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Review answers to some common questions.


Q: How do I know that buying a condo is right for me?

A: Living in a condominium is a lifestyle that many enjoy, particularly in our urban Seattle environment. A condo appeals to those who don’t want any yard or building maintance to take care of. Unlike a house, condo’s are great if you travel often because you can lock up a condo and have the concierge desk pick up your mail. No one knows you are away and you don’t have to worry about yards to mow. However, living in a condominium means that you’ll have rules that you will have to follow. Most often you will have to keep noise to a minimum and you may be restricted as to the types and sizes of pets that you own. Each homeowner in a condominium has a place on the Home Owners Board and can vote to repeal or put rules in place. Just because the rules state something when you move in, doesn’t mean they can’t change. Most of those who live in condominiums do so because of the convenience and great urban locations. If you don’t like the idea of owning a piece of property along with 10-100 other people and being part of the community you might consider a house or town house.

Q: How long does it take to purchase a home/condo in Seattle?

A: Sometimes the perfect place appears the first day you go looking or it may take a few weeks. If you’ve been lookin at lots of places for more than a month or two, you might want to re-evaluate your needs and what you are willing to compromise on. Once you are pre-approved, have found your Buyers Agent and you’ve found a place, it’s only a short time usually before you decide to write an offer. Once you write an offer, it can take a day or two of negotiations to reach mutual acceptance with the seller. Once mutual acceptance has been reached, in the Seattle area the transaction process usually takes about 30-40 days. This means that you can generally get the keys anywhere between 14 and 30 days after mutual acceptance depending upon your circumstances.

Q: What happens when there are multiple offers on a property?

A: One of the frustration things that happen to a buyer is that after looking at a lot of properties they finally find the right one, only to find out that they are not alone. You find out that there are other buyers who are also interested in writing an offer, thus there are multiple offers being presented on the property. Usually when more than one offer is being written on a property, the seller is going to have the upper hand in negotiations and price. You will want to consult with your real estate agent about how best to prepare your offer in a multiple offer situation. Usually the seller will look at the offers at a particular time and decide if there are any offers that they are interested in. If one offer is substantially better than the others, the seller will usually sign that offer at the table creating mutual acceptance. However, if the seller feels that none of the offers are exactly what they want, the sellers do not have to accept any offers. The sellers also have the option of sending back a counter-offer asking for changes to your offer. They can ask for any changes they want; more money, different closing date, etc. If you accept the changes and sign the counter-offer then you have a deal. Often in multiple offer situations, buyers will try and do everything they can to get a leg up on the other buyers this can include; doing a pre-inspection and waiving the inspection contingency, waiving their financing, offering a quick closing date and generally making their offer as competative as possible in price to appeal to the sellers. It is not uncommon for a property to sell above the asking price because there were competing offer. *Remember, the more you give the seller, the more you give up and the more risk you take on. Make sure you really want the property and understand what you have to lose.

Q: How do I know if I should continue renting or buy instead?

A: As a general rule, when interest rates are low it is the best time to become a homeowner. Usually with low interest rates, and the tax benefits of being a homeowner, you will come out ahead financially. Of course, this depends also on your lifestyle and what you would want to purchase. If you are looking at a mortgage that is more than double what you are currently paying in rent then the leap may be difficult for you financially and homeownership may not be right for you at this time. If your expected mortage would be less than double your current rent, then there are some real benefits to purchasing now. Other things to consider in deciding whether to purchase now is how long you intend to be in the area. If you will be living in one place for longer than 2 years then owning can be the way to go. If you expect to move within 2 years, selling a place that you have not owned for very long can cost you money. It is important to consider your long term goals when considering a purchase. Your expectations and the current market are also a consideration. It is a good idea to discuss your plans with a real estate agent first to determine if what you want to purchase can be found for the price you want to pay. In some markets where housing costs are very high you might have to make compromises like buy a smaller place or pay more than what you expected. A consultation with a real estate agent is a great first step to determining whether home ownership is right for you.

Q: What kinds of tax benefits are there to buying?

A: Usually when you purchase a home or condo there are great tax savings the first year that you purchase and every year after that. While your individual tax situation should be discussed with a CPA or tax accountant, you can expect that you’ll receive some tax relief for owning. Generally you will be able to use the interest that you pay on your mortgage as a deductible and in the first 5 years or so, most of your monthly mortgage payment is almost all interest. In additional some costs associated with obtaining your loan that is a percentage of your loan amount can also be used as a deductible. In addition you may be able to change your tax withholdings from your paychecks based on the additional tax benefit you will receive at the end of the year from owning. Please check with your accountant to determine which benefits will apply to your individula situation.

Q: Should you meet with a real estate agent or a loan officer first?

A: I recommend meeting with a real estate agent before you meet with a loan officer and get pre-approved. There are a few reasons why this can benefit you. A real estate agent is going to be able to do a “pre-qualification” for you to help you understand the amount of money that you want to pay a month and how that relates to a purchase price. Before you have the bank pull your credit and run numbers it is good to have an idea of what you can afford in the current marketplace. With housing prices and inventory changing rapidly, only a real estate agent working within your marketplace is going to be able to tell you the type of house or condo that you will be able to afford. After meeting with a real estate agent, you will have a very good idea of the type of loan and amount that you will need to purchase what you want. This will help your meeting with a lender because you will be more informed on choosing the right loan program for you. Also, remember that the loan officer is working for the bank, so they are in the banks best interest. You will often hear that you can borrow more money then what you think you can afford to comfortably pay back. It’s important to talk with your real estate agent about what you want your monthly payment to be and determine a purchase price based on that information, not how much will the bank loan you.

Q: How can you buy a home if you have bad credit?

A: There are many loan programs out there, even if you have very bad credit. The problem with these programs is that you will pay an extremely high interest rate and additional costs to obtain the loan. While “sub-prime” lending is possible there are also many companies that prey on people with bad credit and in the end can be a financial disaster for someone who is trying to get their head above water. While owning a home is one of the single most important and fulfilling things you can do for youself, so is cleaning up your credit. Heather has extensive experience with helping her clients improve their credit scores and get into good lending programs. Heather is happy to set up an appointment with you to discuss your situation and help you develop a strategy to get you into homeownership.

Q: What kinds of lofts and live/work spaces are there in Seattle?

A: Seattle has many unique buildings and an array of lofts and work/live lofts. From the industrial open space that you have to re-create to the finished technologically savvy urban lofts. Loft buildings are generally described as a unique floor-plan with high ceilings, flexible living space and large windows. When looking for a loft, it will be difficult unless you are working with a real estate agent. In Seattle, many buildings have restrictions upon placing signs or advertising on the building so you could walk right by something and not know it was for sale. Also, most lofts are considered condo’s so when you are searching online or an agent is searching in the Multiple Listing Service, you must know how to identify which buildings have the righ floor-plans and aesthetics. The only way to know this is if you’ve been inside them or know someone who has. Heather has sold many lofts in and around Seattle and knows which buildings have which aesthetics. She is also knowledgable about up and coming projects so if you are looking for a loft or flexible living space in the metropolitan Seattle area, give her a call or drop her an email and she’ll help you find something that’s a good fit for you.

Q: What do Home Owners Dues usually cover in a condominium?

A: In Seattle, the Home Owner Dues for condo’s are paid monthly and can range from $100 a month up to $1000 a month depending upon the building and amenities. You can expect that your dues will cover the water, sewer and garbage bills as well as all the grounds and building maintenance. Your dues will cover use of the community amenties such as pool, roof-topo deck, lobby, and guest suites. In addition some buildings include central hot water, cable tv and gas. Each building has different rules and home owner dues so check with the individual association. Also things such as indoor swimming pools, excercise facilities, 24 hour concierge desks and other high maintance common areas will generally increase the homeowner dues in a building. The lowest dues are usually for buildings that have minimal common areas and no amenities.

Q: What is the difference between a co-op and a condo?

A: The primary difference is that in a condominium you own the actual tax parcel number for that unit, from the studs in. You pay taxes on your unit and title for the property transfers into your name. With a co-op, the building is taxed as a whole building, with no individual units. The building in a co-op is actually a corporation and each owner in the building owns shares in the corporation equivalent to the size and value of their unit. Then the owner has a proprietary lease for an indefinite time period to have the sole and exclusive use of their unit. In a co-op the financial stability of the owners is more important to other owners because they all own the building together. In a condo, most owners do not care what the other owners do, as long as they take care of the building and respect other owners. Both condo’s and co-ops will have each owner paying a monthly home owners dues for the maintenance of the building. In a co-op only, your monthly home owner dues include your taxes. With a condo you will have to pay your own property taxes on your individual unit, Seattle has many co-ops, most of which are in older very charming buildings in great urban locations. Talk to your real estate agent about whether a co-op or condo may be better for your situation.