06-26-19 Real Estate Weekly

JUNE 26, 2019 • Volume 14 • Issue 26

RE WEEKLY RESIDENTIAL • ACREAGE • FARM • COMMERCIAL • AREA DEVELOPMENT 515-233-3299 • 317 5th Street, Ames • All REALTOR® ads within are REALTORS® licensed in the State of Iowa

Always Available Online SEPTEMBER 14, 2016 Volume 11 • Issue 37

RE WEEKLY

SEPTEMBER 7, 2016 Volume 11 • Issue 36

RE WEEKLY STORY

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• AREA DEVELOPMENT • FARM • COMMERCIAL RESIDENTIAL • ACREAGE 317 5th Street, Ames State of Iowa 515-233-3299 • ® licensed in the

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Page RE2 • REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019

TIPS OF THE WEEK MAINTENANCE

DECOR

CLEANING

WINDOW A/C UNIT UPKEEP

THRIFT STORE CHIC SHOPPING

REMEMBER THE LITTLE DETAILS

As the hot summer months approach, air conditioning will be vital to your family’s comfort, but the units need regular maintenance to function properly. According to the Department of Energy, the most important upkeep task to ensure your air conditioner is running at its best is to routinely replace or clean its filters. Make sure your air conditioner is sealed in place to the window frame it sits on. This prevents cool air from escaping from your house and ensures safety.

Decorating your home doesn’t have to break the bank. According to Better Homes and Gardens, many decorative items can be found for bottom dollar at your local thrift stores.

Look for picture frames and flowerpots, but don’t be too turned off by chips, questionable paint jobs and other minor aesthetic issues.

Those can be easily fixed. Look for something with character that will liven up your living space. Things like vases and baskets can be turned into great table pieces.

According to Better Homes and Gardens, some spots especially susceptible to dirt and grime buildup are going uncleaned over long periods of time in most homes. Toothbrush holders, water bottles, computer accessories and light switches are just a few of the household items that could be compiling dirt.

— More Content Now

DEAR MONTY Is earnest money returned in a failed real estate transaction?

R

RICHARD MONTGOMERY

eader question: If we paid our good faith money to the agent, and the deal doesn’t go through, do we still get that money back?

Monty’s answer: Real estate law varies from state to state. Contracts are often poorly drafted, so contract language is not clear. Humans interpret the law differently, and specific transactional

circumstances can cloud contested events.

Consider sharing your particular situation with an attorney for accurate advice.

There are circumstances in real estate transactions when the return of earnest money to the buyer is routine: • The seller rejects the buyer’s offer, and no counteroffer is submitted back to the buyer.

• The buyer withdraws the offer before the delivery of seller acceptance.

• The contract contains conditions that must be met by the buyer, the seller or both. If a condition is not satisfied on or before the deadline established in the contract, the contract is void, and the buyer is refunded the earnest money.

• The seller withdraws the home from the market before delivering an accepted offer.

• The seller cannot deliver clear title at

closing.

There are also circumstances where the earnest money is at risk or may be lost: • if the buyer misses a deadline, • if the buyer fails to act to remove a contingency, • if the buyer removes all contingencies and later changes their mind, • if the buyer waives a contingency and subsequently cannot close.

The disposition of earnest money to the seller is not as simple as it may appear. The language that describes the disbursement of earnest money to the seller is in the fine print in the listing contract.

Here is the contract language in my home state: “If the transaction fails to close and the Seller requests and receives the earnest money as the total

liquidated damages, then upon disbursement to seller, the earnest money shall be paid first to reimburse the Firm for cash advances made by the Firm on behalf of seller and one half of the balance, but not in excess of the agreed commission, shall be paid to the Firm as full commission in connection with said purchase transaction and the balance shall belong to seller. This payment to the Firm shall not terminate this Listing.”

Richard Montgomery is the author of “House Money - An Insider’s Secrets to Saving Thousands When You Buy or Sell a Home.” He advocates industry reform and offers readers unbiased real estate advice. Follow him on Twitter at @ dearmonty.

REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019 • Page RE3

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Page RE4 • REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019

When you’re ready . . . and it’s time to look beyond Online photos . . .

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REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019 • Page RE5

FREEPIK.COM

MOTIVATED SELLER

By Holden Lewis NerdWallet.com

H The definition of “motivated seller” has changed since the depths of the economic crisis about a decade ago, when many were trying to avoid foreclosure.

ome shoppers outnumber home sellers in many places. If you’re a home buyer, you need every competitive advantage you can get. That’s why it pays to know how to find motivated sellers and persuade them to choose you.

The definition of “motivated seller” has changed since the depths of the economic crisis about a decade ago, when many were trying to avoid foreclosure. There are fewer of these desperate sellers now, but you can still find motivated sellers if you know where to look.

“A motivated seller is someone that needs to move out quickly,” explains Sonia Figueroa, a real estate agent with Century 21 Affiliated in Chicago. Some common motivators: • The home has been on the market for three months or more, and the sellers feel impatient.

• The sellers are relocating for a job.

• The sellers are divorcing. “They’re super-motivated because they want to get rid of each other, get rid of their assets and be done,” Figueroa says.

• The owner died and the sellers are the heirs. “They just want to price it to sell it, to divvy up the money,” Figueroa says.

Identifying a motivated seller Here are telltale signs that the seller is motivated: The home is priced to sell quickly, it has been fixed up and staged, and the listing photos were taken by a professional photographer, says Stacy Hennessey, a real estate agent with McEnearney Associates in Falls Church, Virginia.

Another sign is when the seller is willing to negotiate. That’s not the norm in a typical seller’s market, where “if you don’t come with a full-price offer or a near-full-price offer with terms that the seller likes, they can say, ‘Thank you, but no. Next!’” says Terri Robinson, a real estate agent with Re/ Max Select Properties in Ashburn, Virginia.

A motivated seller will make a counteroffer, even to a lowball bid.

And sometimes a home’s listing contains the phrase “motivated seller,” or the seller’s agent says the seller is motivated.

Tips for buying from a motivated seller • Ask what the seller’s priorities are.

Maybe the sellers need a place to live while renovation work on their new house is wrapped up. Or maybe the sellers want certainty that the buyer can qualify for a mortgage.

• Offer to solve the seller’s problem. “From

the very beginning, having your agent tell the listing agent that you will be flexible and you want to help them out” can give you the competitive edge, Hennessey says.

• Get preapproved for a mortgage. With this you can close faster and the seller is assured that the deal won’t fall apart because of problems getting financing.

• Offer flexibility on the closing date. Your offer is more competitive if you can adjust your timing to the seller’s timing, Hennessey says.

• Offer a larger-than-usual earnest money deposit. “My sellers always ask me what the deposit is,” says Creig Northrop, president and CEO of Northrop Realty in Clarksville, Maryland. A 1% deposit is standard in Northrop’s market. More than that is “showing sincere interest. So if you can get in the 2% to 5% range of deposits, you’re in really good shape,” he says.

• Pay your closing costs instead of asking the seller to pay.

• Offer to rent the house to the seller for a limited time. Customarily, buyers charge a daily rate of the mortgage payment divided by the number of days in the month. Your offer will stand out if you don’t charge rent.

Page RE6 • REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019

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In print and online.

Call Ali Eernisse 515-663-6956

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REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019 • Page RE7

Page RE8 • REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, June 26, 2019

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