Buying Furniture…Where is the Best Deal

When Frank and Rhonda bought a mountain home, they needed furniture. The home that they are selling and have staged had traditional English furniture and to be honest, they were ready to get new furniture.

They have purchased furniture for their second home and office in Hickory and High Point North Carolina, so instead of paying the decorators who had decorated the house $770,000.00 for their furnishings, they headed to Hickory again.

They lucked out and met the general manager of 13 showrooms and she helped me not only find what they were looking for, she made it really on them to purchase from her. She is no-nonsense and anyone who knows them, knows that they love blunt people.

Anyway, they wanted to tell you about them in case you need furniture.

Mary Messineo
828-310-6414
Designer’s Choice Furniture

How to Get the Best Deal When negotiating to Buy a Home

The “best deal” is always subjective to the buyer’s interpretation of what a good deal is… Some buyers need a specific closing date, others need closing costs and some need personal items. How you get the best deal when you are a buyer is simple. Don’t make the seller mad.

Sellers are emotional wrecks, just like buyers. And some Sellers decide mid-stream that they are simply not going to sell to a particular buyer who has made them mad with requests that they feel are not applicable. An example of a request that they feel is not applicable is closing costs. Some Sellers realize that the closing costs for any transaction are the costs for a buyer to get a loan. As a result, they make it very difficult for the buyer because they think that the buyer must be broke if they need the costs paid for them by the seller. I agree that it is the job of the listing agent to advise the Seller that every concession is just a concession that results in a net for the Seller, but some Sellers don’t see it that way and can be pig-headed.

So, if you really want a smooth transaction, we have found after selling over 819 resale listings in 2007, make an offer that is clean. Write the offer looking for an agreement on price. Without bringing up smaller items up-front, there are fewer chances for problems and more opportunity to chunk up and reach a quicker agreement.

As a result, we have our buyer team write only clean offers to the Sellers of the listing that their buyer wants to buy so that we are assured the very best deal with the most chances of being consummated.

Here is how the clean offer works:

1. Only focus on getting a low asking price. Start at 88 to 90% or lower if you feel that the circumstances are right. You may consider putting a closing date range for the Seller to determine so that you can really get a low price.

2. Do not include any closing costs or allowances, even if the buyer needs these things. You will add these to the best price that you get and then put them in the contract before you go binding.

3. If a close date is an issue for the buyer, state that you will be willing to pay $1,000 more in the asking price if the Seller will close on that specific date.

4. Be easy on the special stipulations that are already pre-printed in the agreement. I see a lot of agents go overboard here and they really frustrate the seller.

5. If you feel the Seller is dirty and that you want the house cleaned, do not add that in the first round of negotiation, add it on the second or third round after you have gotten the best price. Simply add the concession back into the sales price or pay for the cleaning yourself, which will result in a better job.

These steps will produce a better transaction for you as a Buyer wherein the Seller will feel good that you are moving into the house that they have loved. Many of our Buyers are greeted with dinner, flowers and many more extras when they have been respectful of the Seller’s feelings and not insulted them with a clouded offer. After all, isn’t what you pay for the house the most important thing? All the other stuff can be added later, when the time is right.

Vin’s Contact Information

Thank You for visiting my Blog.

I can be reached at 678-770-6203 and vinoreilly@comcast.net

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Mortgage Fraud - DOs and DON’Ts

Prepared by: Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition

YOU CAN PREVENT MORTGAGE FRAUD COMMITTING MORTGAGE FRAUD IS AGAINST THE LAW AND MAY RESULT IN JAIL TIME WITH SEVERE FINES AS WELL AS THE LOSS OF YOUR HOME!

Here is a simple list of DO’s andDON’Ts to follow when purchasing your home.

DO:

DO provide your confidential financial and personal information only to someone you trust and know works for the Lender. If you have doubts, call the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance at 770-986-1136 and ask if the Lender is licensed and in good standing before giving out any information.

DO be honest when completing the loan application and answering questions during the application process.

DO request and keep copies of everything you provide to the Lender and everything you are required to sign. The Lender should not have any problem honoring your request for copies.

DO review the Good Faith Estimate of Closing Costs that is required to be given to you by your Lender. Ask about any parties being paid or fees you do not understand or with which you disagree. Ask for a written confirmation ofthe interest rate lock-in once you have agreed to lock in a rate.

DO read and understand all of the documents presented to you before you sign them. Ask questions about anything you do not understand. Realize that when you close the loan, you are personally responsible for repayment of the loan.

DO proceed with caution if you are encouraged to become a real estate investor of multiple properties in a short period of time, especially if you are not required to put money down – or, even worse, if you receive money back from the transaction.

DON’T:

DON’T create a false identity or use someone else’s identity or social security number to obtain a loan.

DON’T provide, or pay anyone else to provide, false information about your employment, income, credit or bank accounts.

DON’T accept payment for use of your name, credit or social security number.

DON’T close a loan that you know has false or misleading information including appraisals with inflated values, down payment or earnest money that did not come from you, or rental leases that you believe to be inaccurate.

DON’T pay your earnest money (down payment) to anyone other than your real estate agent or the seller of the home you are purchasing. If you have doubts about who really owns the home you are purchasing, call the county tax assessor to verify the current owner and find out when they took ownership.

DON’T let anyone sign anything for you during the loan process without your written approval and authorization. Take time to consider the power you are giving this person when you authorize them to sign for you.

DON’T expect to get “paid” for purchasing a home. YOU should be bringing a certified check to closing in order to buy the home.

DON’T pay anyone additional fees or costs associated with the loan closing or application process after the loan closes. If someone asks you to do this, refuse and obtain legal advice.
This information is not intended as legal advice; it is provided as a public service.

Duffy Realty Gives Buyers $1,168,137.73 in Buyer Cash Bonuses in 2007 - Is That Legal?

As seen in The Real Estate Journey
March 28, 2007

Many agents state that giving a buyer a cash bonus after closing is not legal. What is it that they want to hold back from their buyer? Buyer Rebates or Buyer Cash Bonuses are legal in 38 states.

Only 12 states have said that giving a buyer part of the agent’s commission is illegal in their state. The others have said - give the money back, it is legal. The states are Kansas, Alaska, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Iowa, Louisiana, New Jersey, South Carolina, Missouri, Rhode Island, West Virginia and New York. If you don’t live in one of those states, buyer rebates where an agent shares a commission with you is legal.

What we are talking about here is an agent agreeing to split or share their commission with a buyer who is the principal in the transaction. This has been done for years if your mother was the real estate agent or the agent agreed to take less of a commission to make the deal work.

At Duffy Realty of Atlanta, they share their commission up to 50% of the total commission, when a buyer helps them do what the buyer is doing anyway, which is help their agent find the home that they want to buy by driving by homes and searching the internet. “We apply this rebate to any listed home, for sale by owner or new construction. The only catch is, that the client must hire us in writing to represent them,” says Rhonda Duffy, owner and broker of Duffy Realty. “We successfully gave 323 buyers money within 5 days after closing in 2007 and ultimately saved these folks, made these folks, whatever you want to call it, $1,169,137.73 in cash. That’s a lot of whatever you want to call it!” says Duffy

“Buyers need to understand that this is their money. They are doing the work and they deserve the money. Another way to look at is that if the seller was not paying a commission, the buyer may get a better deal. The buyer is actually getting the best of both worlds with our Buyer Cash Bonus because they get the expert representation of someone who works volume while getting a check that averages $4200.00 on average. Our goal is to give every buyer in Atlanta a check after closing while supplying them the best representation that we have studied and strategized over for the last 6 years and thousands of deals,” boasts Duffy.

To learn more about your state and the laws regarding Buyer Rebates would be a smart move considering that most states have given you, the buyer, the right to get money back at closing!

Rhonda Duffy’s Learning Cafe Exposing the Truths and Busting the Myths in Real Estate

March 22, 2008

Georgia has 7 of the top 25 fastest growing counties in the U.S.
March 22nd 2008 Posted to Agent Training, Atlanta real estate, Buyer Cash Bonus, Buying, Duffy Realty, Duffy Realty Business Model, Duffy Realty Team, Duffy Realty of Atlanta, Flat Fee Business Model, Flat fee real estate, Rhonda Duffy, Team at Duffy, how to buy a home, real estate, real estate Atlanta

Who says folks aren’t buying houses? This was a news story on the 11 Alive news on March 20, 2008.

In the top 10 counites are Forsyth (323 reported sales of resales in the last 30 days by the FMLS), Paulding (295 reported sales of resales in the last 30 days by the FMLS) and Jackson (79 reported sales of resales in the last 30 days by the FMLS - FMLS is not the primary listing service in this area).

The other counties in the top 25 of the U.S. according to the census bureau are Cherokee, Barrow, Walton and Newton.

Again, where will these folks live if they don’t buy your home?

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