First-time home buyers often wonder if they should purchase a home or wait with the hopes of a price decline. I will tell you, if you continue to wait; you may never be able to afford to get into the housing market. Columbus, GA and Phenix City, AL home prices are currently moderate, but rent continues to climb. The best way to build wealth is to own your own home. Homeownership = home equity + generous tax deductions. As the property builds equity over time, you can then use those $$$ to sell the starter home and move into a bigger house.

With so many homes on the market, you may need to initially scale back expectations for your first starter-home. Instead of trying to buy a 2,000 square-foot home, you may want to consider shopping for a 1,500 square-foot home. Remember, the sooner you make the move from renter to a homeowner, the quicker you will begin to create and build up YOUR families wealth – not your landlords.

Dana DeLuca
www.ColumbusHomeDreams.com
www.MyFtBenning.com

Thank you for the outstanding and never yielding service you have given to our country. Your sacrifice is enormous and greatly respected, but never appreciated enough! May you and yours be blessed with every step taken.

Dana DeLuca

http://www.ColumbusHomeDreams.com

I have just gone through an ordeal that I think would be very beneficial for all buyers.

Let me explain.

I was the Buyer's Agent in this transaction and wrote a contract for a Columbus, GA home purchase in Mid-September ‘07. The seller was still occupying the property. Time past and everything appeared to be moving right on line as scheduled. The home inspection was conducted, the termite inspection was completed, repairs were requested, and repairs were done.

Low and behold, 2 days before closing, the Listing Agent calls and informs me that her seller needs possession after closing. I thought oh boy – here we go! I presented the request to my buyer and of course they were opposed completely (understandably).

You see – the Listings Agent had us by the you know whats. If my buyers were to refuse the seller possession after closing, then the Listing Agent could have legally extended the closing date by 7 days. Now remember, we are due to close at the end of October and my buyers were paying very little in prepays (taxes and insurance escrows). Meaning – if the Listing Agent were to extend the closing, it would have ran into the 1^st week of November and would have required my buyers to bring an extra $1,000 or so to the closing table for the prepays.

Ohhh Lord, what a predicament! My buyer had only 2 choices - allow the after closing possession or file a dispossession with the court system, which takes 2 weeks to complete. The buyers WANTED the house, so the second option was not even in consideration.

We went ahead with the closing and allowed possession until 8 pm, 4 days later. Through this whole ordeal, I kept contacting the Listing Agent requesting information on the seller’s move out status and home cleaning requirements.

Here in lies the problem. The Listing Agent ASSURED me that the seller would be out on time, and she would make SURE that the house was clean – “Even if I have to go over and clean toilets myself,” she said. I arrived at the property at 4 pm to oversee the seller and to let her know that we were serious about the 8 pm possession.

In the original contract the seller had agreed to cut the grass, stream clean the carpet, and leave the property clean and free from debris. Upon my arrival, the grass was a foot tall, and the seller still had GOBS of stuff in the house. There was NO way in the world that the property would be in a move-in condition when my buyers arrived in 4 hours to take possession.

I immediately called in the Calvary! A lawn boy (my teenaged son), cleaning services (my teenaged son), and carpet steaming company showed up within the hour. My son got busy immediately with cutting the lawn, but was unable to begin the cleaning process. The Carpet Company couldn’t even begin their services and told me that they would have to come back in the morning. I’m sure you can imagine how EXTREMELY agitated (not to mention, disappointed) with the Listing Agent and sellers performance I am at this point.

The Listing Agent had NO concerns at this point! She sold the property, got paid, and simply moved on to her next project. She had no concerns with having the sellers following what was written in the contract!

My buyer showed up at 8 pm and was also aggravated with the condition of the property. I told them that my son would be back at 8 am to clean the house and the carpet cleaners were scheduled at 9 am. This did not ease their disappointment, but it was the best I could do at the moment.

As I left the property at 8:45 pm (45 minutes after scheduled possession), the sellers were still shuffling their belongings out of the front door. Bright and early the next morning at 8 am, my son and I arrived to the house so he could begin the cleaning process. I dropped him off and past the carpet cleaners on the way out. They said that they would take care of things and for me not to worry. I thanked them profusely!

Two hours later my phone rings, and it was my son. He informed me that the buyers had told him that they were going to clean the house and he could go. I then spoke with the buyers and they said – That it was fine, and they had family coming to help with the cleaning. I begged them to allow my son to stay and finish his work (he’s a great worker). After all, I was paying him. They said – No, It’s Okay, We will take care of it.

Within 30 minutes, I was in my car headed to pick up my son. When I arrived, the carpets looked great and my son still had his head stuck in the oven cleaning off oven spray. I apologize again and again for the situation. The buyers were still NOT happy but were okay.

Okay – To make a long story short (LOL)

If you EVER, EVER purchase a property and the owner is still living in it at the time of contract, have your agent require a cleaning fee be held in escrow until the date of possession. If the owners perform the duties that were set out in the contract (cleaning carpet, cleaning house, mowing lawn….) then they would get those funds returned to them after buyer possession has been established. If not, the funds would go to the buyers to cover cost incurred for the needed services. This must be established in the initial contract to purchase and MUST specifically outline what you expect the owner to clean.

Please heed my warning!!! I TRUSTED that the Listing Agent would do what it took to make sure the property was ready for move-in. She did not! $200 and a valuable learning lesson later, I will NEVER allow this to happen again!

PS - I spoke with the owner as she was dragging her stuff out, and she told me that the Listing Agent knew about the possession problem "A Long Time Ago"  Go Figure!!!

Keep your thinking cap on, Happy shopping, and Trust NoOne!

Dana DeLuca

706-718-4690

www.ColumbusHomeDreams.com

Morning All,

Real estate purchasing can be very tricky. With one stroke of a pen, the whole deal can fall apart. Before negotiations even begin, mortgage pre-qualification must be established. Pre-qualification or, better yet, pre-approval gives a buyer an edge when negotiations do begin. It shows a seller that you have done your homework, and you’re ready to move on the purchase of the home seriously. Just think about it for a minute. You’re the seller and you've just received two offers. Both offers are exactly the same, but one offer has a pre-qualification letter attached. Which offer would you take seriously? A pre-qualification or pre-approval letter is an extremely powerful tool in your negotiation toolbox. Purchasing a property is serious business. A mortgage will have to be established anyway. Why not go ahead and get the qualifying done? I assure you, it will help in the long run!

Dana DeLuca

706-718-4690

www.ColumbusHomeDreams.com

I have been sending out post cards to apartment complexes for over a month now and have not gotten one single response! My message is short and sweet ( X property = Y amount per month, which less than rent payment ). The media is scaring people out of purchasing homes, and the information they are feeding the general public is simply not true. If anything, NOW is the time to purchase a new home. There are an abundance of properties on the market, builders have over built, and interest rates are still low! Huge deals are being made to move properties, and I can't overcome the media's hype of a bad market. It is a Great Market, for BUYERS!!!!

DeLuca

706-718-4690

www.ColumbusHomeDreams.com