for a couple of years in the making.