August 4, 2010

10 Worst First-Time Homebuyer Mistakes 2010 (From Yahoo.com)



Are you gearing up to buy your first place? Shopping for a home is exciting, exhausting and a little bit scary. In the end, your aim is to end up with a home you love at a price you can afford. Sounds simple enough, right? Unfortunately, many people make mistakes the prevent them from achieving this simple dream. Arm yourself with these tips to get the most out of your purchase and avoid making 10 of the most costly mistakes that could put a hold on that sold sign.
1. Not Knowing What You Can Afford
As we've all learned from the subprime mortgage mess, what the bank says you can afford and what you know you can afford or are comfortable with paying are not necessarily the same. If you don't already have a budget, make a list of all your monthly expenses (excluding rent), including vehicle costs, student loan payments, credit card payments, groceries, health insurance, retirement savings and so on. Don't forget major expenses that only occur once a year, like any insurance premiums you pay annually or annual vacations. Subtract this total from your take-home pay and you'll know how much you can spend on your new home each month.
If you end up looking at homes that are outside your price range, you'll end up lusting after something you can't afford, which can put you in the dangerous position of trying to stretch beyond your means financially or cause you to feel unsatisfied with what you actually can afford. You may even learn that you can't afford the type or size of home that you desire and that you need to work on reducing your monthly expenses and/or increasing your income before you even start looking.
2. Skipping Mortgage Qualification
What you think you can afford and what the bank is willing to lend you may not match up, especially if you have poor credit or unstable income, so make sure to get pre-approved for a loan before placing an offer on a home. If you don't, you'll be wasting the seller's time, the seller's agent's time, and your agent's time if you sign a contract and then discover later that the bank won't lend you what you need, or that it's only willing to give you a mortgage that you find unacceptable.
Be aware that even if you have been pre-approved for a mortgage, your loan can fall through at the last minute if you do something to alter your credit score, like finance a car purchase. If you cause the deal to fall through, you may have to forfeit the several thousand dollars that you put up when you went under contract.
3. Failing to Consider Additional Expenses
Once you're a homeowner, you'll have additional expenses on top of your monthly payment. Unlike when you were a renter, you'll be responsible for paying property taxes, insuring your home against disasters and making any repairs the house needs (which will occasionally include expensive items like a new roof or a new furnace).
If you're interested in purchasing a condo, you'll have to pay maintenance costs monthly regardless of whether anything needs fixing because you'll be part of a homeowner's association, which collects a couple hundred dollars a month from the owners of each unit in the building in the form of condominium fees.
4. Being Too Picky
Go ahead and put everything you can think of on your new home wish list, but don't be so inflexible that you end up continuing to rent for significantly longer than you really want to. First-time homebuyers often have to compromise on something because their funds are limited. You may have to live on a busy street, accept outdated decor, make some repairs to the home, or forgo that extra bedroom. Of course, you can always choose to continue renting until you can afford everything on your list - you'll just have to decide how important it is for you to become a homeowner now rather than in a couple of years.
5. Lacking Vision
Even if you can't afford to replace the hideous wallpaper in the bathroom now, it might be worth it to live with the ugliness for a while in exchange for getting into a house you can afford. If the home otherwise meets your needs in terms of the big things that are difficult to change, such as location and size, don't let physical imperfections turn you away. Besides, doing home upgrades yourself, even when you have to hire a contractor, is often cheaper than paying the increased home value to a seller who has already done the work for you.
6. Being Swept Away
Minor upgrades and cosmetic fixes are inexpensive tricks are a seller's dream for playing on your emotions and eliciting a much higher price tag. Sellers may pay $2,000 for minimal upgrades or staging that you'll end up paying $40,000 for. If you're on a budget, look for homes whose full potential has yet to be realized. Also, first-time homebuyers should always look for a house they can add value to, as this ensures a bump in equity to help you up the property ladder.
7. Compromising on the Important Things
Don't get a two-bedroom home when you know you're planning to have kids and will want three bedrooms. By the same token, don't buy a condo just because it's cheaper when one of the main reasons you're over apartment life is because you hate sharing walls with neighbors. It's true that you'll probably have to make some compromises to be able to afford your first home, but don't make a compromise that will be a major strain.
8. Neglecting to Inspect
It's tempting to think that you're a homeowner the moment you go into escrow, but not so fast - before you close on the sale, you need to know what kind of shape the house is in. You don't want to get stuck with a money pit or with the headache of performing a lot of unexpected repairs. Keeping your feelings in check until you have a full picture of the house's physical condition and the soundness of your potential investment will help you avoid making a serious financial mistake.
9. Not Choosing to Hire an Agent or Using the Seller's Agent
Once you're seriously shopping for a home, don't walk into an open house without having an agent (or at least being prepared to throw out a name of someone you're supposedly working with). Agents are held to the ethical rule that they must act in both the seller and the buyer parties' best interests, but you can see how that might not work in your best interest if you start dealing with a seller's agent before contacting one of your own.
10. Not Thinking About the Future
It's impossible to perfectly predict the future of your chosen neighborhood, but paying attention to the information that is available to you now can help you avoid unpleasant surprises down the road.
Some questions you should ask about your prospective property include:
  • What kind of development plans are in the works for your neighborhood in the future?
  • Is your street likely to become a major street or a popular rush-hour shortcut?
  • Will a highway be built in your backyard in five years?
  • What are the zoning laws in your area?
  • If there is a lot of undeveloped land? What is likely to get built there?
  • Have home values in the neighborhood been declining?
  • If you're happy with the answers to these questions, then your house's location can keep its rose-colored luster.
Conclusion
Buying a first home can seem stressful and overwhelming, and it isn't without its share of potential pitfalls. If you're aware of those issues ahead of time, you can protect yourself from costly mistakes and shop with confidence.
For many people, a home is the largest purchase they will ever make, but it need not be the most difficult.

May 19, 2010

Lead; Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program

Pillar To Post: EPA Renovators, Remodelers and Painters Rule
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Pillar To Post: EPA Renovators, Remodelers and Painters Rule
In 1992 Congress enacted the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (Title X of Public Law 102-550) to limit exposure of humans, especially children, to lead based paint hazards. Section 1018 of Title X regulates disclosure of lead-based paint in sales and lease transactions involving pre-1978 residential properties.

On April 22, 2008, EPA issued a rule requiring the use of lead-safe practices and other actions aimed at preventing lead poisoning. Under the rule, beginning in April 2010, contractors performing renovation, repair and painting projects that disturb lead-based paint in homes, child care facilities, and schools built before 1978 must be certified and must follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination. This would impose increased regulatory burdens and costs on property managers and Realtors with property management responsibilities.

How does this affect you as a Realtor®?
Pursuant to Section 1018, you are required to:
(1) Obtain information from a seller regarding the known existence of lead-based paint in a home; and
(2) Provide information regarding the hazards of lead-based paint in the home.
Failure to comply with this rule could result in warnings and monetary fines.

What is the position of NAR's on the issue?:
NAR opposes mandatory testing for lead-based paint tied to the transaction process and supports property condition disclosure and education. These are adequately covered under the provisions of Section 1018 as stated above.

Additional Resources:
The realtor.com website has an interesting collection of FAQ's on the issue presented as a series of short videos. These can be accessed by clicking on the link below:
http://www.realtor.org/government_affairs/lead_paint_realtors_faq

The main page for information on the NAR website is:
http://www.realtor.org/leadpaint


Please contact your local Pillar To Post office for additional information on the hazards associated with lead based paint.


Thomas Recke ASHI, EDI
Lead Paint Testing
 and
Residential & Commercial Building Inspections, EIFS/Stucco Inspections, EDR Environmental Reports, Water Quality Testing, IAQ/Mold Testing

thomas.recke@pillartopost.com
www.pillartopost.com/aurora

(303) 337-6713



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January 11, 2010

Realtors Beware! CPSC Recalls AmeriSpec, Lowes, and Sunset Home Improvement Books


NEWS from CPSC

U.S. Consumer Product Safety
Commission


Office of Information and Public Affairs

Washington,
DC 20207





FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 8, 2010

Release # 10-104

Firm's
Recall Hotline: (866) 696-7602


CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772

CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908

Home Improvement Books Recalled by Oxmoor House Due to Faulty Wiring
Instructions; Shock or Fire Hazard to Consumers

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product
Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced
a voluntary recall of the following products. Consumers should stop using
recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Home Improvement Books
Units: About 951,000
Publisher: Oxmoor House, Inc., of Birmingham, Ala.
Hazard: The books contain errors in the
technical diagrams and wiring instructions that could lead consumers to
incorrectly install or repair electrical wiring, posing an electrical shock
or fire hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported.
Description: The recall involves nine home
improvement books, as listed below:


Title

ISBN

Publication
Date

AmeriSpec Home Repair Handbook

978-0-376-00180-1

January 2006

Lowe’s Complete Home Improvement
and Repair

978-0-376-00922-7

978-0-376-01098-8

September 2005

December 1999

Lowe’s Complete Home
Wiring

978-0-376-00928-9

May 2008

Sunset Basic Home Repairs

978-0-376-01581-5

978-0-376-01025-4

February 1995

January 1975

Sunset Complete Home Wiring

978-0-376-01594-5

December 1999

Sunset Complete Patio Book

978-0-376-01411-5

978-0-376-01397-2

978-0-376-01399-6

January 2006

January 1998

April 1990

Sunset Home Repair Handbook

978-0-376-01258-6

978-0-376-01256-2

October 1998

February 1985

Sunset Water
Gardens

978-0-376-03849-4

January 2004

Sunset You Can Build - Wiring

978-0-376-01596-9

January 2009
Sold at: Home improvement stores and
bookstores nationwide from January 1975 through December 2009 for between $13
and $35.

Printed in: United States
Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop
using these books and contact Oxmoor House for a full refund.

Consumer Contact: For additional
information, contact Oxmoor House toll-free at (866) 696-7602 anytime, or
visit the firm’s Web site at www.sunsetrecall.com




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