About Rick Stone, Broker/Owner, CRS, ABR, GRI Expertise I am a licensed Real Estate Broker working in the surrounding Cabo san Lucas, Mexico. I have worked the past 11 years in Virginia and Washington DC. I have also represented a custom home builder for a number of years, served as chairperson for my HOA Architectural Review Board and closed hundreds of transactions. I will do my best to respond to any related questions regarding the buying or selling of real estate.
Questions can be regarding your search in finding a great agent to work with and what to do with a bad one. Real estate agency, contract issues, home inspections, real estate investing and property disclosure issues. I'll do my best and wave my magic wand to get you out of problems concerning your builder or be happy to tell you what you should had known before you wrote the contract or before you do. How do you buy or sell raw land, tear down an old house and rebuild new, and all you should know about waterfront properties are good questions too.
I will say this, I am candid with my reposnces and do my very best to offer advice that may teach but there are cases where if as Forrest Gump's mother would say, "stupid is what stupid does" or something like that, I may have to scold you to get my point across.
Experience I'm proud to achieved the following professional real estate designations: CRB, Council of Real Estate Brokers - CRS, Certified Residential Specialist - GRI, Graduate of the Realtors Institute and ABR, Accredited Buyers Representative. I am a member of the National Association of REALTORS, Mexican Association of REALTORS (AMPI) and the Los Cabos MLS. I own and sell waterfront properties so I can address issues related to living on the water. I represented a custom builder for many years and have sold hundreds of new homes so, fire away with your questions regarding new home construction.
I'll do my best to be straight up and help if I can or I will tell you if I can not and who to contact in that event. I am not an attorney and can not provide legal advice. If you are having a dispute with a seller or buyer who has failed to live up to the contract terms, or a tenant that is always late with paying their rent, while I may not be able to help, I may be able to offer suggestions and then who else to contact.
Please, please, please, understand that real estate law, agency and tenant rights / law differs from state to state and so I will best serve those who have problems in Virginia, Washington DC or Mexico. While I am happy to answer all questions from any one who writes me and offer advice, please understnad that in some cases, I may not be able to help you at all. Please tell me what state your property is located in, if you have a problem with commissions, discharging agents, getting out of a contract, do us both a favor, first look in your documents for the language therein and when you write me, please say that you have re-read that wording.
If you have not yet hired your agent, write me for essential questions you should ask first and save yourself a lot of time, agony, misery and possible financial unhappiness.
Expert: Rick Stone, Broker/Owner, CRS, ABR, GRI - 1/27/2005
Question Yo Rick...
My Mother will live the rest of her life in long term care. My brothers and sisters (6 of us) want to sell her house, once we get the "life estate" clause from the deed rewritten.
We've had the house since new - 1961. Dad paid about $15K. Home is in Southern New Jersey. It was looked at by three realtors. One said it was worth $159K, the other two thought it could get $199K.
No mortgage, no liens, etc etc.
I thought about possibly buying it from my brothers and sisters, to use as a rental property, and future nest egg for retirement. I am 48 yrs. old, married with children.
I own my own home. Just refinanced my 15 year mortgage again to another 15 yr. mortgage (maybe 12 years left). My home is worth about $200K, with about $70K left on my mortgage. So it has some equity.
What are your thoughts about me trying to buy it from my siblings, or should we just go ahead and sell it?
Thanks.
Jim P.
Answer Hello Jim, thank you for a great question.
Option one, you place it on the market for sale to the general public. You have differing opinions as to price so question one is, what is the right price?
I would have to review the comparitive market analysis prepared by all three to see which comps they used and why one choose one over the other.
There is too much spread between the price, maybe the one at 159 is not very good at pricing or the other two are giving you a higher number in hopes of landing the listing and if it will not sell, get you to lower the price.
Some agents will do that if they are desparate for business. Check with a few of the recent sellers they worked with to see if what they had priced their home was what it sold for. Remeber, A home is only worth what a buyer is willing to pay at any given monent in time.
Option two, buy it from the family. You have to be fair with them, the money will go to pay for Mom's care so you certainly don't want to cheat her. Deciding on fair market value so that the rest of the brood won't later burn you at the stake and send you a lump of coal next Christmas can be easily accomplished by ordering up an apprisal which will set you back about 300-400 bucks.
As far as an investment vehicle; A) can you rent it for what your net cost of ownership would be plus allowing to collect a little extra (like 10% of each months rent) for future repairs and upkeep?
....and B) what is the rate at which a home of that type will appreciate in what ever time frame is that you intend to keep it? How much profit would you actually realize at the end when it's time to sell and you deduct all your selling costs plus the tax on the capital gain?
Owning real estate is a great thing if the market is good don't get me wrong but if one day you need the cash for something else and the market is slow or down, if may be harder to get your money out.
Hmmm. I do own investment properties and do well as our market in DC is insane and if I needed ot sell one, it would overnight. But where you are, only you can say what is going on, maybe you might consider buying a resort property like on the shore and placing it in a seasonal rental program and let someone else take care of it and you could use it for your personal use from time to time? Waterfront always becomes more valuable.
Could you take that money and invest it somewhere else that would earn you the same or even more, something to consider - not to mention that as a landlord...well life is not always a holiday.
Wishing you well, hope this helps and please write again if this is not enough or you have additional questions.
