All Forum Posts by: Edward Burns

Call up your bank and speak to a loan officer. Give them a general idea of what you after (ie a mortgage on a 40K house, but some friends have indicated a loan that small might not be feasible) and ask for his guidance. He may have the answer.

I do suggest if you are not already dealing with a local or small regional bank that look to switching. With a smaller bank, your business might be of sufficient value to them that they will cater to your desires more.

Sounds like a combination of poor management and the market. It is difficult to have a good handle on the real estate market across the country. What works in one market does not always work in another.

In addition, the terminated employee that was interviewed while seemingly saving the company money was not producing a profit for the company. Any employee must produce 2.5 to 3 times his salary before the company can consider that he is making money for the company. Earning 4K/month while saving the company 7K means the employee is costing the company 3k per month by time you figure benefits and overhead.

Unfortunately you may not be able to get loan on a property with a value of 45K. Most banks, etc. have a minimum amount (the loan amount I hear most frequently is 50K) that they will loan on a mortgage. They need a minimum amount to cover their costs associated with writing the loan.

I have not done anything with geothermal heating. But if you are seriously looking at an energy efficient heating system etc. check to see if your local utilities have any rebate programs that you might qualify for. I know locally there are rebates for HW heaters above 67% efficiency, furnaces above 96% efficient, programmable thermostats, pipe insulation and others but most appear to be SFH. Please note these rebates are government mandated for the utility to provide but because they cost the utilities money now and in the future they can be difficult to find information on.

As far as I know it should not make a difference with the GC. However, make sure the plumber and electrician are master level (not knocking the other trades but electrical and plumbing are two areas that can and do cause serious injuries when installed incorrectly yet commonly screwed up imo). A house I bought years ago was wired so that 3/4 of the house was running off one 15A breaker. Currently I am redoing a house that a 220v line with a 40A breaker but the wire is only rated at 20A. In addition the same house has the kitchen sink hooked to drain to the sump pump even though routing directly to the sanitary sewer meant only running the line an additional 5-10 feet. Of course both problems are being corrected.

There are kinds of questions that need to be asked and answered. But before anyone can give you any guidance or suggestions they need more information about the situation. Is this meeting about a specific job? Is the meeting with a general contractor or specific trade? Is this intended to be a long term relationship? Etc.

Asking a general question with little or no specifics will generally not yield many answers and any answers would be very vague. Always try to provide some information about the individual situation so the pros can guide you.

Moving a house is very expensive process which is why the houses are virtually given away. I would carefully check out that option and cost before committing myself to it. Also be aware that the cost of moving a house is affected by many factors including type (single story versus 2-story), size, location (you can't move a house under a 13 ft underpass), overhead utilities (mover usually has to pay for temporary hook-ups), traffic (house moving only travel at very low speeds (5 mph is fast for them) so traffic gets tied up, coordination with city, state and county officials, paying for escorts (many times police).

You might wish to purview the following:

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=13107809

The only reason I can think of for you not wanting to amend the contract is you do not wish to pay a lawyer to do so.

Assuming the price is stated in the contract, which it should be, then you have no alternative but to amend the contract. A verbal agreement to lower the price will have no weight when a written contract executed at approximately the same time exists.

Just write an amendment stating that paragraph XYZ of the existing agreement between Parties A and B execute on DATE is hereby changed to read: (write out the paragraph with the new price). Then add an addition paragraph that states all other terms and conditions of the existing agreement dated (date of original contract) remain in effect. Have both parties sign and notarize the amendment. You do not need a lawyer to do it. Lawyers may be able to write a contract in clearer and more professional language but in reality any written agreement between 2 parties that is signed and dated by both parties is essentially a contract.

Please note I am not an attorney and do not practice law but this is almost common sense. You are simply modifying a written agreement.

Cutting down a tree will kill the roots, but that does not get rid of them. The roots will take years to decay and if as you suspect they are the cause of the foundation buckling then you may face other problems as the roots decay leaving a void in their place. You could consider cutting the tree down and boring out the bigger roots then repairing the foundation. You would also have to check local regulations as some jurisdictions require you to jump through hoops in order to remove a tree.

I think you were wise to pass on the deal.

If you have the funds put aside and know the roof needs repairs in the near future, I would have the tendency to reshingle now. My reasoning is based on the fact that if wait for the roof to begin leaking, you a) have more damage to repair, b) chances are the roofers will be busy at that time and may charge more c) you can be more flexible with the roofing contractor now which may help reduce the cost and d) you can evaluate and get bids from multiple roofers thus maybe choosing a better roofer.