Buy a House Fast

There’s a strange thing going on in Prince William County.  The phenomenon we’ve been observing is one we’ve never (to our knowledge) seen before; the emergence of a strong seller’s market WITHIN the buyer’s market that has been the norm in real estate for the last year or so.  Here’s a good example of what we’re talking about:

The Woodbridge house

Recently, we listed a home at 14925 Enterprise Lane, Woodbridge VA 22151 for $89,000.  Within 22 hours we received 23 offers, the highest being $142,000.

If you’re considering buying a similarly priced home in Prince William County or anywhere else, you should understand how an escalation clause works.  It starts with finding a home you like, and making an initial offer with the listing agent (let’s use $120,000 for this example).  The agent will likely tell you that he/she is receiving numerous offers for the home, and that you should create a contingency plan in case a better one comes along.  This will involve mentioning in your contract that you’re prepared to go up by increments of $2000 if the seller receives any higher offers (naturally, you’ll set a “do not exceed” cap, $180,000 in our scenario).  If you’re wondering about this process, you aren’t the only one: what guarantee do you have that there are other offers, or that there were enough that you had pay the full $180,000?  Unfortunately, this is very often how the game is played, and the escalation clause can be an effective way of giving yourself a fighting chance of winning the battle for a new home.  If this is the path you choose to take, then be sure to factor the added costs into your overall buying budget from the get-go.

The bottom line is, now is the time to buy a home, whether in Prince William or elsewhere; in fact, it may be the best time to buy a house in the next 30 years, especially if you’re planning on unloading your current one first.  For details on either of these two processes, feel free to give us a call.

Besides giving you advice on buying and selling homes, we make it a priority to keep you aware of the pitfalls that exist in the real estate world.  One scam that’s been growing in popularity involves loan modification.  A new breed of swindler has appeared offering to facilitate this process, but modifying loans and doing your taxes are alike in that you can do both by yourself.

Negotiating

Scammers often claim they can help you bargain for a loan modification, but the truth is there isn’t much a third party can do to get you a better deal.  This isn’t the same as bringing a mechanic when you scope out a used car, or asking a friend who knows the language haggle for you at a flea market.  The servicer determines whether or not you qualify for a loan based on a pre-established set of criteria; this isn’t a decision that can be influenced by a third party.

All that paperwork…

It’s true that a long, detailed questionnaire can look daunting, but that doesn’t mean you have to pay someone to fill it out for you.  If you’re unsure of how to proceed, there are a number of free counselors and websites that can guide you through the process.  Calling an organization called Hope Now at 888-995-HOPE can line you up with free counseling.  If your issue is finding the information required by the lender, give www.mtgprofessor.com a look; the site does a good job of explaining the requirements and information you’ll need to have ready and where to locate it.

Modifying a loan isn’t as hard as it looks.  If you’re the type whose eyes glaze over when you see a stack of official-looking forms, get yourself a free counselor to go over the fine points with you, or check out a website that talks you through each step.  What you need to remember is that you have options, and paying someone a hefty fee to help you with a process you can do on your own should not be one of them.