Making an offer on a house

My offer will be contingent on my obtaining financing. The guy I called to act as my agent called for me and was told that the house sold yesterday. He suggested that I call back in a couple days and ask if it had sold because the selling agent may not want to split the commission with a buyer's agent and therefore may have lied about it being sold. I work near the county's register of deeds office so I went by and checked at lunch and there had been nothing recorded for a sale on the property. I think I will wait a couple of days and check again to make sure it is not a lag issue.

 

That's what I was talking about. If he did lie he breached his listing agreement. You should call and use a fake voice. Like be Bill Cosby. that would rock.

 

Oh yeah, you can still make an offer. The listing agent is required to present all offers to the seller, regardless of amount.

 

I will find out a couple of days. If it really sold yesterday it should be recorded. I think Lawyers only have a day or so to get that done.

 

did he say sold, closed, or under contract?

 

I did not talk to him, my "buyers agent" did. The agent told me that the house was sold yesterday, according to the listing agent.

 

If it's SOLD...that probably means it went under contract...nothing would be recorded until after closing...when it's REALLY sold.

What I meant by getting financing...and of course everything is contingent upon that...

I've seen quite a few people get pre-approved (by me or another lender) and go house hunting. They find a foreclosure, show them the pre-approval, make an offer and have it accepted. Problem is, the foreclosure is "as is." It may have no light fixtures, holes in the walls, NO appliances, NO TOILETS (this really happened), etc...The loan would be turned down based on the property. Then they have to fight to get their earnest money back. Sometimes they can escrow funds aside for closing to make the repairs immediately.

Basically, be careful with a foreclosure that needs work!

 

Why would the property condition matter if you buy well below its value?

 

Even if an appraisal comes back at $500,000 and you buy it at $100,000...the lender says the home is worth $100,000. It is worth what it was sold for. On paper the home may appear to be worth a bunch, but a house is really only worth what it can sell for.

The lender is looking at it as something that can be sold if YOU don't make payments.

I had a deal go haywire (we fixed it...but it was tough). The only way you could get to the bathroom (the only one) was by going through the kitchen AND bedroom. That didn't meet FNMA requirements. The lender didn't want to be stuck with the loan forever...so they nixed it.

 

I gotcha. I think the house could be lived in as is but it would not be pleasant. It has no AC, shag carpet from the 70s, cheesy wood paneling, all the appliances are ancient. None of it would keep you from living in it. The only issue that approaches that level is that the septic tank needs to be repaired or replaced. It has a large backyard so it should be no problem putting in a replacement.