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Showing posts with label home buying. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home buying. Show all posts
Friday, December 13, 2019
Tuesday, May 17, 2016
Mid May Lakewood Real Estate Market update
From Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum, Keller Williams 253-212-1252
Here is a quick report:
In the last 30 days in zip codes 98499 and 98498 there have been 49 homes sold.
The real diversity of housing in Lakewood is demonstrated in the fact that these residences sold for between $70,000 and $1,800,000 in price. Good news is if you'd like to live in Lakewood WA, you have choices from the ultra affordable that would give you a mortgage near $600 a month, on up the fabulous with beautiful garden like estates and waterfront also being on the menu.
The average sales price in the last 30 days was $278,156.
See the charts below to give you an idea of the increases in price per square foot over the last few years in Lakewood WA.
Here is a quick report:
In the last 30 days in zip codes 98499 and 98498 there have been 49 homes sold.
The real diversity of housing in Lakewood is demonstrated in the fact that these residences sold for between $70,000 and $1,800,000 in price. Good news is if you'd like to live in Lakewood WA, you have choices from the ultra affordable that would give you a mortgage near $600 a month, on up the fabulous with beautiful garden like estates and waterfront also being on the menu.
The average sales price in the last 30 days was $278,156.
See the charts below to give you an idea of the increases in price per square foot over the last few years in Lakewood WA.
As you can see, prices are on the rise per square foot, which is good news for sellers of any type of Lakewood home.
More good news for sellers?
See this chart, which shows months of inventory available now vs the other months so far in 2016, this chart too is for 98499 and 98498
Below is the actual volume for 98499 and 98498 in closed residential home sales January-so far in May this year.....these charts are current as of May 16th.
Good news is, for buyers, there is still affordable housing in Lakewood WA, for sellers? It's a good time to sell, interest rates are still with in reach for most consumers, prices are rising, although not like the crazy bubbles of a few years ago and inventory is low, so demand for your home is high.
Want to get a report on stats in your own specific neighborhood? Curious what it would take to sell your home and what it might be worth? Considering up or downsizing? Now is a good time.
Monday, April 22, 2013
First time home buyer series- What happens to my earnest money?
From Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum, Keller Williams Realty Tacoma 253 212 1252
Ok, so you have decided to buy a home.
You have an appropriate amount of earnest money. You have a loan approval ( I will have another blog outlining this step soon). Now you are shopping for your new home and you are curious WHAT happens with your earnest money.
For the purposes of this blog I will be sharing what happens with it here in Washington state, likely proceedures are similar in most states.
So here are some things to remember:
1. You really DO need the money to be in the account when you write a check since the check WILL be cashed. ( many of you today do not have checks at all and will use a money order and that is fine too)
2. The earnest money can be made out payable to 1 of 2 institutions.
A. The chosen Escrow company ( closer)
B. The Brokerage representing the seller.
3. The check will be deposited with escrow ( or with the listing broker) ususally with in 48 business hours of the time there is mutual acceptance of your offer.
4. You will need to give the actual check to your agent to hold until mutual acceptance is reached.
5. Your agent will deliver the check to escrow or the listing firm as specified in your offer.
6. You CAN get your earnest money back.....ususally
A. You must have a legal excuse for not completing the sale ( ie the house fails inspection or your financing fails in order to get the earnest money back)
B. Even IF you have a legal excuse, in most cases to get the money back both parties must sign paperwork releasing you from the contract in order for you to get the money back.
C. IF for some reason the other party does not want to release your money AND you have the legal right to it, it will go into what is called "interpleader action" where a neutral party makes the descions regarding returning the money to the rightful owner. If that is YOU, you will get your money back, minus the cost of the interpleader.
D. IF you just get cold feet and change your mind with no legal excuse, you will have relieved yourself of the earnest money. ( and keep in mind a buyer has quite a few legal reasons why they may be allowed to leave the contract)
7. You can write a promissory note instead of a check for your earnest money. This can be convenient if you do not have checks, or if delivering the check to your agent is a challenge for any reason. IF this is the case the earnest money still MUST be deposited by the deadlines with in the offer agreement. If you choose to use a promissory note, your realtor will prepare it for you.
8. Some sellers have rules regarding the earnest money.
A. Some require a certain amount or percentage of the purchase price of the home.
B. Some require that you use their choice of escrow and you must write the check out in that manner.
C. Some will only take a cashiers check and some require that check to be drawn from a larger national bank, or to be a Postal money order only.
9. Your realtor MAY be able to negotiate regarding earnest money. There are a number of things you might want negotiated on your behalf. One of these things would be not having to deposit it until after inspection and successful negotiation of the contingency is completed. ( there are several other things you might want to negotiate and this is a subject of another blog.)
10. Your earnest money is applied to the purchase of your home. If you are putting money as downpayment ( and almost everyone does) it will be a part of that. If you are paying your own closing costs, it could go towards that. What ever money you need to bring to the table to close, the earnest money will count towards part of that. IF you do not need to bring anything ( perhaps a no money down VA loan, and the seller pays closing?) then you will actually walk away from the table with your earnest money in your pocket.
This is just a basic overview of Earnest Money to help you understand it. Be sure you speak with your realtor more about questions you may have regarding your exact circumstances. Realtors actually invest time and take classes that are about nothing other than earnest money and still likely always have more that they can learn too.
Look for more topics soon, like....what things might I want my realtor to negotiate regarding my earnest money? What exactly are closing costs? What is the difference between a loan qualification and a loan approval? Why get approved before shopping and more.
Ok, so you have decided to buy a home.
For the purposes of this blog I will be sharing what happens with it here in Washington state, likely proceedures are similar in most states.
So here are some things to remember:
1. You really DO need the money to be in the account when you write a check since the check WILL be cashed. ( many of you today do not have checks at all and will use a money order and that is fine too)
2. The earnest money can be made out payable to 1 of 2 institutions.
A. The chosen Escrow company ( closer)
B. The Brokerage representing the seller.
3. The check will be deposited with escrow ( or with the listing broker) ususally with in 48 business hours of the time there is mutual acceptance of your offer.
4. You will need to give the actual check to your agent to hold until mutual acceptance is reached.
5. Your agent will deliver the check to escrow or the listing firm as specified in your offer.
6. You CAN get your earnest money back.....ususally
A. You must have a legal excuse for not completing the sale ( ie the house fails inspection or your financing fails in order to get the earnest money back)
B. Even IF you have a legal excuse, in most cases to get the money back both parties must sign paperwork releasing you from the contract in order for you to get the money back.
C. IF for some reason the other party does not want to release your money AND you have the legal right to it, it will go into what is called "interpleader action" where a neutral party makes the descions regarding returning the money to the rightful owner. If that is YOU, you will get your money back, minus the cost of the interpleader.
D. IF you just get cold feet and change your mind with no legal excuse, you will have relieved yourself of the earnest money. ( and keep in mind a buyer has quite a few legal reasons why they may be allowed to leave the contract)
7. You can write a promissory note instead of a check for your earnest money. This can be convenient if you do not have checks, or if delivering the check to your agent is a challenge for any reason. IF this is the case the earnest money still MUST be deposited by the deadlines with in the offer agreement. If you choose to use a promissory note, your realtor will prepare it for you.
8. Some sellers have rules regarding the earnest money.
A. Some require a certain amount or percentage of the purchase price of the home.
B. Some require that you use their choice of escrow and you must write the check out in that manner.
C. Some will only take a cashiers check and some require that check to be drawn from a larger national bank, or to be a Postal money order only.
9. Your realtor MAY be able to negotiate regarding earnest money. There are a number of things you might want negotiated on your behalf. One of these things would be not having to deposit it until after inspection and successful negotiation of the contingency is completed. ( there are several other things you might want to negotiate and this is a subject of another blog.)10. Your earnest money is applied to the purchase of your home. If you are putting money as downpayment ( and almost everyone does) it will be a part of that. If you are paying your own closing costs, it could go towards that. What ever money you need to bring to the table to close, the earnest money will count towards part of that. IF you do not need to bring anything ( perhaps a no money down VA loan, and the seller pays closing?) then you will actually walk away from the table with your earnest money in your pocket.
This is just a basic overview of Earnest Money to help you understand it. Be sure you speak with your realtor more about questions you may have regarding your exact circumstances. Realtors actually invest time and take classes that are about nothing other than earnest money and still likely always have more that they can learn too.
Look for more topics soon, like....what things might I want my realtor to negotiate regarding my earnest money? What exactly are closing costs? What is the difference between a loan qualification and a loan approval? Why get approved before shopping and more.
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
First time home buyer series. How much earnest money do I need?
So you've decided to buy a house. You know what earnest money is, so your next question is, how much do I need?
There is no set answer. The reality is if a seller would agree your earnest money could be nothing at all of $1. However, few sellers are going to feel comfortable taking their home off of the market if you don't have any skin in the game so, what should you offer?
Your Realtor may have suggestions on the customs in your exact area if you are in a different state than I practice. Here in Washington it is fairly common to make earnest money be 1% of the purchase price of the home. So the amount will depend on the price of the home you are buying. a $100K home would be $1000 in earnest money with this formula. For a $250K home would be $2500 would required. Does this mean you must follow this rule? Does it mean you should never offer more or less?
No. This is just one way to do it. Again earnest money is what ever you agree to ( and area able to) give and what the seller will accept. I have written offers with as little as $100 in earnest money. Problem is it's hard for a seller to think you are serious if you are only willing to risk less than you likely spend on a trip to the grocery store. My opinion $500 is your bare minimum. I have had many offers go through where this was the earnest money amount. Most sellers are more comfortable with at least $1000. I urge my clients to give at least that much unless there is no way that they can. In most cases however, you might want to save for a bit if you are having a hard time coming up with $1000.
Are there times where you should offer more earnest money? Yes. For one thing if you can come up with it and you make an offer and the seller counters asking for more earnest money and you want the house then it may be a good idea, depending on the other terms of the offer. ( of course if you are my client I will help you walk through how this should be handled) Another time to offer higher earnest money is when you know you have a pretty good chance that you are competing with another offer. Perhaps the only thing that makes your offer stronger is the earnest money and if you are in a position to offer more then it would be a smart move.
From Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum, Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
253 212 1252
There is no set answer. The reality is if a seller would agree your earnest money could be nothing at all of $1. However, few sellers are going to feel comfortable taking their home off of the market if you don't have any skin in the game so, what should you offer?
Your Realtor may have suggestions on the customs in your exact area if you are in a different state than I practice. Here in Washington it is fairly common to make earnest money be 1% of the purchase price of the home. So the amount will depend on the price of the home you are buying. a $100K home would be $1000 in earnest money with this formula. For a $250K home would be $2500 would required. Does this mean you must follow this rule? Does it mean you should never offer more or less?
No. This is just one way to do it. Again earnest money is what ever you agree to ( and area able to) give and what the seller will accept. I have written offers with as little as $100 in earnest money. Problem is it's hard for a seller to think you are serious if you are only willing to risk less than you likely spend on a trip to the grocery store. My opinion $500 is your bare minimum. I have had many offers go through where this was the earnest money amount. Most sellers are more comfortable with at least $1000. I urge my clients to give at least that much unless there is no way that they can. In most cases however, you might want to save for a bit if you are having a hard time coming up with $1000.
Are there times where you should offer more earnest money? Yes. For one thing if you can come up with it and you make an offer and the seller counters asking for more earnest money and you want the house then it may be a good idea, depending on the other terms of the offer. ( of course if you are my client I will help you walk through how this should be handled) Another time to offer higher earnest money is when you know you have a pretty good chance that you are competing with another offer. Perhaps the only thing that makes your offer stronger is the earnest money and if you are in a position to offer more then it would be a smart move.
From Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum, Keller Williams Realty Tacoma
253 212 1252
Friday, October 12, 2012
Sometimes the Real Estate you buy has a good surprise...sometimes not.
From Anna Matsunaga, Managing Broker, Team Momentum, Keller Williams Tacoma.
253 353 2662 www.teammomentumrealestate.com
It is always a good idea to order and have a complete inspection with a licensed professional...pretty much 100% of the time. However there are things that no inspection will tell you and that you will likely only know AFTER you own the house and live in it....things like exactly how the lay out works for you. Whether you love or hate your neighbors....and little things about the house in general.
Sure you can and should work to get the best idea you can before you buy. Do a good neighborhood review which includes meeting some of the neighbors and getting their take on the neighborhood. Consult with a Realtor who really spends time getting to know how you will live in the house and cares enough to talk you out of a beautiful home that he or she knows will not work based on what you told them in your consultation......be sure you can afford the payments.....get copies of the typical utility bills for the place so you know how much your utility bills will be. All these things can help you avoid surprises that are less than pleasant though it will not completely shelter you from them.
From experience I will tell you even a careful buyer can get some rather nasty surprises. ( strange things inside the walls, "improvements" that really were not, and you could not tell until they failed, parts that should have been used in the plumbing that were not and you could not see until again, they failed.....and so on.....and really none of these could have been avoided....and we took them in stride and fixed them and were glad we owned the place and were in a place to fix them, even though we swore under our breath a little about them ( mine were mostly oathes that we would find a better place later and well hubby's were not the not to be repeated, actual cursing)
So....imagine my delight with our third purchased family home....so far every large surprise has been a bonus.
The neighborhood is quieter than we thought. The neighbors are even nicer, sweeter, kinder and friendlier than we ever imagined. So many things more than we realized are close by. The schools are even more helpful with the kids than we had expected....so far no shoddy workmanship to anything found anywhere in the house.....so did not expect any more wonderful surprises, felt we already had more than we bargained for.....and I was wrong.
Imagine my delight to find that under the carpet in the only carpeted room in the house ( mind you I HATE carpet) is beautiful, original hardwood floor in almost original condition!
We set about ripping it up right away....I just finished pulling out all the tack strips and nails.....will haul it all off and out this weekend.....
So....when you buy, check out all you can. Ask your realtor ways to avoid most of the most nasty surprises and may all of the surprises you have be as sweet as ours have so far with buying Song Haven......
253 353 2662 www.teammomentumrealestate.com
It is always a good idea to order and have a complete inspection with a licensed professional...pretty much 100% of the time. However there are things that no inspection will tell you and that you will likely only know AFTER you own the house and live in it....things like exactly how the lay out works for you. Whether you love or hate your neighbors....and little things about the house in general.
Sure you can and should work to get the best idea you can before you buy. Do a good neighborhood review which includes meeting some of the neighbors and getting their take on the neighborhood. Consult with a Realtor who really spends time getting to know how you will live in the house and cares enough to talk you out of a beautiful home that he or she knows will not work based on what you told them in your consultation......be sure you can afford the payments.....get copies of the typical utility bills for the place so you know how much your utility bills will be. All these things can help you avoid surprises that are less than pleasant though it will not completely shelter you from them.
From experience I will tell you even a careful buyer can get some rather nasty surprises. ( strange things inside the walls, "improvements" that really were not, and you could not tell until they failed, parts that should have been used in the plumbing that were not and you could not see until again, they failed.....and so on.....and really none of these could have been avoided....and we took them in stride and fixed them and were glad we owned the place and were in a place to fix them, even though we swore under our breath a little about them ( mine were mostly oathes that we would find a better place later and well hubby's were not the not to be repeated, actual cursing)
So....imagine my delight with our third purchased family home....so far every large surprise has been a bonus.
The neighborhood is quieter than we thought. The neighbors are even nicer, sweeter, kinder and friendlier than we ever imagined. So many things more than we realized are close by. The schools are even more helpful with the kids than we had expected....so far no shoddy workmanship to anything found anywhere in the house.....so did not expect any more wonderful surprises, felt we already had more than we bargained for.....and I was wrong.
Imagine my delight to find that under the carpet in the only carpeted room in the house ( mind you I HATE carpet) is beautiful, original hardwood floor in almost original condition!
We set about ripping it up right away....I just finished pulling out all the tack strips and nails.....will haul it all off and out this weekend.....
So....when you buy, check out all you can. Ask your realtor ways to avoid most of the most nasty surprises and may all of the surprises you have be as sweet as ours have so far with buying Song Haven......
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