I am pre-approved for a mortgage and am looking at houses in the $40-50,000 (not bad in my area).
I am bringing my cousin’s father along with me house hunting and he has been constructing houses for decades. Is there anything particular that I should look at that he may not?
Any suggestions on haggling the price of the home (I have already been told asking for them to pay the closing costs might be a good thing to do).
I live in the UP of Michigan and we receive a good bit of snow for about 4-5 months. Is investing in a solar power system still viable or are there alternative energy solutions better suited for the climate. (Wind would not be)
I am reasonably good at DIY projects (electrical after the fuse box not as much carpentry wise but almost anything else). What are some good projects that are less expensive that would add a decent value to a house years later if I decide to sell.
I’m sorry that I have so many questions but this is a big step in my life and who better to answer these questions (for free lol) than the great people at the SDMB:)
yes close by December 1st. I know quite a bit about the position I am in. I’m more curious about the future. But that does bring up a question. I was told after agreeing on a price w/ the seller it will take about a month to close. Is that about right?
Could be. There are a lot of factors involved. How long it takes to get all the inspections and repairs done, for one. How long it takes your lender, which right now can be longer than usual since they are writing lots of first time loans. Get an idea of what you are going to want inspected now, and contact the companies about their lead time and prices. Prices can vary an astonishing amount. MY advice is to inspect everything, if you are worried about the future. Roof, septic, in addition to general and termite. Also, early on, when you see a house you like, you can go to the building dept and get copies of every building permit ever issues on the property. Here in CA, they charged me 50 cents a page. You can find out what might have been done without a permit, and likely not to code, how new the roof is, all kinds of stuff. I even got the septic permit that told me where and how large the tank is. Most homeowners dont know. If you are on septic, get and inspection and pump the tank before you buy. It can be a huge hidden issue.
If that is the price for good homes in your area, I’d say take it, don’t haggle. Nothing below $100,000 around here is worth considering unless you plan on stripping and reconstructing it from the ground up.
I was just going to ask where you lived, for real estate to be so inexpensive… the UP makes sense. My girlfriend is from Wisconsin and we lived there for a time, so I definitely hear ya about the snow.
Solar panels are fine with snow, you just need to blow it off with a leaf blower when the storm’s over. I wouldn’t rely on solar alone, however; make sure you’re hooked up to the grid.
The biggest thing is just to negotiate aggressively, so you can secure the best deal possible.
Best of luck,