All Forum Posts by: Gaurav S.

I am first time homebuyer trying to estimate cost of repairs to a home I am in escrow with. I have been bidding on homes since last 1 1/2 years and this is the first time I have gone in escrow.

[b]Photos: [url]http://www.flickr.com/photos/91185836@N07/sets/72157633112387305/detail/

[/b]Inspection Report : [/url]http://www.scribd.com/doc/132951995/Inspection-Report-for-SB-home

The home is a 1958 1200 sq ft 3bd/2ba home with slab foundation. The seller made illegal additions to the home(a room in the backyard,garage conversion washing machine in a cabin at the side of the house, water heater placed on the front porch,etc) that I will have to fix

Here are my cost esimates. Please comment if these look reasonable. Can you also share which projects could be done by myself vs needing to hire a contractor. I am a software engineer by profession and I do have ample time on weekends to work on these tasks. Question is more about acquiring the skill.

Demolish Concrete and put soil and Grass on sides and backyard 2000
Pest and Termite Work 8500
Gas Heater Replacement 4500
Asbestors Duct replacement 1500
Popcorn Ceiling with Asbestors scraping 2500
Floor replacement 7000
Painting Interior 2000
Kitchen countertop change 6400
Appliances 4000 (2x refrigerator,2x stove,1xdishwasher,washer & dryer)
Minor Plumbing Leaks 200
Windows Replacement(8x) 2400
Toilets x2 500
Chimney 3000
Misc Repair 1000
Paint outdoor 3500
move water heater inside the house 2000
Replace two side doors 1000

Thanks a lot for your time.

Hi Jon,

I was thinking about what you suggested but I just heard from my realtor that the seller decided to not sell the property. It sucks but I can't do anything about that. I think getting a bargain priced home was a dream and will stay a dream.

Thanks for your time guys.

Gaurav

Yes, definitely he is trying to avoid the higher capital gains. I agree its going to be really tough. But that is why I maybe able to get a bargain.

A owner wants to sell duplex property for 10% discount to fair market value if I can close the purchase by December 31st. I am a first time homebuyer with excellent credit and can easily afford the duplex. So getting a normal 20% down 30 year FRM shouldn't be a issue but problem is I don't have time.

So what would you suggest to make this deal happen ? Do you know of any bank or a company who can issue a 20% down 30 year FRM within 2 weeks ?
Will hard money lenders be able to provide financing in such short notice ? Will they give me a loan knowing that I will be looking to refinance ASAP after the purchase.

Thanks for your time.

Brian,

Yes you are right. With such small odds combined with all the hassle of putting the money together plus all the risks involved its just not worth it.

Gaurav

Hi Brian,

Yes that seems to be the only option. Only problem with that is that I will have to liquidate my stock portfolio with significant tax liabilities because of gains. Also if I withdraw funds from my Roth IRA I won't be able to put them back in for tax free growth. Borrowing from 401k is ok since I can pay it back anytime without penalty.

Problem with all this is that there is no guarantee that I will get the house or if the house will even come up for sale.

Since you have been doing this for a while what do you think is the discount to market value that one can expect to get in trustee sales ? I am asking because I would like to get a reasonable estimate of the price at which home could be sold. If its too high then I might as well give up on it and not go through the hassle.

Thanks a lot for your time and help.
Gaurav

Hi Brian,

The auction.com example link I posted earlier was just to show that auction.com shows trustee sales. It was not the property I am considering to buy. The property I am interested in is this

http://www.auction.com/California/residential-auction-asset/1307226-2910-1000-VIA-REGINA-SANTA-BARBARA-CA-93111-E329

Regarding your question I do have around 50-60% of the purchase price available in cash. I can also arrange for the rest by but I don't want to pull those strings unless I am sure I have purchased the home. So what i need is a short term loan to finance the purchase of the home and then I will pay it back in full in a short period.

This is to buy a home to live in and not to flip.

Ok. So lets assume the home does get auctioned off.

What is the way for me to get financing on this property ? Lets say I wish to bid maximum 420k and have a downpayment of 270k. So I will need a loan of 150k. This is 35% of loan to value ratio.

What will be my best bet for this loan ? Mike I see that Paraxis also provides capital for auction purchase. Is that is correct ?

Wow Brian ....that is the best reply I have ever received on any forum. Thanks a lot.

I actually went to the home today and was able to openly talk with the seller. As expected and predicted by you guys......there is a catch. The catch is that there is no way the owner is going to let the bank sell a 600k home for 360k in foreclosure. He had applied for loan modification and meanwhile has stopped paying. But now he has his loan modified and he will be sending the paperwork to the trustee tomorrow to cancel the auction.

So I guess when its too good to be truly it usually is. But I learnt a lot from this experience. Thanks to everyone here on biggerpockets for your time and great advice.

Yes it is auction.com. If you go to auction.com and filter results by " Foreclosure/Trustee Sale Homes" you will get results which are trustee sale homes. For example

http://www.auction.com/California/residential-auction-asset/1371717-3067-4804-MASCOT-ST-LOS-ANGELES-CA-90019-E5019

Has anyone ever seen auctioning of a home with owner having large equity in the property ? If yes, what was the catch ?