Thursday, May 3, 2012
Do you have the right team working for you?
We say it over and over, to all of our clients. At least twice daily, you’ll hear one of us say to a client, “Buying and selling real estate is a process, not an event.” With the current market being highly competitive, that mantra can’t be repeated enough. It’s important to remember that multiple offers are a reality in this market. Appraisals, changing lending rules and competition with other buyers can be trying and discouraging. The key is to have the right team working for you. Is your real estate professional knowledgeable about the process? How easily can he or she answer your questions? Does your real estate professional have a team of professional alliance partners that complements the level service being provided? When choosing a…
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Learn how an appraised value can change the plans of the buyer and seller.
One area we have yet to discuss in any great detail is the real estate appraisal. Any time a new loan is written for property, the new lender will order a value appraisal of the property. The appraisal is typically paid for by the borrower, either outside of closing or as part of the lender’s fees charged to the buyer at closing. It’s important to understand the role of the appraiser and the positive and negative effects the appraisal can have on the transaction. In the past, the lender had a list of approved appraisers and would simply choose from that list and order the appraisal directly. That changed in the wake of the market crash. Lenders are now required to order appraisals from a third-party management company (that then contracts …
Thursday, March 29, 2012
For buyers in Georgia, the choice is yours. But why should you choose your own closing attorney?
A few weeks back during our series on “The Five Steps to Home Buying,” we discussed in Step 5 the details of the closing process. Probably the most important player at the closing is the closing attorney, sometimes referred to as the closer or title attorney. The slight variation in description is of relative importance, although for our purposes here we will refer to this person as the closing attorney. The main points of consideration are the actual function of the closing attorney and which party to the transaction is represented by the attorney. The most important point to remember is, in Georgia, the buyer always has the right to choose the closing attorney. The chosen closing attorney represents the lender in cases where a new loan …
Thursday, March 22, 2012
But what is a licensed contractor? Brandon Bramlett breaks down the definition in this week's look at real estate and home ownership issues.
We find ourselves once again bursting into the full-blown beauty of spring. Everything seems to be coming to life early after a relatively mild winter. As the plants and animals all spring back into action, so does the real estate market. And so do most homeowners as well—historically, the spring season is the busiest time of the year for home improvement and maintenance projects. And with recent storm damage in our area, some homeowners have been faced with unexpected repair projects. In the hectic business of finding the time and money necessary to budget a home project—whether it is a new addition or just a minor repair—it is important to carefully consider who will be doing the work. And, if you are like most people and cannot find the…
Thursday, March 1, 2012
The final installment of this series takes a look at the closing.
You can find part one of the series here, part two here, part three here, and last week's edition here. We conclude our series with step five, The Closing. With the help of your real estate professional, lender and home inspector, you’ve reached the final step in the process of home buying; the closing. This is the time you sign final documentation for financing and deed transfer paperwork required to take ownership of the property. In Georgia, the chosen closing attorney represents the lender in cases where a new loan will be taken out to purchase the property. Of course in cash transactions or cases where a traditional lender is not involved, the closing attorney represents the parties as stated in the terms of the contract for purchase…
Thursday, January 26, 2012
A state representative seeks a judicial foreclosure process.
The financial and economic collapse that began in earnest nearly five years ago has certainly dominated the headlines. One of the major symptoms has been a soaring rate of foreclosures that reached levels most Americans had never seen. Certainly anyone born after 1930 would have little to no recollection of when the economy was in such bad shape. Even as we begin a turnaround, the crisis continues to spur many lawmakers to call for further government regulation of the financial institutions that have taken much of the blame. This week has been no exception as Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick, D-Lithonia, introduced House Bill 781, which seeks to redefine the term mortgage in Georgia and change the current law to a system of judicial foreclosure. The…
NCPHIF
3:40 pm on Tuesday, April 3, 2012
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