By Living Room Realty, October 24, 2018
Today, in addition to keys to a new home, my buyers also got $2,909 at closing.
How did these buyer’s get money back?
The buyers reached out to their local credit union to happened to to have a 0% down loan. A 100% loan-to-value (LTV) loan is not common. At least not anymore with the big banks. These types of loan used to prevalent back in 2005.
The buyers criteria for their new home was a bit of a unicorn as well. The goal: Find a 4 bedroom home with a price tag under $300,000. The home also needed to be as close to Portland as possible. Chris and Tanya have two young kids so any home has to be in a decent school district. Additionally, it needed to be in good shape and be financeable.
After looking in Portland, at homes that needed serious amounts of work, Chris and Tanya realized they had to look in Vancouver, WA. Homes are just more affordable in Vancouver. However, the options were slim. Less than five homes that were for sale under $300,000 and only two that were financeable. On a sunny September day, the housing God’s gave us the perfect house. Located in the Hazel Dell area, the home is adjacent to a more expensive neighborhood, walkable to schools as well as shopping and just minutes off I-5. Plus it was under budget, listed at $275,000. We sped over to go see this house. After our viewing, we made the quick decision it was the right fit.
We made a slightly over-asking price offer and asked for $5,000 in closing costs. Chris and Tanya did have to put money down for earnest money, which was 1% of the purchase price. So there was initial out of pocket was $2,800. The stars were aligning. It truly is the right situation. The sellers had just moved overseas and the space is perfect for my buyers. After making an offer we had to wait a little longer than preferred for a response. That was due to time difference of the sellers being overseas. After two days, we got a response. We were accepted. YAY!!
Within a matter of an hour after our offering getting accepted, we had our home inspection set for the next day. The home had some unexpected issues. The sewer had root intrusions, the chimney needed some work as it was starting to crumble in spots, the roof needed a little work as well as the gutters. We got bids and were surprised at the costs. The sellers wanted to get their own bids and found the costs to be in-line with the bids we provided. The sellers agreed to do all the repairs. YAY! Win#2!
The next obstacle is the appraisal. We had been looking at homes, which were not as nice but in the same area, we were not concerned. The appraisal came back quickly and over the asking price of $280,000 as well! Win #3!! All repairs were completed quickly. Loan documents were delivered earlier this week. I received the closing statement and my clients are getting a check back for $2,909.31.
If you would like more information on how to purchase a home with little money out of pocket, reach out to me on my website at www.jennifer-johnston.com or call me and let’s talk.
