Category: Home Selling
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The problems with home inspections
Reader Question: You have written numerous articles over time about the problems with home inspections. We are near our savings goal and preparing to buy a home. What is your current opinion of home inspections? Monty’s Answer: Home inspection laws came into existence because home sellers were unaware of the defects, hid, or made…
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Consider renting in today’s out-of-control real estate market
Reader Question: Is America in a housing bubble? We think today’s out-of-control real estate market is crazy. We are attempting to downsize our lifestyle with a smaller home. In two instances, we made an offer, and someone outbid us. Our home is free and clear, so we are cash buyers. We don’t want to…
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Outside advice can create expensive risks in home sales
Reader Question: We are preparing to sell our home by owner and had it pre-inspected. The inspector flagged a potential $2,000 problem with the plumbing and suggested we have a plumber investigate. We did so. The plumber was quite emphatic that the issue is not a problem. He also had some outside advice on how…
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Eight common for-sale-by-owner mistakes
Reader Question: Are there eight common for-sale-by-owner mistakes? We are planning on selling our home this year. When we see how fast homes are selling in our neighborhood, the idea of just hanging our sign in the yard is something we are considering. If we go ahead with this, what are the significant mistakes for-sale-by-owners…
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Multiple offers on your for-sale-by-owner home
Reader Question: We are selling our home on our own. We have had little activity for over two months, and now we are expecting multiple offers on our for sale by owner home. Please help! Monty’s Answer: When you are selling your home without a real estate agent, the possibility of two or more parties…
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Is 2021 a good time to sell our home?
Reader Question: Is 2021 a good time to sell our home? We are in our late fifties. Our kids are grown and on their own. Our health is good, and we have no mortgage. We are thinking of downsizing into a smaller home in a newer subdivision not far from our current home. There are…
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An appraisal killed our home sale
Reader Question: An appraisal killed our home sale. We accepted an offer on our home 45 days ago. The lender just turned down the buyer’s loan because the appraisal was $35,000 lower than the contract price. The buyer had a twenty percent down payment but no extra cash to make up the difference. We…
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Six points to check if our home is overpriced
Reader Question: How can we check if our home is overpriced? Our home has been for sale on-and-off for some time. We have tried it ourselves, and hired real estate agents to no avail. This time we are going on four months now. In the past, we felt that our house didn’t sell because it’s…
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Are real estate commissions fair?
Reader Question: Are real estate commissions fair? I’m the homeowner. I just listed my home with a real estate agent. I told a friend I was selling, and they want to buy it for cash. I called my agent to negotiate the $24,000 commission because it hasn’t been on the market 24 hours. My agent…
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Eight categories of real estate agent motives
Reader Question: A recent article you authored titled “What’s wrong with real estate” was insightful. The overview described conditions that contribute to the real estate sales environment. We will be selling our home soon and feel that expanding on the agents would help us understand real estate agent motives. Can you drill down to the…