Real Estate question

genchan · #1 (**permalink**) 01-07-2005, 11:32 AM

I know that school districts are important when buying a house even if you don't have children since it makes it easier when you sell. Are there other things like that I should be on the outlook for that can make selling a house harder later on?

PrincessPerky · #2 (**permalink**) 01-07-2005, 11:45 AM

Don't buy when a bunch of new homes are going up! No one wants a old house when a new one is right next door! Or anyway you have to lower the price significantly. I got that trouble.

MrsChambers · #3 (**permalink**) 01-07-2005, 11:49 AM

I know that in my area.. all these people from california have been flooding the area.. they have been buying up houses left and right.. then when they go to sell them.. they are SHOCKED to find that people actually do their research before they buy.. and they find out there house is basicly worth NOTHING because it was built in a FLOOD PLANE... I would look into stuff like that.. flooding and what-not. natural disaster type stuff.

then In PHX.. there is alot of to-do down there because people bought these homes in a nice area, good schools, blah blah blah.. then some years later they find out that they are and have been planning on building an airport out there.. so these people are pissed that they bought these $$$ homes.. and now they will be worthless because of the air traffic they will soon get... So I would look into that also..

I think your best bet is to go down to the city in the area that you are thinking of buying.. and ask the city staff if you are in a flood plane, if there is any building that are in the works of being built close to you... ask if there is any REZONING that the city is considering that you should be aware of.
here, often times.. the real estate agent isn't required to disclose this information... but it's often important information that the potentional home owners need to know..
my advise... RESEARCH for yourself.. don't take anyones word for it... and perhaps.. if you see a home that you are really interested in.. perhaps you could talk to some of the neighbors and get their input.. often times when there is something going wrong in a neighborhood.. the neighbors are more then willing to tell you there woes.

peace

terry1156 · #4 (**permalink**) 01-08-2005, 02:06 AM

Talking with people in the neighborhood can save you a lot of grief. I had a friend who was about to buy "the perfect" house. he couldn't find a thing wrong with it and couldn't believe the deal he was getting. Then he started chatting with some people in the neighborhood and found out that in summer (it was winter time so he had no idea) the area was covered with a stench that nobody could figure out where it was coming from. This had been going on for 2 summers and still they weren't sure. Of course, he would have found out the hard way had he not been talking to them.

Stacyjh · #5 (**permalink**) 01-08-2005, 01:28 PM

There are many things that you can look for in a home that you plan to resell at some point. One of the biggest points is the neighborhood. Most towns have different neighborhoods and houses in certain ones sell much quicker than other ones. I would find out which neighborhood(s) you want to live in and if you can afford it and then look for a house in that neighborhood(s). Schools do affect this many times.

After you have decided what other features buyers want. In the town that I live in most people prefer at least two to three bedrooms and two baths. Homes that have less than that take much longer to sell.

Someone else mentioned flood planes. This is something to think about as well as too close to railroad tracts, a busy street, feed lots, ect.

If you want to make money when you sell, sometimes you can buy houses that need new floor coverings and paint much cheaper, do the decorating to your liking, and have instant equity.

Something else to think about, Fannie Mae has new financing requirements for manufactured housing and some buyers have trouble qualifying for these new financing requirements, so this may be a problem when you sell. (Manufactured and Modular homes are different). Modular homes are much easier to finance.

Houses with odd floor plans usually take longer to sell in the town where I live.

amomof4 · #6 (**permalink**) 01-09-2005, 12:52 AM

When we bought our property, we asked the tenant what was wrong with the house and the neighborhood. The realtor didn't like it, but the tenant freely gave her opinion.

jhd815 · #7 (**permalink**) 01-09-2005, 05:53 AM

Also consider whether you want to purchase a home in a development with a "community association".

I live in a community with a Homeowners Association and we have rules that don't permit more than a 4foot high fence, no sheds, etc. Some associations have very strict declarations. The sales agent might tell you that your association can always change the "rules" if they don't like them.

True. However, HO associations often have "rules", that can be changed by the vote of the board members, and another set of regulations known as "declarations" which take a 66% (at least for our HOA) vote of the homeowners to make any changes.

Our garages are small for a two car garage and many people say they would like to have sheds, but we can never get the 66% of votes to change the declarations.

HOA's also charge monthly assesments for the upkeep of common areas within your community.

Had I known about the strict declarations and how many votes it would take to change them, I may not have selected where I live now, although, it's not really that bad.

Just something to think about before you buy for yourself, and later, if you should be looking to sell (some people don't want to buy homes that have an HOA).

PrincessPerky · #8 (**permalink**) 01-09-2005, 09:01 AM

Can't hang clothes outside in my community

And the rules for fencing and such fill a file cabnet ick.

Momtwo · #9 (**permalink**) 01-09-2005, 01:08 PM

We also live in an HOA community. We bought here purposely. I like the fact that it protects my property value. You ought to see some of the homes with junk piled in their yards, etc. here that do not have them.

genchan · #10 (**permalink**) 01-10-2005, 07:37 AM

So would you sat that a home owners association is a good thing or a bad thing when it comes to reselling?

PrincessPerky · #11 (**permalink**) 01-10-2005, 01:04 PM

Depends on your buyer.

terry1156 · #12 (**permalink**) 01-12-2005, 07:51 AM

A lot depends on what the home owner association rules are. If they are reasonable and not too restrictive, then having a HOA is probably a positive. Ask the people in the neighborhood about how they feel about it. If you get a lot of negatives, then it probably isn't a place you want to buy.

PrincessPerky · #13 (**permalink**) 01-12-2005, 11:34 AM

*hysterical giggles thru tears* guess that all means you shouldn't buy my house!