Category Archives: Misc. Real Estate

August 2, 2011 · 8:36 am

Luna & Luna and HUD are a Train Wreck

Ok. So I’m gonna rant and you need to know that before you read further…

I had a HUD closing scheduled for July 29, another for August 1, and still another for August 8. It’s now August 2nd and I have no idea what the hell is going on. Because no one from Luna & Luna (HUD’s prescribed closing fiasco that I have to work with) won’t return calls or emails.

Of course this is HUD’s own fault for the way they dealt with their contractor situation to begin with. AMRE, a HUD contractor who oversees the properties, made the mistake of emailing me and asked how the transaction was going. Here was my response:

I have to say I’m greatly disappointed with Luna & Luna. I have/had a closing on the 29th of July and the 1st of August and have never heard anything from them…including whether or not they even acknowledge the extensions we sent them!!!!!

The property you oversee is scheduled to close on August 8 and I have no idea whatsoever whether it will close or not. Communication is virtually non-existent and it’s only one sided in terms of they will email me a statement but not answer any follow up questions. It’s absolutely ridiculous and it’s no way to clear inventory.

I have three (yours being one) cash closings that we may or may never close on because of the incompetence of Luna and Luna and the fact that HUD couldn’t negotiate their contracts in time to avoid slamming Luna & Luna with hundreds of files at once. It’s train wreck of HUD’s own making.

Sadly, once again, my customers are caught not knowing what the hell is going on and whether or not we can close on any of these properties. HUD has/had no problem taking our earnest money, but has never communicated why there was a closing moratorium and Luna & Luna won’t communicate when we will close. It’s really sad.

23 Comments

Filed under HUD homes, Misc. Real Estate

June 24, 2011 · 8:19 am

Really….I’m not making this up!

HUD – HUD has decided that anyone closing on one of their homes must be present at the closing or send someone in their stead with power of attorney. When I asked why I was told to avoid fraud. Anyone can get a signature and/or a notary. So I asked how to get the Power of Attorney. They are sending a form that the buyer just needs to sign in front of a notary and then fax in. WTF? Isn’t that the same thing?

MoKan Title – If you bank at Bank of America (And we all know my feeling on their contribution to our current situation.) and you ask for a cashier’s check they give you a check that says Official Check. MoKan Title of Kansas City has decided this still isn’t a cashier’s check. For the past 10 days they’ve been trying to get the bank to notarize a letter saying they won’t stop funds and/or otherwise not pay on the check to be sure that the funds are good. Closing the property will be delayed because of this letter, mind you. If they would have just deposited the “Official Check” it would have cleared by now!!!!

Real Estate Agents Love Paperwork – We have agents out there that live for Amendments and Addendums. The contract has a place for the legal description of a property. Is that good enough for some agents? No! They require an additional Legal Description Addendum? Why? The contract also states that should a buyer not complete inspections within the 10 days allowed then they waive their right to inspections. Is that sufficient? No! They want an Inspection Notice saying the exact same thing.

3 Comments

Filed under Kansas City Real Estate, Misc. Real Estate, News Of The Weird

May 21, 2010 · 8:34 am

Landlords Must Pay Tenant’s Bills? How About Their Driving, Too.

A couple posts back I did a short piece called Kansas City Real Estate Post Tax Credit and while the post it’s self was rather innocuous the comments were worth reading about the subject of landlords now being held responsible for bills usually under the purvey of tenants. You know, for such luxuries as water and sewage.

So I started doing a little looking into it and decided not to say anything until what happened happened. Seems there was a bit of a bro0-ha-ha about the fact that it had been passed and that landlords were responsible for the water bills whether or not the tenants paid them. The illustrious City Council of Kansas City, Missouri had passed the ordinance without, of course, having read or been told about the provision in a much larger matter. (Publicly elected officials not reading what they are voting for is an epidemic around this country. These laws are written in hundreds if not thousands of pages and no one wants to read them. Well, I’d say it’s part of your job…but that’s a whole other matter.)

Anywho, the Kansas City Star reports yesterday that KC changes water and sewer bill policy on rental dwellings.

Doesn’t anyone in the freaking country take responsibility for themselves anymore? When did so many people become a bunch of little pansies? And taxing? Please, don’t even get me started. We wouldn’t have to tax so much if people would just take responsibility for themselves. (Editorial Note: I am the father of a daughter with CP. I, better than most of you, understand fully that some people will never be able to fully support themselves. There are those who need our help and as a society we should feel morally obligated to do so. So don’t throw the exception to the rule at me.)

The whole matter that landlords should somehow be responsible for the bills of others is absolutely ridiculous. Apparently in Arizona this is already the case. (See comments from the above listed blog post.) Maybe we as landlords should also be responsible for the gas and electric. Wait, then we should be responsible for how many cars drive on the roads in front of our rental houses. Think I’m kidding?

Mission, Kansas considers road fee that would that would link properties, street use. This too, from the Kansas City Star. Imagine.

4 Comments

Filed under Legal Issues, Misc. Real Estate, Real Estate Investing

May 19, 2010 · 8:27 am

FHA Underwriters

I just love it when an underwriters takes on responsibilities that they do not understand. For instance, we had a closing delayed because the underwriter said my sellers didn’t have the write to sell the property as the home belonged to their parents. Ok.

But did you read the title work that clearly explained, in English even, that there was a Transfer on Death Deed and that the deed had been executed and filed?

It’s okay to ask questions. It’s not okay to hold up a closing because you don’t know how to find answers. Especially answers that are sitting right there in front of you.

Radon Gas

It’s been a long while since I’ve discussed radon gas here on Kansas City Real Estate & Investing. But it’s no less an issue. A misunderstood issue. An issue surrounded in misinformation, wife’s tales and so on. But it’s really cut and dry. Radon gas is dangerous. How dangerous over what period of time is where all the confusion comes in.

Did you know that radon gas is the #1 cause of lung cancer among non-smokers?

Did you know if you are a smoker radon gas is unbelievably more dangerous to you than a non-smoker?

I suggest taking a minute and making the jump to www.epa.gov/radon for the government’s take on radon gas.

Listen, I don’t want to scare you. You’re not going to get lung cancer because you drank a few beers at your buddy’s house and his house has high radon levels. No. It’s long term exposure that gets you.

For an interesting read about radon gas you can visit this website:

http://www.radontestkits.com/radon_history.html

Again, not trying to scare anyone. But radon gas is real here in the Kansas City area. A few weeks ago a buyer I was working with tested the house during inspections and the average level was 32.0! (Government recommended maximum level is 4.0.) Last night we got another reading from another house by another buyer and it was 4.8. Both houses can have a radon mitigation system installed for about $750 that will remediate the problem for the next 15 years. It’s a simple, relatively inexpensive fix. The test costs about $105.

2 Comments

Filed under Misc. Real Estate

April 21, 2010 · 9:32 am

What to Expect After April 30

As many of you know first time home buyers are driving our current real estate market here in Kansas City. First timers are buying homes which allow for move-ups with many other homeowners. And all of this is artificially stimulated by our federal government’s home buyer’s tax credit plan started by the Bush administration and continued by Obama. I’m not going to get political here, just give an opinion.

I have four pending home sales right now. February and March have been busy as well. I fully expect the bottom to fall out for 60-90 days post April 30. Sure, we’ll have closings in May and June left over from April’s activity. But new sales? I expect a sharp drop.

If you are a home buyer you need to be in a hurry. 10% of a home’s value up to $8,000 returned to you post closing is nothing to sneeze at. If you are a home seller you need to make sure your home is priced correctly…today! You have 9 days to find a suitable buyer before what I believe will be a cooling off period for home buyers.

Yes. People will still move, lose jobs, get promotions and invest in real estate. It will just be at a slower pace in May, June and July. That’s my $0.02.

10 Comments

Filed under Misc. Real Estate

April 12, 2010 · 7:21 am

Negotiating a Real Estate Offer

Every buyer, every seller and every agent has their own style when it comes to negotiating an offer to buy or sell real estate. There are books written on the subject. Radio shows. Even infomercials. But when it comes to the negotiation process I think there are two things to keep in mind;

You get better at negotiating the more you do it. So in many (or most?) cases it is good to go with your real estate agent’s instincts.
The more the other side will tell you their motivations, the more leverage you can produce.

NOTE: There is a huge difference when negotiating a primary residence versus an investment property. Huge. So the techniques for one don’t necessarily translate to the other.

Therefore my advice is to be more concerned with what the other party is trying to accomplish. People always think it’s the sales price. Well, not necessarily. Why do they want that sales price?

Your thoughts on negotiating are welcome.