I'm buying my first home

[crosscreekcooter]

The home looks well maintained from the video, but that's like looking at something a block away through binoculars. My guess is the owners have been there for a few years which is good. Before your money goes hard, here are a few things you can do.

Cruise the neighborhood at different times of the day and week.

Check out your neighbors, and by this, it wouldn't hurt to knock on the doors around the house and introduce yourself. Ask one neighbor about the others.

Kids...how many and where. Maybe the next door neighbor raises coon dogs. Watch this video this guy is great, there are several on him in youtube.

Traffic, bus stops, playgrounds, basketball goals at the curb, pretend you already live there and look around like it's your place.



It would be great if there was a heavy rain event and you were around to watch how the water acts and where it goes. Drainage is one of the most important issues and I would assume after the 30 years that home has been there, what ever problems existed have been solved. Goon made a good point about the water running under the deck. It appears in the video that rear of the lot slopes towards the house and from right to left looking at it from the rear. It also appears that they have added a retaining wall at the rear to reduce the grade and make more of the lot friendly and usable. That should help with water flow.

Ask your inspector to investigate the actual waterproofing system used. Some are old=school and will work for many years, some were in use in 1984 that were real good systems that are still being used today . Any system used should include a footing drain which would daylight at the lowest end of the house (around your daylight basement). This is to relieve the water that migrates to the footing. Have your inspector make sure they are open and functioning.

You have overhead power which brings electricity from the pole and transformer to a masthead which then channels the cable to your meter socket. Ask who maintains maintenance of the overhead cable and make sure there are no overhanging limbs. If so, make the seller remove them. Also you should get rid of both of those two trees next to the foundation at the front of the home. Those are big trouble.

 

[crosscreekcooter]

Inside the basement: Look for signs of water...stains on wood plates both at the floor and at the top of
the foundation wall. Get on a ladder and look for mud around those top plates at the rear of the home. Look at the foundation wall for cracking and/or water. Make sure the outside plates are bolted to the concrete slab and the top of the foundation walls. Check to make sure the inside of the basement walls haven't been painted with Dry-lock or a similar product which would be an indicator of water intrusion. I keep harping on this because water is your enemy and will slowly degrade the home. Check the concrete slabs for cracking. That in itself isn't necessarily a problem as concrete has to move so it is going to crack somewhere. You want to look for heaving or vertical displacement which would indicate movement. That's a bad thing. Also check your walk and steps at the front where the steps join the porch. If there is a crack at the first riser where it joins, make sure the riser height is consistent with the other risers. If not it may be moving vertically (settling), If it has moved, it will continue to move over time. Concrete movement vertically is a bad thing.

I won't get into the mechanical systems much because your inspector will be checking these and work from a list, However you will want to know the age of all appliances. That includes a/c condenser and air handler, water heater and its relief valve, range, refrigerator, range hood and condition of filter, dishwasher, refrigerator, and disposer. Make sure the inspector runs all of the systems through a complete cycle. While he is checking the dishwasher, ask him to check to make sure the dishwasher is fastened with screws into the countertop and the legs are tight to the floor so there is no movement when you open and close the door.

Your gas is heat and you have electric air. Ask him if he can examine the heat exchanger for cracks, Also make sure the A-coil is clean and the sump pump is functioning. Ask him to check the secondary drains to make sure they are also open. The same applies for the water heater pan and drain. Make sure no debris is in ether pan, and check the temperature setting on the water heater. 120 or less.

The information NV provided said the windows were new, Are they tilt-sash window? If so, have your inspector show you how to properly operate the tilt function. One wrong move and the clips are broken. Also make sure all the window balances work and the windows aren't painted shut and all the screen are intact and fit properly.

This is enough for now, I'll think of some more stuff tomorrow.



Your house looks pretty good.

 

[Gatordiddy]

He said FHA 3.5% down in the box earlier today.

Thanks NV...
Trux - has the home been officially appraised?

Since it's FHA, HUD sets the maximum loan rates on a per county basis and (good news) your county has a $271,050 limit:




The downside might be paying a little higher interest rate than a conventional loan but FHA loans are easier to get into (lower down payment and they can tolerate lower credit scores ...thank goodness :) ). However you do have to pay Mortgage Insurance in addition to the mortgage payment every month, but that's not too much... maybe a 100 or so?
Depends on your loan to value ratio:

Let's say the final selling price is $150,000. You put down 3.5% or $5,250 ...then that means your FHA loan will be for the difference or about $144,750.
144,750 (loan) divided by (value) of 150,000 equals an LTV of 96%...then this is what they base the mortgage insurance payment on.

So... if the house is under $625,000 (yes) and the term is more than 15 years (maybe) and the LTV is greater than 95% (96% in this case) then the monthly insurance in addition to the mortgage payment will be a charge of .85%. The loan ($144,750) multiplied by .85% = $1,230 Annually or about $102 a month just for the mortgage insurance.
The actual interest rate on your $144,750 loan will be based on what the bank will give you and as you know they'll base that on financials and credit history, etc.
I think it's averaging around 5% for FHA loans but that will vary.

Here's a good page to read as well:
http://www.zillow.com/mortgage-learning/fha-loan/

 

[t-gator]

You can can get just as low of an interest rate with a fha loan as a conventional 30 year loan. And if the home is in a rural county, you may be able to get a usda loan wich is 100 percent financing at the same rate as an fha loan.

 

[crosscreekcooter]

thats called farmers home-ist time home buyers and affordable housing partners

 

[NVGator]

Thanks NV...
Trux - has the home been officially appraised?

Since it's FHA, HUD sets the maximum loan rates on a per county basis and (good news) your county has a $271,050 limit:
View attachment 3238



The downside might be paying a little higher interest rate than a conventional loan but FHA loans are easier to get into (lower down payment and they can tolerate lower credit scores ...thank goodness :) ). However you do have to pay Mortgage Insurance in addition to the mortgage payment every month, but that's not too much... maybe a 100 or so?
Depends on your loan to value ratio:

Let's say the final selling price is $150,000. You put down 3.5% or $5,250 ...then that means your FHA loan will be for the difference or about $144,750.
144,750 (loan) divided by (value) of 150,000 equals an LTV of 96%...then this is what they base the mortgage insurance payment on.

So... if the house is under $625,000 (yes) and the term is more than 15 years (maybe) and the LTV is greater than 95% (96% in this case) then the monthly insurance in addition to the mortgage payment will be a charge of .85%. The loan ($144,750) multiplied by .85% = $1,230 Annually or about $102 a month just for the mortgage insurance.
The actual interest rate on your $144,750 loan will be based on what the bank will give you and as you know they'll base that on financials and credit history, etc.
I think it's averaging around 5% for FHA loans but that will vary.

Here's a good page to read as well:
http://www.zillow.com/mortgage-learning/fha-loan/

All good and accurate info Diddy. I'm not sure why Trux is going FHA. Might be a annual income or Income to Debt Ratio but he said he had a really good credit score. That will help him keep his interest rate down. Then again, he's already lied about the asking price so there's that. ;)

Good thing about that Mortgage Insurance, you can get rid of it in a couple years. Also, don't forget to ask about a 203K loan.

 

[playzwtrux]

There's a lot of good info in here, thanks everyone.
Here's a close up picture of the siding that I took yesterday because of the discussion about what type it was. It appears to be in good shape. I looked at most of the joints, and bottom edges and no signs of swelling.


The steps are separated from the front porch, but it looks like the top is moving away, and not the bottom. I wouldn't think this indicates vertical setting, but don't really know.


It may be Tuesday before I'm back inside the house, that's when the inspector will do his thang. I'll see if the agent will get me back in before then.

The deck needs some maintenance, and soon, so that'll be on the top of the list to get to. I think a good pressure washing and resealing will get another 3-5 years out of it, but it'll need to be replaced at some point. I'm thinking composite.

 

[GatorTAG]

Trux, I don't think the steps will be that big a problem assuming that's all its settled since original construction. This is a pretty common problem. Contractors excavate the dirt to install the footings and walls. After they backfill this excavation the steps are built on the backfill. If they don't compact (and they rarely do) properly you'll get some settlement and that gap will appear.

Once you're in the house you have a couple of remedies.
1. Get a foundation jack company to come in and jack it up and back into place. This is expensive and not the way I'd handle it.
2. Get some backer rod at a local hardware store, (probably 1") based on the size of the gap and stuff it down in the gap a good 2-3 inches. Then mix up some high strength non shrink concrete and pour it in the gap until it's level with the brick. Let that set up and you should be good. *You can use a self leveling polyurethane sealant instead of concrete. In that case your backer rod should only be as deep as the width of the gap (1"?). I prefer the concrete.

Backer rod.

Non shrink grout

 

[crosscreekcooter]

The siding profile is called channel rustic and the lapping joint is typically 12". It was developed to look much like what's called a dutch lap profile, and was typically an engineered product (possibly an oriented strand board) not unlike LP siding. This isn't necessarily a bad thing in that the product was manufactured and pre-primed. One of the leading causes of early failure for LP siding was poorly painted edges and improper nailing which allowed water to get into the product. If no buckling or delamination has occured after 30 years, you're probably good to go. Just keep the exterior paint up.

It's difficult to read what's going on in the picture but the step could be a problem if there is no structural bearing under the end of the walk. That's a common occurrence in homes with a basement and steps that depend on the approaching non-reinforced concrete sidewalk for load bearing. Areas outside the foundation footprint in residential construction are rarely if ever inspected and typically are left up to the sub and brick mason to engineer. The porch walls could have had a haunch poured into them for bearing but it would be difficult to determine now. Oddly enough, while the the footing is inspected, in most instances the actual wall is not inspected before it is poured, and the entire structure relies on this for founding. That separation is going to continue and worsen over time as water runs through the crack and washes away the soil under it. At minimal I would fill the crack with a backer rod, top with an elastomeric filler and point up with mortar and watch it for the next year to see if it continues to move.

You will re-think composite deck material when you price it.

 

[playzwtrux]

Here you go Trux.

Thank you NV, you've been a huge help with the financing & other info. Really 'preciate it.

Thanks NV...
Trux - has the home been officially appraised? - not that i know of

Since it's FHA, HUD sets the maximum loan rates on a per county basis and (good news) your county has a $271,050 limit:
View attachment 3238


The downside might be paying a little higher interest rate than a conventional loan but FHA loans are easier to get into (lower down payment and they can tolerate lower credit scores ...thank goodness :) ). However you do have to pay Mortgage Insurance in addition to the mortgage payment every month, but that's not too much... maybe a 100 or so?
Depends on your loan to value ratio:

Let's say the final selling price is $150,000. You put down 3.5% or $5,250 ...then that means your FHA loan will be for the difference or about $144,750.
144,750 (loan) divided by (value) of 150,000 equals an LTV of 96%...then this is what they base the mortgage insurance payment on.

So... if the house is under $625,000 (yes) and the term is more than 15 years (maybe) and the LTV is greater than 95% (96% in this case) then the monthly insurance in addition to the mortgage payment will be a charge of .85%. The loan ($144,750) multiplied by .85% = $1,230 Annually or about $102 a month just for the mortgage insurance.
The actual interest rate on your $144,750 loan will be based on what the bank will give you and as you know they'll base that on financials and credit history, etc.
I think it's averaging around 5% for FHA loans but that will vary.

Here's a good page to read as well:
http://www.zillow.com/mortgage-learning/fha-loan/

This is really good info, I didn't know any of it. Don't think it's been appraised yet, but I'll check and advise. When I spoke with the mortgage agent he told me that unless I was outside city limits that I would need the 3.5% down and I need to stay in the city for the school system. He said there were other options, but he didn't process them and they sounded more like a headache since I have the 3.5%. I'm pretty much guessing that it's FHA - I don't want NV to accuse me of misleading anyone again ;) - I only know that I need 3.5% down :)

Also, if i understand this properly, and I make additional payments to the principal, I can eliminate the PMI part from the payment quicker.

You can can get just as low of an interest rate with a fha loan as a conventional 30 year loan. And if the home is in a rural county, you may be able to get a usda loan wich is 100 percent financing at the same rate as an fha loan.

All good and accurate info Diddy. I'm not sure why Trux is going FHA. Might be a annual income or Income to Debt Ratio but he said he had a really good credit score. That will help him keep his interest rate down. Then again, he's already lied about the asking price so there's that. ;)

Good thing about that Mortgage Insurance, you can get rid of it in a couple years. Also, don't forget to ask about a 203K loan.

The only thing I have financed is a car that I just financed a month & a half ago (my payment is barely over $200/month). They told me that my credit score was right at 800 then and I doubt it changed very much. I'll ask the mortgage guy Monday about the 203K and see if the program is an FHA, or different.

as a rule of thumb, I'm financially conservative & adverse to carrying a lot of debt. If I ain't got cash for it, I usually don't need it.

 

[TheDouglas78]

The newer the AC units the more likely they are to use the newer freon versus the older stuff.
At some point the older, more expensive freon (R-22) will be unavailable in favor of the newer R-410A.
And you can't put R-410 in older units that take R-22, so you'll have to replace the unit(s).

Also ask if they had regular pest control service - mainly to see if that included a termite contract.
The home inspector will check for most, if not all of these things (health of the foundation, age of the roof, window sashes, etc.).

Make sure you ask if it's on an ancient indian burial ground... because that will affect TV reception. (sarcasm)

And finally - ask if the neighbors are bammer fans... if so, keep looking. (kind of serious on this one)

For me the indoor unit (forget what it is called) was replaced in 2006, but the outdoor unit was 20 years old. The inspector missed it, taking the information off the indoor unit. It went down at the beginning of summer last year, and the repair guy came out and did a serial number match and the outdoor unit was over 20 years old, should have died a while ago. So 24 hours later completely new A/C out of pocket.

 

[NVGator]

he only thing I have financed is a car that I just financed a month & a half ago (my payment is barely over $200/month). They told me that my credit score was right at 800 then and I doubt it changed very much

Believe it or not, financing a car can immediately drop your score by 40-60 points. It takes years for it to go back up as it will o my gain 3-9 points a year.

Then again, I'm not a Loan Officer so I'm not the expert. Just what I know from talking with Lenders when people decide to buy a car a few weeks before getting a mortgage. It can greatly affect your application and what you qualify for.

Your loan officer is correct about qualifying for the FHA in city limits. Outside of city limits you get into your rural areas where you can get a USDA loan. 0% down. I already checked and your address doesn't qualify for USDA.

 

[NVGator]

I don't want NV to accuse me of misleading anyone again

Hey, we are all family here and we're trying to help, not hinder. We can only help you if you help us understand the situations. That takes trust and honesty. You got to do your part. ;)

 

[WillGetIn]

In addition to checking out your neighbors, you'll want to do a crime report for the area and also look for pedo's in the area as well. You can find the neighbors names from the local property appraisers site (unless they are rentals). Facebook em to see if they are drinkers, partyers, etc. Crime you can get from the local PD's crime maps, pedo's from the Alabama sex offender registry. See if the neighbors have kids, you remember what being a teen is like. Ask to see a copy of electric bills, gas bills, etc, to verify what you can expect to spend there too.

I wish I was a little more proactive about the neighbors. However, one we have issues with bought the property after we were already there. Dang.

 

[bradgator2]

To go along with the finance suggestions, another good trick is to pay half of your mortgage payment every 2 weeks. My loan servicer did this for free and was very easy to setup. The instant you close, you will get a sh!t ton of junk mail offering this service. They are outside companies and charge you!!! The "trick" works because you slowly pay an extra payment a year. (26 half payments = 13 "normal" payments). On a 30 year mortgage, you will shave 6 years off the loan and save many, many thousands.

 

[playzwtrux]

Hey, we are all family here and we're trying to help, not hinder. We can only help you if you help us understand the situations. That takes trust and honesty. You got to do your part. ;)

Honestly wasn't trying to mislead anyone. BTW, do you work for KW, my agent is a KW agent.

In addition to checking out your neighbors, you'll want to do a crime report for the area and also look for pedo's in the area as well. You can find the neighbors names from the local property appraisers site (unless they are rentals). Facebook em to see if they are drinkers, partyers, etc. Crime you can get from the local PD's crime maps, pedo's from the Alabama sex offender registry. See if the neighbors have kids, you remember what being a teen is like. Ask to see a copy of electric bills, gas bills, etc, to verify what you can expect to spend there too.

I wish I was a little more proactive about the neighbors. However, one we have issues with bought the property after we were already there. Dang.

I already checked the sex offender list, it's only good as of today though, kinda like your nuisance neighbor that moved in later.
Oxford is notorious about not reporting crime accurately to keep the city looking pretty. the mayor (Leon Smith) is rumored to be one of the men Sheriff Pusser ran out of town in the Walking Tall story. Anyway, everybody says he's corrupt, but this town is full of $ because of I-20.
I'll look into the neighbors, one across the street has a small RV and some other nice vehicles, but I'll check it our more.

To go along with the finance suggestions, another good trick is to pay half of your mortgage payment every 2 weeks. My loan servicer did this for free and was very easy to setup. The instant you close, you will get a sh!t ton of junk mail offering this service. They are outside companies and charge you!!! The "trick" works because you slowly pay an extra payment a year. (26 half payments = 13 "normal" payments). On a 30 year mortgage, you will shave 6 years off the loan and save many, many thousands.

the bi-weekly payment is my plan, as well as extra payments to principal.

 

[NVGator]

Honestly wasn't trying to mislead anyone. BTW, do you work for KW, my agent is a KW agent.

Just giving you a hard time, that's all. And yes, I do. But don't say anything. That doc is a industry doc. You probably already got one or they'll wonder how you obtained it.

 

[Gatordiddy]

bump...

Que pasa with the casa?

 

[URGatorBait]

bump...

Que pasa with the casa?

He's in the Dominican Republic on a mission trip right now, don't think he's going to have much, if any, access. He'll be back in about a week.

 

[crosscreekcooter]

He's being radicalized.