All Forum Posts by: Patrick Senas

@Account Closed So I'm actually trying to find the C.A.R. that I signed. They sent me docs on multiple email so it's kind of hard to go through it all. That is what they referenced in the cancellation form I signed today though. 

They did get the notice though, they re-listed the property an hour after I sent it. Well I hope my broker brings his A game when he talks to the sellers broker. Hopefully he can pull it off for me. 

Greg Hamer it seems that my broker and agent have never undergone this process. Hence the crazy amount of undue stress I'm under. It wasn't part of the questions I asked when interviewing them.

David C. my realtor and his broker are not making me feel very comfortable with how we're going to proceed. The broker said prepare to lose it all... not exactly a big vote of confidence in their skills. Granted they may be helping me prepare for worst case but still. The sellers broker said since it's not a NEW disclosure but an update that part of the contract is moot. The part my team is referencing is 12.G. I'm trying to go through the contract again now to try and see if there's any hope for me.

@Jay Hinrichs... Well half is definitely better than none. Hopefully we can resolve this without too much heartache. I feel bad for the seller but not $10k worth of bad.

Hi @Chris Mason,

My realtor mentioned that he was going to get his broker to discuss this with the sellers broker. Hopefully we can resolve this at the lowest possible level. I mean what damages can they really claim for the property being 3 weeks off the market? They literally just posted the property back online as I write this.

Hello All,

I submitted a Contract Cancellation earlier today to the sellers agent and now they either want all my EMD or we take this to arbitration. We removed contingencies 8 days ago but we received an updated disclosure from the seller 2 days ago. Closing date is suppose to be 8/16. According to my realtor and their attorneys, the CAR states that after receiving an disclosure new or update that we have 3 days to review it as a buyer and are able to cancel the contract depending on the situation. So the disclosure was from the termite repair being conducted on the home. At first it was just a spot damage repair but now they're taking stuff apart and replacing doors etc.

This is my first home and there are already many problems with the property. Leak in pipes, gas leaks, the electrical work isn't to code. So at first I was ok with that but now they're ripping through the house because of the termites. So from my perspective its just snowballing and I was expecting it to be turnkey. 

So we spoke to the sellers agent and obviously the sellers arent happy. They want to take this to arbitration and keep the entire $10k EMD. I have heard many things from different brokers and agents but am receiving mixed responses. If there is anyone that has actually gone through this process please let me know.

Questions:

1. Is the seller allowed to place the property back on the market if I didn't release escrow.

2. Can they actually PROVE damages that lets them keep the entire $10k. (It hasn't been a month since we signed the contract)

3. Should I get an actual RE attorney involved?

So I was told that in CA, proving damages is hard for the seller. All those repairs they are doing was required no matter the buyer anyway. They were all safety issues. I was also told that I hold all the cards since the property will be held up if i don't release escrow. As long as I don't sign the agreement to release funds to seller then they can't do anything about it. They also can't sell their home until then. I know it's a D*** move, but I'm not here to make friends and I'm not in the habit of letting money go when I don't have to legally. So if there is anyone that has gone through this process please chime in.

NOTE: I know agents that have never lost EMD for the buyer even after contingencies were removed but my realtor is NOT that guy. He's never been through this process which is a little unnerving for me. He seems hesitant but I need to make sure I get him to do whats right for me.

Thanks,
Pat

Antoine Martel ran into a hiccup with the appraisal on market rent. The appraiser didn't use comps when they did the calculations. Seems like they just went on rentometer plugged in the zip and # of bedrooms and used the amount it spit out. Which is BS.... so now I have to deal with an underwriter that won't listen to us but wants to use the appraisers estimate. The lower rent estimate is cutting into my qualifying income. Now my DTI increased over the limit. Just found out last night and I'm suppose to close next Wed... I'm pissed because the lender said I was good and I can remove loan contingencies. Which I did. They couldn't release the VA appraisal at that time though so I couldn't even view it until days after. Which I don't understand because I'm the one that paid for it. So long story short I'm scrambling right now trying to close this deal so I don't lose my EMD.

Hi Melvin List the current debt in my name is <$1000. That $1000 is from the appraisal fee and inspections. I paid down all my large debts--auto and large credit cards--completely. That small amount wouldn't even make a difference. Granted I'm not sure how close I am to the max DTI. Since you're a lender, is there a difference in how they calculate DTI between conventional and VA loans? Since conventional loans monthly payments are just PI and VA is the pro rata PITI, does that give conventional more leeway for their DTI calculations?

I need advice!!

On Aug 3, I removed all contingencies because my loan officer said that everything checked out on the appraisal he received from the VA. He wasn't allowed to show the appraisal until the VA "cleared" it to be released. A few days after contingencies were already removed he sent over the appraisal. The purchase price is at $535k and it assessed for $555k. Great. My issue is with the market rent the appraiser put for both units.

When we initially submitted the duplex to the lender as "the one", my realtor advised him that the nicer unit can go for $1850. Which is the number that we've been using for qualifying income. The front unit is dated and the appraiser set market at $1200. The updated unit with a private yard and a ~420 sq ft covered patio was set at $1250. They must be out of their mind. They didn't even use comps, they probably just used rentometer and ran with it.

My lender didn't catch that when he told me to remove contingencies. Close of escrow is on 8/16 but now the lender is telling me the underwriter is pushing back because of the market rent set by the appraiser. With the smaller qualifying rent it pushes my DTI ratio too high. I'm already putting $39k for a down payment on a VA loan and I can't provide anymore than that to lower the loan amount.

What can I do here? I need to close escrow or else I lose my $10k EMD. Is the lender liable or am I just screwed because he missed that one line item?? If only he gave us the appraisal when he received it, maybe we would've caught it. Why do I have to wait for the appraisal to be released when I freaking paid for it?!

Dan Heuschele , I love the water splitting idea. I'll look into that. Going off of the previous owners leases and Schedule E, they have been leasing the unit for $1750 since 2013. Which is astonishing in itself especially during that time. Though I'm not privy to any special circumstances that may have caused them to charge the tenant more. I essentially took that information and did some rough calculations to account for rent increases over time and came to the range we're discussing now.