All Forum Posts by: Stephanie Medellin

A hard money loan is still a loan.  You don't have the cash in your account.  You still have to get approval before they will fund, so there's always the chance it could fall through.  It depends on how competitive your market is whether you want to include a financing contingency in your offer, but I would always recommend including the contingency to protect your deposit.

 Interesting...if there are no obvious defects in the roof it probably would not be flagged by the appraiser.  Was the listing agent the one who decided it wasn't in good condition?  

Lots of books!  Best way to get a general understanding of real estate and investing.

@Benjamin R Nash  If this is a long term investment, I'd personally choose the 30 year fixed just for stability.  

I also agree with the point that construction almost always takes longer than expected.  Unless you're very experienced and already a contractor, two months goes by very quickly.  The great thing is you don't have to decide this upfront!  You can play it by ear and see how quickly the project is moving along.  If you are done on schedule and really want your cash out, you can go with option 2.  If you can wait an extra month or two, go with option 1.  No need to decide right now.  Good luck with your project.

@Michael Bacile  I wouldn't worry too much about the hard pulls on your credit unless your score is very borderline.  At most it'll be a few points, but your score should bounce back.  If you have roughly 8 months to look, it's probably not going to impact you much.

Keep in mind the property must be in decent condition to qualify for an FHA loan. If it needs significant rehab you'll probably need an FHA 203(k) renovation loan, which requires using contractors to complete the work.

@Account Closed  Yes, a simple letter as you described should be fine.  I'm not really sure why they are asking for this.  The rent survey from the appraisal should be the number the underwriter uses for market rent.  

 Interesting... this must vary by location.  I wasn't sure so I asked my title rep and they replied that the buyer could take the property subject to the taxes if they sign an escrow amendment approving it to remain on the final policy.  So there must be some flexibility in some cases.

@Mike H.  I could be way off on this, but if you're paying cash why would it matter to the title insurance company whether or not the outstanding taxes are paid?  Couldn't they just leave the taxes as an exception to the policy?  All parties seem to be aware that the taxes are owed.  I'm not really understanding why a warranty deed or grant deed would require the taxes to be paid current either if everyone is in agreement.  Have you verified with a title company that they won't issue a policy with outstanding taxes listed as an exception?  

At the very least you should have a title search done, even if you're not buying title insurance, to see if there are other title issues that may come up when you try to sell.

@Julie Marquez  Some people give the option of a month-to-month lease at a higher rate than a longer term lease.  I suppose this would accomplish the same thing - compensating you a little extra for the shorter tenancy.  People who know they may be moving out after only a few months (maybe they are new to the area and shopping for a house) would gladly pay a little more for the option.  If you don't want to offer a longer term lease of course this won't work.  

 Thanks!!  That's great to know they offer all of that.