Insider secrets from a top realtor | members only

THE WALLS HAVE EYES — AND SOMETIMES EARS With high-tech home security measures like Ring cameras, the owners could eavesdrop easily on your conversations when you’re walking through a home.

Also, you probably shouldn’t be too quick to overshare with the listing agent. Even the questions that seem innocuous are being asked for a reason. Let’s say I ask, “Where are you guys

originally from? What brings you down here?” And you mention that you have a sister who lives down the block, and she is going to have a baby — that tells me that you have an emotional stake

in this neighborhood and you are committed to buying a home there. I will tell that information to the seller, and it will help them when it comes to negotiations. The silent buyers who

don’t share anything more than is absolutely necessary always have more leverage. DON’T BE AFRAID OF HOAS People get nervous about HOA communities because they think they will come with too

many rules. On the one hand, there are rules, and they can be a bit much sometimes. Rules about the type of mailbox you have, how long you can have holiday lights up and whether you have a

say in the landscaping can annoy potential homebuyers.  But a lot depends on your personality. If you want to be able to put a jungle gym in your backyard or paint your door whatever color

you want, an HOA might not be for you. But there is a quality control that comes with an HOA. You won’t suddenly wake up one morning and realize your neighbor has an old truck with no tires

on his front lawn. But make sure you read the bylaws in their entirety, so you know what you’re getting into. If you have pets, what are the pet restrictions? What are the resale

restrictions? How much does it cost and will fees go up each year? In my experience, people are first concerned about the cost, but after they move in, it’s the rules. Read the rules first.

​ AIM FOR 85 PERCENT OF YOUR HOUSE WISH LIST Rarely does somebody find a house that has 100 percent of what they want. My rule of thumb is if you get 85 percent of your wish list, that’s a

big win. So consider this especially if you can’t decide between a turnkey house that’s basically ready to move into tomorrow and a fixer-upper.  When people find things about a house they

don’t like, they sometimes decide, “Well, we’ll fix it down the line.” But buyers don’t always think realistically about the future. They don’t consider the hassles that will be involved,

like waiting on the contractor, waiting on city approval, which can take forever, or the time commitment involved in rehabbing your house, which can become a full-time job.  That said, if

you’re a fixer-upper by nature and it’s in your temperament, absolutely. Go for it. But thinking, “I’m not crazy about the bathrooms, but we can just gut them and start over,” might be

biting off more than you’re ready to chew. MORTGAGE BROKERS DON’T ALWAYS NEED 30 DAYS If I’m representing a seller and the buyer is doing a mortgage with a turnaround of 30 days, I ask them

to bring that down to seven to 14 days. And if their mortgage broker won’t do that, then I’m going to insist they work with somebody who will — and most will, especially for conventional

loans. It’s harder at a Big Box mortgage place where you’re navigating representatives at call centers. That’s why I always like to work with locally based mortgage brokers, even if they are

part of a national company.  A quicker mortgage turnaround is good for the seller. But it’s also beneficial for the buyer since it puts them on a more even playing field with cash buyers.

I like to write contracts so that the mortgage approval happens within 10 days, to match up with the 10-day inspection window. BE A LITTLE SUPERSTITIOUS  Never close on a Friday, or the end

of the month. When you’re ready to close on a house, you might be in a hurry to wrap everything up. But I highly recommend waiting if it’s getting too close to the weekend. A Tuesday or

Wednesday are ideal, or even Thursday in a pinch. If you close in the middle of the week and something goes awry, you have a buffer to resolve any issues before the weekend. But Friday is

never a good idea. Remember Murphy’s Law? If anything can go wrong, it will. In real estate, it’s always a good idea to prepare for the worst but hope for the best.   If the wire doesn’t

come through on a Friday at 5 p.m., the sellers can say, "no keys for you until I get my moola." Bottom line, the wire being late means no handover of keys. Which means the buyer

is now begging the mover to keep their furniture on the truck over the weekend. The closing agent is getting hollered at. The buyers' agent gets it from every angle and might have a

heart attack. The buyers then get hit with a massive bill to keep furniture on the truck, and no one is happy. All because you didn’t close on a Thursday.