We have been shopping for a new small home. We met a guy today that had 3 houses for sale, but told us personally that we shouldn't buy them bc of their condition.. but that we should buy his friends house. His friends mother recently passed away and it was her home.
The house has a few minor problems. The assessor appraisal is 36k, which is 60% of the market appraisal.
He said there are 3 other ppl looking to buy it, including himself. What gives? Why so cheap and why did he show us his friends house?
2007-03-09 19:48:07 · 11 answers · asked by PlasticTrees 2 in Business & Finance ➔ Renting & Real Estate
numerous times a under priced home attracts buyers..
and "then the bidding begins"
if the "bidding" is done properly the home will go at a good price......
at present your statements confirm.. 4 possibly 5 people are interested.......
a good and knowledgable realtor.......will let the bidding begin....and get a good offer....
good luck..........
2007-03-09 21:14:59 · answer #1 · answered by m2 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, you'd certainly want to have an inspector look at it before you bought it...
But what you describe isn't all that unusual, really. Real estate values of subjective to a great degree. And as someone who insures houses to replacement cost in an area where you can buy older homes for 20-35% of their actual replacement cost, I can tell you it's very difficult to explain to someone.
But let me give you an example with my own home. I bought it three years ago for $55,000 (the appraised tax value, which is what you're talking about as an assessor appraisal, was for $62,000); when I had to do a replacement cost (based on square footage and actual materials) to insure the home, it was $147,000.
In this case, if the house belonged to the friend's mother (who recently passed away), in all honesty, the house is probably being sold for a lowball price in order to get rid of it as quickly as possible so they can pay the estate taxes.
For most (not all, but most) estates, the family members who inherit from the estate are required to pay 50% estate taxes to the government. (The spouse, if one is still living, would only have to pay 25%, but all other beneficiaries of an estate would pay 50%.) This is typically why you see homes for sale at shockingly low prices, because the IRS doesn't wait for those taxes. And if they don't pay the taxes on time, the IRS could (and often does) sieze the property.
So, you see, it's sometimes better to sell for next to nothing than to truly end up with nothing.
There are other possibilities, of course. But that's a very likely scenario.
2007-03-10 05:12:02 · answer #2 · answered by ISOintelligentlife 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Sometimes people are in desperate need of money and if they inherit a property they want to sell it quickly - and they put up a low price. May be the friend is also trying to sell the house for his friend. But.........
To be safe get a home inspector submit a report. He/she will check everything professionaly so you know if anything is wrong with the house - it will also help you in calculating how much money u will need to fix things if u buy the house.
Talk to the neighbors and see what kind of people live there - is there high crime there. Always take help from neutral people . Who are not effected by your buying desicion ( like me) Also check the school of the area ( if u have school going kids.)
Try to make a visit there at different times of the day / on different days - so u know the area well. Good Luck. I hope it helps :)
2007-03-10 04:17:40 · answer #3 · answered by snjamal79 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"He said there are 3 other ppl looking to buy it, including himself"
This sounds suspicious to me. Why would he suggest you buy a house "he" is also interested in buying??? Makes no sense. From experience, if you are the 4th person in line looking to buy a house that is a super deal you are probably too late. If the house is priced drastically below market and it is still available, that should tell you something about the condition before you even see it. I would take every precaution and have the home inspected by a certified home inspector.
2007-03-10 08:56:43 · answer #4 · answered by Derrick L 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
there are many reasons. It could be that he inherited the house & doesnt really want or need the money & needs to get rid of it fast... It could be banked owned & their just trying to break even. Never buy anything without looking first & having someone you trust inspect it all. It can be very profitable to do something like this but be sure when it sounds to good it usually is....
2007-03-10 03:53:39 · answer #5 · answered by bpeter3196 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Perhaps it's not as good as you think. It may have serious hidden problems that you can't see outright.
Perhaps he knows it won't sell, and there is some reason why the friend wants to sell quickly. Maybe he needs the money ASAP.
Or it's haunted. ;) Hehe...
Don't do it. At least look into this more. When something looks too good to be true...there's usually something wrong.
2007-03-10 03:53:18 · answer #6 · answered by reginachick22 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually, any investor would probably buy a house like this. If it's a fixer upper (MAKE sure there is something fixable BEFORE YOU PURCHASE) you can buy this house, fix it then FLIP it. (Flip means to sell much higher for a profit.)
If you aren't looking to invest and just want to buy a house, then it's best for you to look for a more expensive house.
It's like the stock market. You should buy when everyone is selling, and sell when everyone is buying.
2007-03-10 03:58:44 · answer #7 · answered by elidet_reyes 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would sell it for at lease 25+ monies. It will help you pay for a new husband
2007-03-10 03:50:55 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
best thing is to get a title reseach done to find all about the property. then a home inspection done.
2007-03-10 23:34:30 · answer #9 · answered by APF 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
hire a home inspector to check it out for you
2007-03-10 03:52:59 · answer #10 · answered by plumbinmonkey 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋