Advice on buying my first property

[Asim R.]

Hi,

I'm buying my first condo in a few weeks. I plan to live there but, hopefully, in another year, I'll have enough saving to buy another condo for investment.

As a newbie, I have a number of questions. I'd appreciate if the experienced posters can share their views.

1) Why are some properties is listed as an as-is? I can understand the rationale behind some, as they require major overhaul. But, we saw some condos, that appear to be in decent conditions, based on a 20 minute tour.

2) For the as-is properties, should we expect to uncover some major issues during inspection?

3) By listing the property as-is, does the seller have still have obligation to disclose issues with the property?

4) If I decide to make an offer on as-is property, and the inspection uncovers some issues, can I back out and get my initial deposit? In order to make this happen, what conditions should I include in my offer letter?

5) As you know, the REO inventory has really declined, so I'm not able to find a lot of REO properties in MLS that I'd be interested in. However, on sites like Trulia, I see some properties, which are not in MLS, but are either available in Trulia or via Realtytrac.com. Are these properties which are available right now? Or are they will be available in the near future? I reached out to the agent listed on a number of them but never heard back.

6) What's your experience with realtyrac.com? Is it worth it to pay for their subscription? Can I expect to find REO properties listed that I wouldn't find in MLS?

7) One of the RE agents mentioned that the short sale properties require a lot patience. How long does it typically take to purchase a short sale property? In what steps the delays can occur?

Thank you very much for your insight!