All Forum Posts by: Matthew Drew

Hello, Need some help here. We are trying to purchase another rental and the seller needs some help. The home is in a great area but the house needs at least $40k in repairs. I wrote a letter that walked through the repairs to help show the seller she is asking too much. Thus far we have put in 3 offers as we do suspect her RE agent may be dragging their feet. According to her RE agent they get multiple offers per week around the same price range we are offering. So we went $7k above, and she still turned it down. What is the best approach to get the seller to realize what the house is worth? Any suggestions? Matt

Hi Patrick,

In 2B on the contract it defines "improvements." This is a custom kitchen, and my agent assumed it is "permanently installed and built-in."

The space for the refrigerator is custom trimmed around the fridge making it appear as "built-in."

It there any precedent set to determine what is "built-in."

Thanks,

Matt

Eh… the price is market...I will just say that it is my wife's "dream-home"….. I was lucky enough to convince her it was way overpriced in the first place and got her to walk away.

The fridge isn't a big deal to me at all: we are going to tell them to keep it. It is just a realization that I might be subject to another surprise when we walk in the door if I don't change the contract.

Thanks for the replies..

Yes, we did not line-item the refrigerator, so that is our fault. I have been depending on my agent too much as I am in a different country.

Therefore, to ensure there are no other misunderstandings, we are going to put in an amendment tomorrow such as light fixtures, cooktop, etc. The cooktop is a Thermador, and there are some very expensive light fixtures.

Do I need to send my agent over there and take pictures, collect model numbers of everything, and get extremely specific?

Do we have itemize everything such window coverings, ceiling fans?

What if they attempt to replace any item with something of lesser value?

What is the best language to use in the contract, so it doesn't happen again?

Regarding the Listing Agent, she has been extremely difficult to work with. She even told us that she wasn't going to submit our offer to the sellers as it was too low. So, I had to put in a transmittal letter reminding her of her duties to make sure the sellers got the offer. To make a long story short, we attempted to work with the sellers, then walked away. Then they came back a month later and accepted all of our terms and the "low offer."

I guess my next post will be "How to find a good agent?"

Thanks,

Matt

Hello,

We are currently in the option period for a house, and there are some minor repairs that need to be done. We also sent an amendment to the Listing Agent, along with a copy of the inspection.

Today, we received an answer that in lieu of making any repairs, they would leave the refrigerator.

Since we first found this house, the MLS states that the refrigerator was included in the sale.

Once we mentioned this to the Listing Agent, she quickly said that it was a mistake. An hour later, we watched as the MLS website was edited.

Since the statement "Refrigerator Included" has been on the MLS for over 64 days now, our agent did not see the need to line item the refrigerator on the sales contract.

We even asked for a copy of the receipt for the refrigerator, and they responded that they did not have it. This is a nice, 2-4 year old, stainless refrigerator that should retail between $1500-2500.

It is our experience that the Listing Agent has the client sign off on everything that is posted on the MLS. But, due to this mistake why are we the ones to pay for the mistake?

Could any realtors chime in with some advice? We are just a little disappointed because the Listing Agent proudly displays all of the various accreditations, and this is a big name brokerage.

Also, since the trust is broken with the sellers and Listing Agent, do we need to amend the sales contract and line item all major appliances, light fixtures, etc..

This is in The Woodlands, Texas…

Thanks,

Matt

Hello,

I was wondering if there are any Texas residential home landlords or investors that would share a their typical cap rate for single family homes in The Woodlands.

Thanks,

Matt