The Gafford Group At Simply Vegas Real Estate
HOME BUYING Guide
Las Vegas Henderson Buy | Sell | Invest
WELCOME
HOME YOUR GUIDE TO SUCCESSFULLY PURCHASING A HOME Enclosed you will find information regarding a comprehensive home buying process created to get you the best possible deal on your new home while making the process as simple and painless as possible. You are hiring the best REALTORS in Nevada to represent you, trust in our process and we know you will be happy.
WHO WE ARE: GAFFORD GROUP AT SIMPLY VEGAS Simply Vegas is the largest boutique firm in the state of Nevada. We have 375 agents, and we are #3 in total listing volume (the top two companies have over 4000 agents combined, and the fourth place company has over 800). So as you can see we are a company full of top performers. Why is this important to you? We are the only firm in Las Vegas that has serious hiring standards, unlike other brokerages that will hire, really anybody. All of our agents are vetted to ensure minimum experience and service standards. We have a larger market share than any Keller Williams, Sotheby’s, RE/Max, Coldwell Banker, or Century 21.
Simply Vegas did the largest single transaction in the history of Las Vegas 187MM - the Veer Towers acquisition. Why should this matter to you? If one of the largest hedge funds in the world trusted our firm with their transaction, shouldn’t you?
We sell more homes over 2MM than any other firm. Why this is important to you is we only know one way to practice real estate . We don’t dumb down our service based on the price of your transaction. It doesn’t matter to us if you are selling a $2 million house or $200,000 house the level of service will be exactly the same; it’s the five diamond Saks Fifth Avenue level of service.
Dear Future Client, Thank you for reviewing this guide, we hope you find it informative. I prepared this information for you to help you in this process. Reading and following it will make you sharper than other buyers that may be in the market for the same home you want. A good agents job is to provide you with enough solid information so you can make honest, informed decisions based upon facts not hype. As you use this package, use the forms at the back to make notes on listings you see or mark any questions that you may have that we are always happy to answer. We will cover many things in this guide including: How to Craft an Offer Responsibilities of your Agent The Lender Process The Nevada Closing Process and more Buying a home is a complicated task, so it is crucial to have every possible advantage you can. Thank you again for your time, and we look forward to working with you. Best Personal Regards, John Gafford Broker Owner of Simply Vegas
WHAT OUR PREVIOUS CLIENTS SAY...... “Whether buying or selling I would highly recommend the Gafford Group at Simply Vegas. If you’re serious about property David Jones is your man.” - Graham Townsend “Michelle Rodriguez at Simply Vegas is amazing! She was informative, knowledgeable and ahead of the game with my home purchase. Made my experience wonderful and less stressful. Thank you Michelle!” - Cathy Shinn “Damian worked hard and diligently to get the property sold. He helped steer through a difficult escrow and maintained the property in good condition prior to its sale.” - Marc D Risman “John Gafford didn’t disappoint. We expressed what we were looking for and he found the perfect place for us! He always made himself available. He was very approachable and patient with us. I definitely would recommend him as an agent. He gets the job done!” - Alicia J. Rivers “After my wife and I decided to retire in the Las Vegas area after many years living in the mid-west, we worked with Ashley Toussaint at Simply Vegas on finding just the right home. She was awesome to work with......very professional and patient with our ever changing ideas about what we wanted. We also appreciated her flexibility with showings on short notice, including nights and weekends. After a 6 month search, we finally closed on our beautiful home in Henderson. I would highly recommend Ashley to assist anyone looking for a home in the Las Vegas area. She was great!” - Gordon Humbert The Gafford Group, we are in the top 1% of all REALTORS nationwide, we sell more homes in a month (or even a week sometimes) than most agents do in a year. See experience matters, we negotiate more deals with more people than just about anyone, this will give you an edge when it comes time to make sure you get you the best deal on the sale of your home.
WHAT OUR PREVIOUS CLIENTS SAY...... “Jacqueline and Eugenia helped my fiancé and I purchase our first home together. They were very professional from the start. I especially enjoyed how there was no pressure felt during our very first walk through of the home. It gave us the chance to really check the place out and make sure it best fit our needs. Then through the offer and closing processes, they helped us with so many questions we had, and were very patient with us. They did a very thorough job through inspections and were always available and prompt when we needed them. There were even times when they would check-in with us when they hadn’t heard from us in a while, just to make sure we were doing okay! They worked really hard to get us the best deal on the house, and we were so grateful for them! It really made the home buying process easy, and we could not have done it without Jacqueline and Eugenia.” - Aaron Storey “Sonja Catlin! This lovely lady embraced our vision, our needs and made everything happen in record time! She joined forces with my husband and me as though she were family. She engaged fully with us and educated us along the way. Simply Vegas should be SIMPLY PROUD to have Sonja represent them! We’re very happy sellers and buyers!” - Marianne & Whitney Phoenix “From the moment Ara became our agent, I knew We were in the best hands possible. We are first time home buyers, and Ara made the entire process informative and empowering for us. Guiding us through each form of the home buying process and educating us on all our rights along the way. With Ara’s altruistic determination to provide the best possible experience and service to her clients, as well as the support and expertise from The Gafford Group of Simply Vegas, we were able to trust in the team working for us and actually enjoy the process. I give my highest recommendation to Ara and her team with The Gafford Group and there’s no other agent who I would trust more for all of my realty needs!” - Pamela Strand “Our agent Matt Shiel was very conscientous, stayed on top of everything and was a terrific help. We were very pleased and will now use him to sell a property we have in Henderson. Thanks for your, good work, Matt!” - Michael Todd Henry “They helped our family relocate from So Cal; not only did they find us the perfect property but also helped us with all our other need. We highly recommend The Gafford Group and were extremely happy with our purchase.” - Tom Ganley
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN WE HELP YOU BUY A HOME THE SEARCH
We will show you every home available on the market regardless of who has it listed. You will decide which homes and home types (see Types of Listings) we see, not us. You are always in complete control. During the search don’t worry if a few particular things in a home need to be changed or updated. Very rarely do we find “the perfect property” as everyone has different tastes. During the due diligence period , we can get bids to remodel anything you like, if they are too high, we can always cancel the deal and move on to the next.
What we will do is help you narrow down your choices to the one or two homes we are going to write offers on. Yes, many of our clients write offers on multiple homes at the same time. Having a backup plan gives you incredible clarity in negotiations and will allow you to make more aggressive decisions.
THINGS TO REMEMBER: We have a large team so we can almost always accommodate any schedule to show you properties. There is no need to call a listing agent directly or walk into an open house or new home builder alone. We are always a phone call away.
CRAFTING AN OFFER.
This is why you hire us. Anyone can just open a door and point at a fireplace. Helping you craft your offers is where our experience pays off. Every home has a unique situation and story and our skill at deciphering and uncovering the motivation level of Sellers as well as leverage points for you will save you money. Not to mention our relationships and reputation make us Buyer’s agents that Listing agents WANT to deal with. Besides the intangibles here are some things we will consider: Finance Type - This can affect your negotiation stance (see finance types) Condition- We can not automatically start deducting for a properties condition as it may already be reflected in the price. Comps - It is far more important to buy to where the market is “going” not where it has been. When we consider all the comps we must consider, is the market appreciating or depreciating,? What was the condition, of the home? Did the Seller make any concessions? What was the deal type? All of these things together allow us to negotiate the best possible deal for you. Virtually every client we have walks into an equity situation.
PRICING TRUTHS ESCROW AND DUE DILIGENCE PERIOD
In Nevada we do not use attorneys to close real estate transactions, we use escrow companies. We will open escrow by wiring your earnest money deposit and delivering a copy of the contract to the escrow company. They will pull together all the paperwork required to close your deal. It is also VERY important to use an Escrow Officer we have a relationship with as well as the Lender. The communication between these two is imperative to getting your deal closed on time.
During the due diligence period you can cancel for any reason you wish. This is the time we schedule the home inspections, have you review the HOA docs, help you get any bids for remodelling, get any additional documentation required by your lender and order the appraisal.
Sellers Real Property Disclosure form - A Seller has to by law disclose any material defects with a home. Even if they have been repaired by the Seller and are not evident, they still must disclose them. We will get this form from the Seller PRIOR to the home inspection.
Home Inspection - Although you have the right to waive a home inspection, to do so is down right foolish. For a few hundred dollars, you can protect yourself from unseen issues. These reports are VERY detailed and you have to keep things in perspective. EVERY home will have some issues and we are not necessarily trying to get the home back to perfect. Stay focused on any defects that would cause a safety issue or that negatively impact the value of the home. We will then request repairs from the Seller. Like everything else, this is negotiable, in some cases instead of repairs the Seller may offer a credit or price reduction to the Buyer.
“Most people buy 4 homes in their lifetime, we buy hundreds of them a year, I assure you, we are REALLY good at it.� -John Gafford
WHAT TO EXPECT (CONTINUED)
HOA Documents - Most of the homes sold in Southern Nevada will be part of a Home Owners Association (in some cases several). They can range from general landscape maintenance to maintaining strict usage rules. When we deliver the home owners documents to you (in most cases by an electronic copy), it is imperative that YOU review them. You will sign a document that states you have and are in full acknowledgement of all their provisions. You can not come back later and say “I didn’t know” if you violate one of the bylaws. Some things to look for that may affect you.:Total number of allowable pets, can the property be rented, remodel restrictions, parking restrictions, etc.
Title Report- You will receive a title report from the title and escrow company showing any and all claims to the property. All claims will need to be settled at closing to make sure you receive a “non-clouded” title at closing. We will review this document with you to make sure you understand everything.
CLOSING
Once we are all clear and confident we are moving forward with the transaction we will begin the closing phase.
Good Funds- All of your closing proceeds including the rest of the down payment and your closing costs will need to be electronically wired to your escrow account prior to closing. The total will be on your final consummation statement delivered to you from escrow prior to closing.
The Walk Through - Prior to closing you will need to walk through the property and make sure it is in as good or better condition than when you first viewed it. If repairs have been done as part of the inspection we recommend an early walk through 6 days prior to closing to ensure they were done and then a second walk through just prior to closing We can
WHAT TO EXPECT (CONTINUED)
complete the walk through for you should you not be able to attend. KEEP IN MIND We are not licensed contractors so any opinion on repairs will be just that, an opinion. If you ask us to complete the walk through for you, because so many things in regards to condition can be subjective, you will need to sign a waiver as if it walk through was not done at all. Signing- We will schedule a time to meet you at the title company to sign the final paperwork. This can be done remotely with a notary as well, or at the US Embassy in any country. Once all signatures and funds are in, the property will be released to record. YOU DO NOT OWN THE PROPERTY UNTIL THIS HAPPENS. For example, if you sign at 2pm on Friday after your lenders wire transfer cutoff the money will not be there until Monday and it will not record until Monday. In short, don’t bring a moving truck to your signing. Utility Transfers- We will coordinate with the Sellers on the appropriate date to have all of the utilities transferred into your name. You will need to contact all the utilities at least 3 business days in advance to schedule the connections. Do not wait until the last day as some utilities do not offer same day or even 48 hour service for connections. POST CLOSING After the deal has been recorded, we will make arrangements to meet you with all the keys and remotes for the property you purchased. KEEP IN MIND In some cases only a key to the front door may be delivered.. If the property was a rental or bank owned the probability of this happening goes up. We do in either case highly recommend that you have the locks changed after taking possession.
IN MOST CASES, PROBLEMS AT CLOSING CAN BE AVOIDED
TYPES OF LISTINGS AND WHAT TO EXPECT WITH EACH
EQUITY BANK OWNED SHORT SALE NEW HOMES PROBATE / BK
Every type of listing presents it’s own challenges and own rewards. You should know going in what types of listings to search for that fit your circumstance and eliminate those that do not. NOTE: Many homes being resold now may have at one time been Bank Owned. If the property you are interested in shows this in history, we need to ensure an overly cautious inspection.
EQUITY Equity Sellers or “Traditional listings” imply the Seller owns the home outright or has a mortgage that can be paid off in full from the expected proceeds from the sale. For quick move-ins these properties represent your best chance at a fast close. They also will tend to be the easiest deals to get done.
BANK OWNED
Bank Owned or “REO” properties are properties that a financial institution has repossessed from a delinquent Buyer. These properties, while creating value for Buyers, do have many challenges. First, there is no emotion involved from the Seller. It is strictly numbers, so an emotional plea in a multiple offer situation carries no weight. Second, banks have their own addendum that they demand you sign to purchase one of their homes. These forms may include waiving several important protections you have in the standard contract. Third, no-one from the bank has ever lived in the home so you will not be getting any disclosures of an previous issues that may be lurking.
SHORT SALE A short sale is when the homeowner sells the house for less than is owed on the mortgage with the banks approval. The first thing to know is the list prices on short sales are not real. Because the Seller is not getting any money out of the sale and does not care, agents will normally be very aggressive in pricing and price drops. You can get into contract on a short sale at list price, and the bank can counter you months later at a much higher price. While you can get deals with short sales, if you have any type of time frame, either to move or to do a 1031 exchange, stay away as the approval time can be as long as six months.
NEW HOMES New homes are for people that want their home EXACTLY as they want in the day they move in. While new homes are seldom the best value, they can be when the market slows. Builders offer special incentives to REALTOR clients to get them in during these times. The agents that work on site for the builders do just that, WORK FOR THE BUILDERS. It is imperative you take an experienced agent with you to ensure you get the best deal. Our negotiating skills, plus the warranties that come with a new home can make them a perfect purchase for you.
PROBATE / BK
Anytime you enter into a contract with property that needs court approval you run the risk of losing it. At the Probate or Bankruptcy Court, when your home comes up as part of a case, someone in the courtroom may shout “Overbid”. This will then trigger a quick auction of the property and the highest bidder gets it.
FINANCING OPTIONS AND WHAT TO EXPECT WITH EACH
CASH CONVENTIONAL FHA VA Yes while every deal is different, how you are planning to pay for your new home can have a dramatic effect on the deal. New lending laws placed in effect on Oct. 3rd, of 2015 make choosing the right lender and title company imperative to a successful close. Choosing the wrong lender could possibly delay closing, costing you thousands of dollars in fees.
CASH There is an old saying that “Cash is King”. This is true to a certain extent. Cash gives you the power to close quickly with the option to waive appraisals (two things Sellers love). However, since hedge funds started buying Las Vegas homes as assets in 2013, the percentage of homes closing all cash skyrocketed and has maintained a high rate. This is true across all price points including the luxury segment as a migration of wealthy Californians relocate to Nevada fleeing higher taxes. Don’t just assume cash gives you the power to low ball an offer, make sure you look at the whole picture.
CONVENTIONAL This is the most popular form of financing with Sellers. Conventional loans with larger down payments signal to Sellers a Buyer that is able and willing. It demonstrates not just credit worthiness but a cash reserve large enough to close the deal and allows some flexibility in renegotiation should the homes appraisal not come in at the purchase price. With conventional loans, as with all loans, it is perfectly acceptable to request the Seller contribute to the lender closing costs associated with procuring the loan. Keep in mind, asking for these concessions will weaken your offer so make sure you consult with your agent on the specific situation of the desired property to make sure it is a wise move.
FHA
FHA loans are great because they only require a small percentage down 3.5%. Savvy Sellers tend to be more leery of FHA loans than Conventional. They tend to indicate a Buyer that may not have cash in reserve to cover any potential issues. If you need closing costs, it may be better to inflate your offer and roll them in. The biggest challenge is an FHA appraisal. Unlike other deals where you can order multiple appraisals, the FHA appraisals are stuck to a home for 6 months. This means if it comes in low and you don’t have the cash to cover the difference, the deal is dead. The max loan amount for FHA in Clark county is $287,500. If you are looking for a home under 200k, and you keep getting beat by Conventional and Cash offers, you may want to offer on everything that fits your criteria sight unseen. We have used this strategy with great success for our FHA Buyers as it limits the disappointment and you only go see homes you know you can have.
VA
VA loans are amazing in that they allow you to borrow 100% of the value of the home. THIS DOES NOT MEAN YOU CAN GET A HOME WITH ZERO DOWN. There are many costs associated with purchasing a home that you will need to pay either at closing or before the closing. Examples: The appraisal, home inspections, the Earnest Money Deposit, transaction fees, etc. Sellers can be leery of VA loans because of some of their restrictions. Certain closing costs that are usually split on other types of deals are not allowed. It’s a good idea to pick up part of the Seller’s costs in other areas that are allowed to make up for this. VA appraisals also include certain property condition standards. Most are no issue, but consult with your agent and make sure the home want to buy is up to par. We also recommend including a handwritten letter to the Seller, describing your service and how much you want the home to include with any offers.
HOME BUYER FAQ’s
Question Once I get my Lender everything they need up front I should not expect them to need anything else, right?
Answer Wrong. With all of the scrutiny that now goes into the underwriting of home loans, it is not out of the ordinary at all for lenders to request additional documentation or clarification of things you previously supplied right up until closing. Even though it may seem like you are on occasion submitting the same thing over and over, make sure you get them whatever they need. This is just another reason why it is best to use a local lender with which we have a relationship.
Question Should I always low ball an offer and negotiate from there?
Answer Every situation is different. What we have found is when a Buyer and Seller agree on a deal for a home, the price has very little to do with it. That is to say, when the parties agree on the “standard of value” that was used to determine the price, everything comes together. Just like “What the Seller wants to NET” has no bearing on the value of a property, “What you want to offer” has the same amount of bearing. When we submit a offer (even a low one when the situation calls for it) we always discuss our reasoning for that value. This helps the Listing agent (who may be weak and inexperienced ) explain and sell our offer to their client. As long as we can keep the Seller engaged with the “why” we have a better chance of getting the “how much” we want..
Question Home Inspectors are responsible if something comes up later they missed. Right?
Answer Most home inspectors do a great job of going through a home but they can not see issues that may have been deliberately concealed. This is why the Seller’s Real Property Disclosure form is so. Important. If anything on the form looks remotely wrong , we will make sure the Seller gives us an expanded detailed answer. Further many of the homes here in Southern Nevada may have been Bank Owned at one time. Banks were not required to provide an SRPD to Buyer’s before 2011. In many cases they sold these homes “As-Is” and depended on local field service contractors to do repairs that may have been done substandard and never disclosed to the new Buyer. KEEP IN MIND In the event that an issue arises after closing that we feel the Seller deliberately concealed, we will advise you to contact a real estate attorney on how to proceed against the Sellers.
Question Can agents at new home build sites help me, the same as you, to buy a new home?
Answer New home builder site agents work for the builder, not you. Their job is to maximize the profit earned by the builder. Working with them directly is the same thing as working with a car salesman, who is employed by a dealership. We will negotiate better incentives, and costs for you because we work for you!
Question Should I plan to move based on the date I wish to close?
Answer WAIT! Many times we will write contracts to be closed “on or before” a certain date. We coordinate this with the Seller’s agent but occasionally the Sellers drag their feet. Make sure we have a solid close date prior to making moving plans. In the event the deal can not close on the date you wish to move, we may be able to negotiate an “early occupancy” clause. This will involve a separate lease agreement and the Seller may require deposits, it really all is at the discretion of the Seller.
Question Once I am in contract, can I go to the home as often as I like?
Answer Not always. - In most cases Sellers want as little traffic through a property as possible once it is in escrow. Why, if the property is occupied the answer is obvious. However if it’s vacant, it’s the liability. The more people in a home, the more opportunity for something to get damaged or someone get hurt. If anyone is injured within the property, the homeowner and their insurance would be liable. That being said, we will have access for understandable events, like home inspections and appraisals. Should we want to get bids for remodel, we will need to schedule the contractors to all come at the same time on the same date to limit our intrusion.
Question What is the transaction fee?.
Answer There are many costs associated with closing a real estate transaction from the brokerage side of things. There is much time and effort spent behind the scenes by our support staff and company to get you into your home. We work very hard to keep this as low as possible for you.. This is the only brokerage fee you are required to pay at closing. The amount will never exceed the $475 disclosed in the brokerage agreement. NOTE : (should you use a VA loan, you are still responsible).
BUYER EXPECTATIONS
When you work with The Gafford Group, we want to act in YOUR best interests. We also want to make sure that we always meet your expectations.
Please take a moment to complete the survey below… What Are You Most Concerned About?
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Time Frame Expectations When I Leave a Voice Message, I expect a callback within When I Text, I expect a response within When I Email, I expect a response within When I wish to view a listing, I expect to see it within I expect to CLOSE on my new home no later than Should my agent be out of town, it is OK for another Gafford Group agent to assist me Y / N
Buyer’s Signature