285 Hustler June 6, 2024

Here Are Some Simple Steps to Take So You Have No Unpleasant Surprises After Closing

The Division of Real Estate’s HOA Information & Resource Center issued some useful advice last week which got me to thinking. It was advice on doing “due diligence” about a neighborhood’s HOA so you’re not blindsided after closing.

With over two decades of representing buyers in the purchase of homes, both with and without a homeowner’s association, I have lots more to suggest than was in that release.

I advise all buyers to look for neighbors who are outdoors, perhaps mowing their lawn, getting their mail, or washing their car in the driveway. Introduce yourself in a friendly manner, explain that your looking at that neighbor’s house which is for sale and would like to know how they like living in this neighborhood. Follow-up questions could include, “Are the homes built well? How’s the HOA? Are the neighbors friendly? Any complaints? Are the schools good? Is there much crime? By the way, do you know why the owners are selling that home?”

Don’t interrogate the poor fellow, but use your judgment in being as warm and conversational as possible. You’ll learn a lot that will serve you well if you end up buying that home. This is one task I want you to do yourself instead of me doing it for you as your agent.

Among the advice from the HOA Information & Resource Center was to request the covenants (or “CC&Rs”) from the county clerk and recorder. That

document is something I can get for you more easily (and free) from my contacts at any title company. I can also ask the listing agent for the covenants and other HOA documents, but keep in mind that one of the earliest deadlines in any contract to buy and sell a home is the “Record Title” deadline and the “Association Documents” deadline, along with an opportunity for you to object or terminate if you don’t like what you read.

The covenants are recorded, so they will come to you with the title documents. Just as important as the covenants, however, is how they are enforced by the HOA board and the management company hired by the board.

The most useful HOA documents are the minutes of the last six months’ board meeting and the most recent annual meeting. These minutes will let you know what issues may be bothering the members. (Hopefully, you learned many of those from interviewing neighbors, as suggested above.)

Those minutes will also give you a sense of the financial health of the HOA and whether a dues increase or special assessment might be under discussion.

Other documents for you to study are the financial statements, the budget for the coming year, and the most recent reserve study, which lets you know whether they have the financial reserves to deal with future repairs such as replacing the boundary fences, or fixing

How to Do Advanced Listing Searches on the MLS

Unless you’re a licensed broker with access to the MLS, the number of criteria on which you can search is very limited. Typically, consumer-facing websites only allow you to search for price range, city or county, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, square footage, and a few other criteria.

But virtually every MLS field is searchable if you ask an MLS member such as myself to do the search.

Schools are very important to parents, and I can define a search area by naming a particular elementary, middle school or high school.

North-facing driveways are a no-no for some buyers. I can specify “Not North” in that field.

Main-floor living is important to many seniors, and I can specify one-story homes or, my favorite, specify main -floor primary bedroom (or non-primary bedroom), thereby allowing for 2-story homes which have main-floor bedrooms.

Is having the laundry on the same floor as the primary bedroom or simply not in

the basement important to you? That can be specified too and it’s required that listings indicate which floor the laundry, bedrooms and bathrooms are on.

Do you want to see only those homes which aren’t in an HOA? Or maybe you want an HOA that includes exterior maintenance of the home. No problem.

I can also search for key words within the listing’s public remarks. I mentioned last week that I did a search for the phrase “outdoor kitchen” and found 67 such listings within 20 miles of downtown Denver. I can search for any word or phrase.

Searching by map is useful, and I can draw a line around a particular neighborhood or multiple non-contiguous neighborhoods in the same search.

I can search for homes with property taxes under a particular amount, or simply homes that do not have a Metropolitan Tax District with an additional tax levy.

The age of the home, 220V wiring in the garage, solar panels, type of heating and cooling all these and more can be searched, but only by an MLS member.

the common area amenities such as parks, playgrounds and trails.

In some cases, the listing agent may have obtained those HOA documents in advance. As your agent, even before submitting your offer, I can ask for them, first looking to see if they’re already posted as “supplements” on the MLS.

Sometimes the “Sellers Property Disclosure” is also posted on the MLS, but if not, I can request that document for you, then ask follow-up questions about items disclosed on it.

Every HOA in the state must be registered with the HOA Information & Resource Center. If they are not registered, they are unable to enforce the covenants or file a lien against a member who is delinquent on dues or fines.

The state legislature has not empowered the Center to license or otherwise regulate HOAs, including to receive and act on member complaints. It’s really quiet a sad situation. Even sadder is the condition of its registry of HOAs. I downloaded the Excel file and was shocked at the amount of duplication and errors in the data entry. See for yourself at the posting of this article at http://RealEstateToday.substack.com.

The link provided for finding a registered HOA takes you to the same form that is used for finding brokers and brokerages, so you enter the name (or part thereof) for the HOA you’re looking for, but it is very hit or miss when I tested it. Entering the ZIP code of the HOA in addition was useful. It also shows if the HOA’s license is expired, which was the case for one I looked up. The phone number was for the clubhouse and a random HOA member picked up. I had to find an HOA document in order to get the number for the contact person. Ugh!

I Just Had a Terrible Thought…

ChatGPT has leveled the playing field for real estate agents. As in most professions, 90% of us aren’t good writers or even spellers! Ask ChatGPT to rewrite a property description or newsletter, and it will do so in flawless English with flawless spelling and flawless grammar, which got me thinking about scammers. Scam texts and emails can often be identified by their poor English and spelling, but if the scammer uses ChatGPT, that red flag will no longer be present. Every year we have to be more and more alert for possible scams.

Just Listed: 2-BR, 1280-SF Fraser Condo

This wonderful condo at 693 Wapiti Drive #A16 features a moss rock fireplace and a skylight in the living room. Off the living room is a deck with marvelous views of Byers Peak. The kitchen has granite counters, hickory cabinets, and double sink with mountain views. A laundry room/pantry is off the kitchen. The primary bedroom has new windows, double closet, a full ensuite bathroom with tile floor and tiled bath area.

$697,000

The 2nd bedroom has carpeting, double closet and new windows. The oversized garage has plenty of room to store firewood, and at the rear of the garage is a huge locked storage space. Reasonable HOA dues pay for water, sewer, snow removal, trash, and internet. Unit comes tastefully furnished. It’s a short walk from downtown Fraser with its many shops, bars, and entertainment. Experience the great outdoors just outside your door. Hike or bike along the Fraser River trail that leads to Winter Park. It’s also on the free bus route to Winter Park. To see it, call David Dlugasch at 303-908-4835. Take a video tour at www.WinterParkCondo.info.

Jim Smith

Broker/Owner, 303-525-1851

Jim@GoldenRealEstate.com 1214 Washington Ave., Golden 80401

Broker Associates: JIM SWANSON, 303-929-2727

CHUCK BROWN, 303

of itself.” Anonymous

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CONGRATULATIONS!

To the winners of our Cutest Pets Contest

First Place Dog

First Place Cat First Place Other

Round of applause to our winners and a very special thanks to all the cute pets that participated in this years contest. We’ll see you again next year!

TRIVIA

1. TELEVISION: What subject does Walter White teach at the beginning of “Breaking Bad”?

2. GEOGRAPHY: Which three countries make up the Baltic states in Europe?

3. MUSIC: What is the title of e Beatles’ rst album?

4. LITERATURE: Prince Edward Island is the inspiration for which novel series?

5. HISTORY: Which Roman emperor built a wall across northern England to deter invaders?

6. MOVIES: Which movie rst featured the character Lisbeth Salander?

7. ASTRONOMY: e asteroid belt lies between which two planets in our solar system?

8. U.S. STATES: Which state’s coast was dubbed the “Graveyard of the Atlantic” because so many ships wrecked there?

9. FOOD & DRINK: What does the term “a la carte” mean?

10. SCIENCE: What is the process called when a gas changes into a liquid?

Answers

1. Chemistry.

2. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

3. “Please Please Me.”

4. “Anne of Green Gables.”

5. Hadrian.

6. “ e Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.”

7. Jupiter and Mars.

8. North Carolina.

9. According to the menu.

10. Condensation.

(c) 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.

FLASHBACK

1. Name the singer who started his career with e Decibels before moving on to e Town Criers, e Omens and e Last Heard.

2. Which singer wrote and released “Ain’t at a Shame”?

3. Which song by e Byrds had trouble getting airplay?

4. Where did Jesse Colin Young get his name?

5. Name the song that contains this lyric: “Sometimes it’s better to let it all go, I’ve been there and I think I should know.”

Answers

1. Bob Seger. In 1974 he put together the Silver Bullet Band. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004.

2. Fats Domino, in 1955. e song is included in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

3. “Eight Miles High,” in 1966. Radio stations were concerned the song was about drug use, but the group claimed it was about their plane trip to England.

4. Born Perry Miller, he decided on the new stage name by blending the names of the Lotus car designer, Colin Chapman, and two outlaws, Jesse James and Cole Younger.

5. “Better Love Next Time,” by Dr. Hook in 1979 on their “Sometimes You Win” album. While the song made a commendable appearance on the Hot 100 chart, it rose to No. 3 on the Adult chart.

(c) 2024 King Features Syndicate

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