Who Do You Call When the Landlord Won't Fix Things? Ten-year resident says landlord won't fix things like leaks, mold and pest infestations. Q: My son and his wife live in an apartment complex in Orlando. He’s been a resident there for over ten years and has always been a good tenant. The ownership has [...]
Real Estate Commission: How Much Should Buyers Agree to Pay Q: First time home buyer here. I'm thinking about commissions. I just finished reading your 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask book, and I sure took lots of notes! It’s super fun when real estate commission rules change as you are learning them. [...]
Bad Home Inspection Q: I just read your column on the bad home inspection. First, who paid for the inspector? If the mortgage company paid, the lender didn’t get their money's worth. Second, on the question of the open sewerage, that seems like a no brainer to me as it was clearly a housing code [...]
HOA: Changing Homeowner Association Rules Q: I just read your response to the question about the 20-unit homeowners association (HOA) that can't get people to run for the board. I used to manage HOAs and have a few thoughts for your readers. 1. Before they do anything, they need to carefully read their HOA documents [...]
New Construction Problems Builder forgot to frame basement windows when pouring foundation in new construction home Q: We enjoy reading your real estate column each week. Our daughter is having her dream house built in Maryland for around $800,000. They picked a “flat” lot to build the house. They paid a premium for that lot. [...]
Selling Rental Properties? Real estate investor wants to know if he should sell his rental properties and invest the proceeds elsewhere Q: I am 60 years old with a pension. I've invested in rental properties in the past and currently own six rental properties. I have no mortgages on these properties and paid around $100,000 [...]
RepayRepaying Loan Early? Should this homeowner cash out investments to repay their mortgage? Q: We only owe about $60,000 on our house (thanks to your sound financial advice when we got the mortgage, and suggestions about making extra payments along the way). We have two dividend reinvestment plans (DRIP) worth about $110,000 (again, due to [...]
HOA Board: No One Wants To Serve Who will run the homeowners association if no one wants to serve on the HOA board? Q: I belong to a 55+ community of 20 single family homes. We are self-governed by a homeowners association board (HOA) of five members. This past spring, the terms of two of [...]
Fixing Water Issues His neighbor's water freezes on the driveway but he won't fix the downspout and the HOA won't get involved. Q: I live in a townhouse cluster governed by a homeowners association (HOA) and a master community association. I have been having an issue with a neighbor’s downspout. I’ve noticed a large amount [...]
Multi-Generational Living: Is This a Good Idea? Q: I read your article on multi-generational living and found it incredibly interesting. My family and I are planning a similar multigenerational living arrangement by adding onto my parents’ house. We are located in Colorado and hoping to find both a financial advisor and a real estate attorney [...]
