How can I outsmart this crazy housing market? What's wrong?

amother

Thu, Nov 29 2012, 8:45 am

Buying a house is a big deal, like a huge investment, right?

A person should think about it, consult some experts, have an inspector come in and assess the value and forseeable future expenses, right?

WRONG.

If you want a house in this market, in my community, that is within a range of decently priced ($550-750,000) apparently you need to decide and buy in minutes. HOW?

We have gone from one open house to another this past year and a half and have never been able to get past go. By the time we see the place, make an offer, or get pre-approved (something many places require), the house is already in contract.

IT IS SO FRUSTRATING!

Officially these homes are just going up for sale, and for some reason it takes a matter of less than a few days for it to be gone. It's a terrible rat race. Just yesterday, an agent that is looking for us, told us about a place that he is representing, he emailed me at 11 AM, I responded by 1:30 that I wanted to go see it (stop drop and roll if you even want a fighting chance) and by 3 he emailed me back that it was in contract, but iyh next time something will work out.

What can I do? We cannot invest our whole lives savings into something without first checking it out with a lawyer and inspector, and we cannot do it in 2 days, is that crazy???? Are people just running out and buying?????

ANY ADVICE???

Dolly Welsh

Thu, Nov 29 2012, 4:15 pm

Hmm. Indiana. So, tell more? Is it cold? Are there things to do? OP might want to look at it, and buy a bit less and still have cash left over. OP might rent there for a while and see if she likes it.

OP it sounds as if those other buyers are not worried about the same things you are. That might spill over into other areas of life, and you might not be all that happy there. You might have a different mind-set.

I am not sure people should house themselves to the max and go to the outer limit. Some people are over-housed. It's like being over-dressed or over-fed or over-educated.

What you really buy when you buy a house is what's inside the minds of the neighbors.

I knew somebody who walked aound the outside of a house, saw a view of forest and mountain at the back, and bought the house on the spot, without going inside it. He figured a house is a house. He wanted that view and was prepared to fix anything that wasn't right inside. It was fine and they were happy there thirty years. The only problem was the boiler was noisy, and so was replaced. Another problem was they had no money left over for a car, to get to the house. But somebody gave them one.

I would say, get a house on rising ground, not at the bottom of a slope. Drainage is everything. There is no arguing with gravity, and water is bad. Other than that... don't spend all your money because something will need fixing. No matter how great the inspection is.

Right, you need to know the exact order of the steps first.

Last edited by Dolly Welsh on Thu, Nov 29 2012, 4:32 pm; edited 3 times in total

Barbara

Thu, Nov 29 2012, 4:24 pm

amother wrote:

Doesn't pre-approval simply mean that you would be able to obtain a mortgage in a specific amount? It goes across different properties. IOW, you don't get pre-approved to buy House A, you get pre-approved for a $500,000 motgage.

As to the rest, most of those things are done AFTER the accepted offer. You can't get a mortgage unless the house is appraised for more than the mortgage, so that's a contingency. Passing inspection is a contingency.

If you're interested in heating bills, etc, ask about them when you see the house. But if you've been looking, you should have a decent idea of utility and other costs for the types of houses you're considering.

I think that you really need to sit down with a broker and have her/him explain the entirety of the process to you.

bbmom

Thu, Nov 29 2012, 6:03 pm

Barbara wrote:

amother wrote:

This. OP you're welcome to pm me if want me to share my experiences.

abby1776

Thu, Nov 29 2012, 7:18 pm

you put in the contract ways of getting out of the deal.

For example, a house comes onthe market, you see it, you immediately put in your bid and its accepted, then you put inthe contract that its contigent upon the inspection and you getting a mortgage for the amount you need without losing your binder/deposit. Some pleaces make you pay a certainpercetnage or flate rate as a binder when you enter the contract. So you pay 10k, sign the contract, do the inspection, the place is falling down, the owner wont fix it so you get out of the dfeal and get your money back.

amother

Fri, Nov 30 2012, 9:47 am

When we bought we knew exactly what we wanted after having seen many houses. The house had most of what we wanted, so we made an offer on the spot. So first know exactly what you want. Also, making an offer is not like signing a contract. I think of it more like signing in at the doctors office. You have to reserve your spot.

It took several months from the offer until we signed contract.

Also, when we offered, the broker told us someone had already offered a specific amount. Though of course he may have been lying. I immediately offered 5k more. Then our great lawyer negotiated the price down by 15k once we were negotiating the contract.

sky

Fri, Nov 30 2012, 9:51 am

amother wrote:

In some areas where houses are flying you have to sign the contract immediately to get it. In slower areas you can do it how you are describing.

amother

Fri, Nov 30 2012, 9:57 am

sky wrote:

amother wrote:

In some areas where houses are flying you have to sign the contract immediately to get it. In slower areas you can do it how you are describing.

I'm talking about Brooklyn. There is no way anyone signs a contract immediately. It always goes back and forth between lawyers first, is contingent on an inspection and so on. AIUI, when they say a house is "in contract" it means the sellers are happy with your offer and aren't listening to any other offers.

vintagebknyc

Fri, Nov 30 2012, 10:10 am

amother wrote:

after offer was accepted, everything back and forth and hashed out with lawyers, then signed contract. five weeks. if it happens in two days, you need to get yourself a better lawyer as there's something wrong with yours.

Sun, Dec 21 2014, 8:42 pm

dear op, I totally hear you, Sad

here where we live we have same problem.
I think here there a two 'groups' that buy super fast before anyone else can even look at place. there are investors that are ready to buy the house on the spot. one groups fixes it over and then resells it for double the price. others fix it over to rent at high prices (so rental will cover their mortgage and then some more).
they often find out about these houses for sale even before they go on the market.
its a hard time for many of us.
I wish I had some advice for you.
wish I had some advice for myself. Wink