Reedy River Run Photos 2010
Does Your BA Know The Area?
Show Me The Comps!
Are You Collateral Business?
MLS Zones Explained
Should You Pay for Seller Updates?
Can't Serve Two Masters
No Repairs!
Pick Your Attorney
Greed
Don't Do It!
O'Brother Are You Converted?
Sellers Disclosure
Tax Credit
Does It Snow?
Market Timing
Are You The Experiment?
864-335-8490
June 30:
I can't believe we are half way through the year. Still got a lot of folks visiting Greenville from out of state though.
Anyway, wanted to talk a bit about real estate requirements for the state of South Carolina. I've been a Greenville SC realtor for about 10 years now. (Hey, wish I'd been doing this since I got out of college). Anyway, we realtors are licensed by the state of SC and we are required to take 8 hours of continuing education each two years.
I just finished mine up, and thank goodness, today was the last day to get it in! I took two courses but and my favorite was an online course I took called Buyer Representation in Real Estate! Hey, wonder why I would take a buyers agent's course :-)?
Hey, I really enjoyed it and it's always good to catch up on things. One of the interesting segments was about presenting the buyer agency agreement. Yep, that's right folks, if you want to have a buyers agent as your Greenville realtor, then you have to have an agreement with the agent. Actually, the state of SC requires an agreement for me to represent you.
Most people have some sort of idea of what I do just by reading my blogs, writings and other stuff on website. It's a little different with me because a lot of people who visit the Greenville area are just looking and considering the area, so I usually don't mind showing you around for a few hours to see what it's all about.
Bottom line, the continuing education is a great way to keep up with the business and is required of all realtors in the state of SC.
And in closing I want to congratulate the University of South Carolina men's baseball team in winning the national championship! Congrats to Clemson too for making it as far as they did. Great exposure for the state!
June 29:
Wow, I can't believe it's been two weeks since I've blogged, I mean written! Folks, I've just been busy and hey I'm not complaining! But there were about 8 days there that I did nothing but show some great Greenville SC Real Estate and Homes for Sale! Just a couple of shout outs to some very nice people!
Hey Lauren, glad you are enjoying your new home! I know it's your first and that's very special. I'll have those painters names for you today.
Greg, looking forward to meeting you Monday. I think the 3 you picked out are worth a look and I'll add a few.
John, glad the inspections went well. I believe you've bought a real gem in the country that you will love especially when fall rolls in. I'll remind you th check out Hwy. 11 in the fall.
Phil, should know on the appraisal by tomorrow. Hope that goes well because it sure is a pretty home.
Muhammad, hope you get it for what you want. I think it's a beautiful home!
Stephanie, I'll keep you posted with listings, good meeting you and your family last week. Try and keep up with those boys and I'll see you in the fall!
Shannon and Kevin, glad to meet you last week, I thought the one we saw in Kingsbridge was perfect for you, maybe just needed a little more yard!
Teri and Rich, your Greenville SC Relocation and Info packet went out yesterday. Again so sorry for the delay. I'm really looking forward to meeting you in the fall and I really appreciate the nice comments about my site and especially my blog! Fall will be pretty!
Linda, best of wishes for a quick sale. Looking forward to helping you make it to Greenville!
Jane and Mike, good meeting you and spending some time touring Greenville a couple of weeks ago. Sorry for the scheduling mix up. The two story with basement we saw sure was lovely. Looking forward to helping you too!
Hey, I've got a lot of writing to do. We've got more statistical reports to post from GGAR and the MLS shortly. But I've got to sign off for now. Don't worry I'll be back to posting daily now that I've caught my breath.
Oh almost forgot, for all you beach music lovers and those who just want to learn, guess who will be at Larkins on The River, Thursday night? That's right, a personal favorite, The Chairman of The Board! Here's a clip from them at The Grovepark Inn in Asheville last Labor Day for "Beach at The Mountains" I think I know one of these gals :-).
General Johnson, The Chairman of the Board and some Cuties!
June 14:
Good morning, got some more folks in town thinking about relocating to Greenville! Very busy week with another fellow coming in to buy Tuesday from out of state and 3 closings.
It's been unusually hot here for this time of year with temps yesterday in the mid 90's! Glad I've got a pool! Ya'll have a good one and please let me know if you are interested in some great Greenville South Carolina Real Estate!
Somebody is chillin!
June 12:
I'm going to pin this one. It's called, everybody want's to be your buddy. I had a deal fall apart a few days ago over the inspections reports. And that's fine, the buyer was not comfortable with the results. He withdrew within the inspection period based on the condition of the home and will get his escrow money back. That folks, never bothers me. But I'll tell you what does.
First of all let me say that I want good inspections and I certainly want inspectors to bring up any problems that they may find with a property. That's me being a good Greenville SC Realtor and Buyers Agent! Now...
A good inspector will go out and do their best to find out problems that may exist in a home. You see there are problems that exist then there are problems that may exist. My buyer had a company that I have used before go out and inspect the home. I don't normally attend inspections but after it was over the buyer mentioned some of the comments the inspector made. Things like the tile deck was pulling away from the home, and there was poor construction in the basement, etc. Now folks, let me tell you something, that is a matter of opinion, not fact and cannot be substantiated by that inspector. What it does do though is create fear in the buyers mind. These are things that are said to buyers but you will never see in their official report. Why? Because inspectors are not experts and they will always disclaim that they are not. If a problem is suspected they always recommend further investigation by "qualified, licensed, bonded," HVAC contractors, electrician, builders, etc. You see folks they are the qualified people who are able to make sound judgments and recommendations.
Many inspectors have never held a hammer in their hand and certainly are not qualified to render opinions on "quality of construction" But time and time again they do! Why, well everybody want's to be your buddy. And they are getting paid for it, and furthermore they have "no skin in the game" Now I'm not talking about them all, hey there are terrible realtors out there too, but many couldn't care less if the home closes, and as a matter of fact if it doesn't close they know the buyer will probably use them again because they did such a "wonderful job".
Here's my position and I've seen hundreds of inspection reports. If there are issues with the home then let's contact qualified, licensed, builders, electricians, HVAC contractors who are willing to put their name and license on the line to see if there really is a problem.
Cause I tell you folks opinions are just like you know what and everybody has one. That's fine, but if you are going to render an opinion then I expect you to put it in writing and put your name on the line. You see I've seen enough of these reports to know that sometimes where there's smoke there is fire and sometimes it's much ado about nothing. It's called being reasonable. I have never in my career see a home that didn't have some sort of problem. But 99% of the time the problems are fixable. It's a matter of risk vs. reward.
This company is well know for it's unofficial verbal opinions it gives but won't write down. And in this case I think it was a good idea for the buyer to withdraw, because there was some issues he was not comfortable with.
But you see folks, I look at the big picture and it truly was a wonderful home priced well below market. The buyer could have spent $30,000 after he moved in and still would have been well below the market in one of the best neighborhoods in Greenville SC.
Would I have bought it....if I had the money, in a heart beat and wouldn't have thought twice about it. But as they say, that's the way the ball bounces, only time will tell if the buyer made a good decision. Well, I better get back to work.
June 10:
Riverplace, Greenville SC
June 9:
Good morning everyone! Hey, been a few days since I've posted, been very busy showing some great Greenville SC Real Estate! Hey you know, I go to Simpsonville, Greer, Taylors, TR, and really all over.
I do have a very nice home under contract at the moment and been trying to get through all the inspections..... So let's talk about inspections for a moment and the contract. I've mentioned this before but it needs repeating.
Our GGAR contract allows the buyer to have an inspection period. This period, normally 10-15 days from the date the contract is executed allows the buyer at his or her expense to conduct all inspections they deem necessary. On my contracts I always check that the buyer will have the unilateral right to withdraw based on the condition of the home. You actually can waive that right, why in the world would you?
So, if you follow my blog over the years you've probably read this before. But let me make another point! Depending on the situation, this can be a very good tool to renegotiate the sales price if you are not really comfortable with your findings and suspect you may be facing future expenses down the road with the air systems, roof, etc. Because really folks, all these systems need to be at time of the inspections are in "working order" or not leaking, etc. I mean if you've got a 30 year old air unit in the home, it ain't got but so much more life, and yes warranties do help with things like this but not with items like roofs.
So, you can make a standard request for items to be repaired and contractually the seller is "supposed" to fix items specifically mentioned in the sales contract. But let's say everything is in pretty good order or working but you know they don't have much life in them. Or let's say they are "grey" area items in which the seller is really not legally obligated to address.
Ask for a price reduction if they sale the home "as is". All they can do is say no. Then you, the buyer can decide if you want to proceed or withdraw.
But now folks, pay very close attention to this. If you make that request you give up the unilateral right to withdraw and get a return of your escrow money. Yes you can still withdraw if the seller refuses to repair contractual items like the air, roof leaks, etc. But folks, I'm telling you if you are dealing with a difficult seller and the repairs are lofty it can get very hairy here. You may see the seller send out "their contractors" to investigate and their findings may be completely different. Let's say the seller doesn't agree on repairing some items based on "their findings". Well you can imagine where this could go.
Hey, ya'll have a good one and let me know how I can help.
Downtown Greenville SC
June 3:
Good morning! I finally got downtown to get a few pictures of the new Marriott Courtyard that opened a couple of weeks ago! Very well done!
Marriott Courtyard Downtown Greenville SC
View to The Courtyard at The Marriott
Walking By The Reedy River
Falls Park!
Reedy River, Greenville South Carolina
June 1:
Good morning! I hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day. Hey I can't pass up posting a pretty scene. Showed a real pretty home this weekend and the view from the back was just beautiful. This one is in Thornblade right on the course. Call me if you'd like to see some of these homes! 864-335-8490.
Greenville SC Blog and Real Estate Updates for May 2010
April 2010 Blog and Real Estate Updates
March 2010 Greenville South Carolina Blog Updates
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