If you are already working with a real estate attorney, then a closing agent may not be necessary as your real estate attorney can also be the acting closing agent with a checklist of required task items to cross off before the closing. Otherwise, get referrals from real estate agents, Read more…
Real estate agents have full access to MLS information that is not available to the general public. Agents can see a home’s offers and offers that fell through, plus a complete listing history with different brokers even if the public MLS information only indicates that the home is newly listed. Read more…
We give buyer rebates because our goal is to pass the savings back to clients. We operate at a low overhead due to the technology advances that the real estate industry has made over the years. Searching for homes is as easy as tapping on a smartphone, and eases much Read more…
Some houses are sold directly by owners in Flushing Queens when owners prefer to do everything themselves without involving real estate agents. On average, 5-6 percent of all Queens homes are FSBO. Agents generally may not show these FSBO homes as they may not be paid a commission by the Read more…
Coming up with 20% for a down payment helps you avoid having to buy private mortgage insurance (PMI). For down payments less than 20% of the purchase price, the mortgage lender will require you to buy PMI. Why is the 20% important? It is a measure to indicate that you Read more…
As an incentive for buying newly constructed homes, developers are likely to offer buyers a mortgage rate buydown to finish the deal. This action is similar to paying off a point upfront. However, it is the developer who is subsidizing part of the loan to lower the buyer’s monthly payments, Read more…
The borrower would want to compensate the family member for lending the money. This interest rate could be a fair rate that is lower than what the traditional banks charge and higher than the Applicable Federal Rate (AFR). A good rate would be “AFR plus 1/2(Bank Rate minus AFR).” Propose Read more…
Besides getting a buyer rebate when working with the right buyer agents, they are often the ones that know their local real estate market like the back of their hand. They have a way of knowing who’s interested in selling their homes and who are the motivated sellers because it Read more…
Putting a larger down payment onto a home purchase helps lower the loan-to-value (low LTV) ratio. It also means the borrower is less likely to walk away from making mortgage payments if they already put down a large sum of money. Lenders like to see that borrowers have more skin Read more…
Sellers in New York generally choose to pay the $500 closing credit to the buyer rather than completing the NYS Property Condition Disclosure Statement. Sellers feel that the disclosure statement may discourage potential buyers instead of fueling interest from potential buyers. As a buyer, the $500 credit helps to pay Read more…