When it comes to quitclaimed land, as in this reader's case, you won't have legal ownership of the title if your relative didn't have legal ownership to begin with. Q: My husband's mother inherited land from a family member and isn't allowed to sell it. We moved onto an acre of it with a mobile [...]
While there are several different types of real estate agents, each state has its own set of laws regarding how real estate agents may interact with buyers and sellers. Q: As a Realtor in Florida, I read your articles in our local paper (Sarasota Herald/Tribune). I think you should have clarified that each state has [...]
A quality home inspection is crucial, but it's important to vet your home inspector before you sign a contract. Q: Can you please provide more information on one of your articles I recently read about home inspectors? The article paints home inspectors in a bad light. No home inspector should have a "liability buyout" clause. [...]
Questions of seller disclosure can be complicated. Here's what homebuyers should know. Q: I have a question about disclosure. My sellers gave me a disclosure statement that said there were no defects in the home. After we moved in and took down some drywall we found big cracks in the basement foundation. We also found [...]
A condo association has the right to approve or reject buyers, but as in the case of this buyer, it's important to be aware of your rights. Q: My mother and I are on the same deed since she added me in 2010. She’s still alive and there is no mortgage on the property. The [...]
Buying a home can be stressful, especially if it’s your first home purchase. CPA Michael Trickey, managing director of The Berkshire Group in Lake Zurich, Illinois, hopes his new book, [amazon_textlink asin='1681022915' text='Finding Home: Everything You Need to Know - and Do - For Home Buying Success,' template='ProductLink' store='thinkglink-20' marketplace='US' link_id='becfb09b-6d76-11e7-a2e1-674bfee7d6fe'] will help first time [...]
Foreclosure can be a difficult financial hurdle to overcome, but buying a house in your child's name might not be the wisest solution. Q: It's been a year since my foreclosure, I'm renting now but the rent is high in Chicago where I live. If I bought another house and got a mortgage it would [...]
This week, online real estate company Redfin published the astonishing results of a survey. The survey found that 41 percent of millennial home buyers purchased real estate sight unseen. About one-third of all home buyers purchased property sight unseen. If those numbers are true (and we have no reason to doubt Refin’s survey methods), it’s [...]
Seller disclosure laws don't cover every issue you find with a house after you buy it. If a homeseller isn't aware of an issue when they sell, the homebuyer likely can't take legal action. Q: We purchased a home and farm equipment on approximately 20 acres in rural Georgia this past January. The owners told [...]
When a condo declarant still owns unit in the building, they're responsible for ongoing maintenance expenses in the building. Q: We bought into a condo development five years ago. The condo documents said the declarant didn’t have to follow the condo rules or pay dues on his units until the last unit was sold. We [...]
