All Forum Posts by: Ryan D

American Home Shield:

http://www.ahswarranty.com/

I will be closing on my first property in less than a month and have been looking into getting an AHS home warranty. Does anyone have an opinion or experience they would like to share? Are they a reputable company/easy to work with? Are there any other companies I should look into for a warranty? Any input on this topic would be appreciated.

Hey Paul thanks for the input. The bank won't allow me to be there for the appraisal but I am planning on getting my own series of inspections. And I do plan on attending those. I didn't realize the cost could be rolled into the loan amount though. That is interesting because I did get a 5% seller assist. The max allowed with my FHA loan is 6% so that is a decent chunk of cash.

Getting a survey had been in the back of my mind so I asked my attorney who recommended that I get one. Not sure why? He said he can set one up for $200 without stakes and $325 with stakes. I know I would like to get one eventually as I plan on putting up a fence. Would it save me money to set it up now through him (my attorney) than getting one later on my own?

Haven't yet had it evaluated. I still need to set that up as I am meeting with my attorney to go over the contract tomorrow. My worry is that if the inspection comes back and it's not a major issue, my FHA loan still won't be allowed on the property.

Yeah it's a city but kind of crowded so it would be nice to know exactly where the lot lines are and if anyone has accidentally put something on my side. However if there would be no benefit do doing it before closing I think I will wait and save the money.

I have a FHA loan lined up to purchase a property but the property I am interested in has one issue with the foundation in the garage. The house is built into a hill and the garage is basically part of the basement. Where the ground has shifted during a heavy rainstorm some of the cinder blocks in the garage have cracked. The current owner said it has been like that for a year or so and the wall hasn't shifted any more. She also said that she had someone look at it who told her it wasn't an issue that needed to be fixed right away. I have heard that when getting an appraisal for an FHA loan the appraisers are pretty picky. One of the things I was told was be sure the paint looks good. Does anyone think this issue with the wall will prevent me from getting the FHA loan and therefore the property? I plan on getting the inspection but am more worried about the appraisal as I am not exactly sure how that works with an FHA loan.

I am in the process of working out some details on my first property and am wondering if I should get a survey? The current owners have never had one. Is it important to get one before closing? If so, why? I would like to have one eventually but am unsure about the need for one right away. Anybody have any thoughts? Thanks!

Thanks Adam...so I wouldn't be out of line if I asked my agent to drop his commission from 3% to 2.5%? I never signed a contract or anything where I agreed that he would get a specific commission. This could help me with negotiations with the seller because I need to either accept or counter their offer by tomorrow. I already know I am going to counter it, but I am trying to think of everything to come up with the best scenario.

Never heard of Angies List but it looks pretty helpful. I'll have to spend some more time looking around in there. Thanks!