Decode this real estate listing

Factual Questions
1

I’m house-hunting, and saw this on a web site:

OK. Here’s my breakdown:

SOLD AS-IS Clear enough; the previous owners aren’t going to do any addl. work on it (WHY is made clear below)

NO PMI = no mortgage insurance…they’re waiving this, which is a typical requirement for any purchaser that puts less than 20% down

BUYER PAYS TRANSFER TAX clear enough (anyone know how much that might be? Ulster County, NY, $79,500 home)

FORECLOSURE the reason for some of these special terms of sale (as-is; no PMI; and the following down payment requirements)

5% DOWN FOR OWNER OCCUPANTS - 15% DOWN FOR INVESTORS again, clear–I’d be an owner-occupant (living in the house), so I’d only have to pay 5%

COMBO BOX TYPE OF WATER & SEWER UNKNOWN Here’s where things get squirrely … I’m not sure how this phrase should be broken up, or if it should. “COMBO BOX”… huh? Does this all just mean that the type of water and sewer (well, city, septic tank, etc.) is unknown, or does it mean that just the sewer is unknown … or what?

**NO APPRAISAL FEE NO SURVEY REQUIRED ** Why? Is it b/c a foreclosure purchase goes through a particular bank only, and that bank doesn’t require an appraisal…? And what is the survey all about?

2

I don’t know about the combo box line, but this one is clear enough. On most real estate transactions, the bank would require a survey to verify that the house and lot were exactly as described in the title. They’d require a title search to verify that there were no encumbrances, and they’d require an inspection/appraisal to verify that the market value was sufficient to collateralize the loan. Since it’s a foreclosure, the bank made the previous buyer jump through those hoops and is willing to accept the documents on file rather than redoing the paperwork. This is typical, but in my experience the bank will often repeat the title search to verify no liens have been filed in the interim.

3

No homeowner, I; but let me guess:

COMBO BOX: There is a box with a combination lock that contains the key, so that prospective buyers may look at the property without the realtor being present.

TYPE OF WATER & SEWER UNKNOWN: My guess is that whoever listed the property did not know what kind of water or sewer service was on it. (?)

4

Sounds to me like the bank already appraised it for the remain of the loan & is just trying to get their money back?

When buying it, I would be careful & check to see if there are any liens on it outstanding.

I visit the city bldg dept & look in the records for the house, it typically has a folder on what really is like.

5

“Combo box” is short for “combination lock box” and tells the showing agent that the property has a combination key box on the front door.

6

The lister probably doesn’t know whether:

1 - it is on city water service or has a well.

2 - is on city sewage service or has a septic tank.

If it’s in an area where properties may not be connected to city services, this may be what they are getting at.