Almost home owners

[Jon Brakel]

Becky and I made an offer on a townhouse in Wheeling over the weekend and they accepted today. Inspections, financing etc. still to deal with but if everything works out we will close on May 15th.

Anyone know a good handyman out there?

[pickax]

What do you need? I got some friends in the trades that need work.

[Jon Brakel]

What do you need? I got some friends in the trades that need work.

I'll know better after the inspections. We will be taking out the paneling in the basement and doing some other kind of wall finishing down there. I'd like to put in some kind of built in seating/storage down there and make it into an area that Maddisen and her friends can hang out in. There is allegedly some mold down there so we will know better after the mold inspection how much needs to be demo'd.

If we have enough money we might want to add another bathroom to the second floor. But that's more than a handyman situation.

[4u2nv]

Jon who is doing your mold inspection?

[Jon Brakel]

The Mold Specialists. We also have a quote from 911 Restoration from the owners.

[Bruce Brakel]

Did your realtor tell you about the first-time home buyers' tax credit?  You should qualify.  You're going to get a huge income tax refund in 2010.  Make sure your tax preparer picks it up.

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/faq.php

[Jon Brakel]

Did your realtor tell you about the first-time home buyers' tax credit?  You should qualify.  You're going to get a huge income tax refund in 2010.  Make sure your tax preparer picks it up.

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/faq.php

My mortgage guy told me about it. We'll probably amend out 2008 tax return so that we can get the money this year.

[SERG]

Hope everything goes well...Carla and I are also in the home hunt and have an offer in on a property here in Kenosha.
The bank countered with an offer above the listing price 

Have you been working with an agent or have you done most of the house hunting yourself?

[stpitner]

is it short sale or foreclosure?  I've seen a LOT of homes go for above listing price recently (especially if it's short sale).  They might not go for it - but you can try to see if you go with their asking price and then ask that they pay the closing costs or something.

Also - my realtor told me this week that is appears your first time home buyer $8000 tax credit CAN be used as part of your DOWN PAYMENT!!!   That is HUGE news.

Still waiting to hear back on our offer...

[Jon Brakel]

Hope everything goes well...Carla and I are also in the home hunt and have an offer in on a property here in Kenosha.
The bank countered with an offer above the listing price 

Have you been working with an agent or have you done most of the house hunting yourself?

That sounds like a short sale. Usually the listing agent makes up a listing price on a short sale. In a short sale the place is expected to sell for less than what is owed in mortgage. It's important to know if the seller is making up the difference or if the bank is making up the difference. Usually it is the bank. If it is the bank then the bank has to agree to the short sale price. I've heard through my mortgage broker and agent that short sales are taking about 90 to 180 days to close in the Chicago area. We stopped looking at them!

We signed a contract with a buyer agent. I have been pretty pleased with them. All agents make their money based on a percentage of the selling price but our agents (they're a married couple) have been very good at helping us get the best price.

Bankruptcies will usually close faster than short sales. We looked at some bankruptcies. The problems we encountered were that they were in worse shape and we could not make an offer contingent on inspection. We wound up making an offer on a place that was a few months from bankruptcy. The current owners own another house that they live in and have been paying two mortgages. They just wanted to get out of the mortgage so they were motivated to accept our offer.

There are some deals to be had out there. But do your homework. Not every property is a deal. Good luck!

[Jon Brakel]

What do you need? I got some friends in the trades that need work.

The first two things that we need are plumbing and electrical.

We are replacing the washer and dryer but the current dryer (gas) is hooked up on a regular pipe instead of a flexible one and the shut off valve leaks when in the open position. We need that fixed up. I'm assuming a plumber does that kind of stuff. We also have a pedestal sink that is not connected properly to the floor and has a drippy feed line going to it.

On the electrical side we have a garage door opener that is being powered by an extension cord even though it is right below a light socket. The outside garage lights are powered by hard wiring but the wiring is exposed and not running through conduit. Where the wiring comes out of the wall needs to be cleaned up or wiring run through the wall all the way to the lights. The patio outlet does not work. If it is something simple I'd like to have that fixed also.

If you know and can recommend anyone I would appreciate it. We close May 29th.

[Tom McManus]

What do you need? I got some friends in the trades that need work.

The first two things that we need are plumbing and electrical.

We are replacing the washer and dryer but the current dryer (gas) is hooked up on a regular pipe instead of a flexible one and the shut off valve leaks when in the open position. We need that fixed up. I'm assuming a plumber does that kind of stuff. We also have a pedestal sink that is not connected properly to the floor and has a drippy feed line going to it.

On the electrical side we have a garage door opener that is being powered by an extension cord even though it is right below a light socket. The outside garage lights are powered by hard wiring but the wiring is exposed and not running through conduit. Where the wiring comes out of the wall needs to be cleaned up or wiring run through the wall all the way to the lights. The patio outlet does not work. If it is something simple I'd like to have that fixed also.

If you know and can recommend anyone I would appreciate it. We close May 29th.

For the dryer, you need an HVAC guy, not a plumber. What town are you moving to?

[Sr.]

What do you need? I got some friends in the trades that need work.

The first two things that we need are plumbing and electrical.

We are replacing the washer and dryer but the current dryer (gas) is hooked up on a regular pipe instead of a flexible one and the shut off valve leaks when in the open position. We need that fixed up. I'm assuming a plumber does that kind of stuff. We also have a pedestal sink that is not connected properly to the floor and has a drippy feed line going to it.

On the electrical side we have a garage door opener that is being powered by an extension cord even though it is right below a light socket. The outside garage lights are powered by hard wiring but the wiring is exposed and not running through conduit. Where the wiring comes out of the wall needs to be cleaned up or wiring run through the wall all the way to the lights. The patio outlet does not work. If it is something simple I'd like to have that fixed also.

If you know and can recommend anyone I would appreciate it. We close May 29th.

I bought a dryer from Home Depot 2 years ago and they delivered it and installed the flexible gas line for me with a small charge. 

[Jon Brakel]

For the dryer, you need an HVAC guy, not a plumber. What town are you moving to?

I bought a dryer from Home Depot 2 years ago and they delivered it and installed the flexible gas line for me with a small charge. 

We are moving to/from Wheeling.

Pretty much everyone will install the flexible line at no or little charge. The problem is that the non-flex line has to be removed and a new pipe put in to deliver the gas near the dryer for the flex line to go into. In addition the shut off valve leaks when it is open so that needs to be replaced.

[SERG]

Does anyone have a link/site for the $8000 credit to be used as a down payment? Before I call my lender I'd like to take a look at things.

The two homes that we have been looking at are short sales. Unfortunately we're going to need an FHA loan which probably wouldn't get approved with some of the foreclosures we've been looking at. It's too bad that many of the foreclosures around here were not taken care of very well...perhaps why they ended up in foreclosure.

[Jon Brakel]

http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/index.html

Has all the info I can find out there. I don't see an option to use the 8k on down payment unless you have your employer start withholding less in anticipation of a purchase.

[Bruce Brakel]

I don't see how you could use it as a down payment either, but I also don't see how Jon can amend his taxes this year to take a credit that he should be getting next year.  But I do see how Jon could amend his withholding this year to take it in advance, paycheck-by-paycheck. 

I guess if this one-time tax credit is effective, the next big wave of foreclosures and bankrupties will be in the residential rental market. 

[Jon Brakel]

I don't see how you could use it as a down payment either, but I also don't see how Jon can amend his taxes this year to take a credit that he should be getting next year.  But I do see how Jon could amend his withholding this year to take it in advance, paycheck-by-paycheck. 

I guess if this one-time tax credit is effective, the next big wave of foreclosures and bankrupties will be in the residential rental market. 

It says right in the link that you can take the credit on your 2008 taxes or amend your 2008 taxes to take the credit.

[Jon Brakel]

I don't see how you could use it as a down payment either, but I also don't see how Jon can amend his taxes this year to take a credit that he should be getting next year.  But I do see how Jon could amend his withholding this year to take it in advance, paycheck-by-paycheck. 

I guess if this one-time tax credit is effective, the next big wave of foreclosures and bankrupties will be in the residential rental market. 

It says right in the link that you can take the credit on your 2008 taxes or amend your 2008 taxes to take the credit.

20. If I'm qualified for the tax credit and buy a home in 2009, can I apply the tax credit against my 2008 tax return?
Yes. The law allows taxpayers to choose ("elect") to treat qualified home purchases in 2009 as if the purchase occurred on December 31, 2008. This means that the 2008 income limit (MAGI) applies and the election accelerates when the credit can be claimed (tax filing for 2008 returns instead of for 2009 returns). A benefit of this election is that a home buyer in 2009 will know their 2008 MAGI with certainty, thereby helping the buyer know whether the income limit will reduce their credit amount.

[stpitner]

this is the email that my Realtor sent me a couple weeks ago:

Hi Scott,

GREAT NEWS!
The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development told REALTORS® gathered in Washington, D.C., that the Federal Housing Administration is going to permit its lenders to allow home buyers to use the first-time buyer $8,000 tax credit as a down payment, a move promoted by NAR.


Jack

~~~

That's all the info I have to go from right now - so I have no idea how to go about making that happen.