“I’ve made seven offers on foreclosed homes and lost every one. I’m getting an FHA loan. Do you think that’s the problem?” Answer: Yes. FHA loans are an issue for 2 reasons: First, we’re seeing more and more FHA appraisers call for repairs to be done to make the loan. This causes either A) unplanned

“Gary, with all the homes you sell, are you too busy to give me good service?” Answer: There’s an old saying: “When you want something done, ask a busy person.” My success selling homes show that I’ll probably be successful when you hire me to sell your home. Further, it gives me the resources to

“I have a million-dollar rental house that’s leased through next May. If I sell, it would have to be ‘show with offer’. What do you think?” Answer: Selling subject to a lease and “show with offer” will limit the market dramatically. So you’d either want to work with the tenant to change that situation (if

“We’ll be selling our home this summer and we’d like to have you handle it. One question: with all the turmoil with banks and the mortgage market, how will we know for sure when we have a buyer who can get a loan?” Answer: When escrow closes. Sorry to say, but that’s really the only

“How important are FICO scores when you get a loan?” Answer: Vital. They can be the difference between getting a loan or not, how much you need to put down, and the rate and points you pay. My longtime lender recently priced an owner-occupied conventional loan for someone with 20% down. Based on the FICO

“Hi Gary, I guess I am what you might call…‘a fan?’ I’m about to retire out of the military, and move on. I am destined for the Detroit suburb area. While the housing market is already, and forecasted to be low, I do intend on buying once in the area. Do you handle Eastern United

“We’re looking at buying a home and our mortgage broker suggested an adjustable loan. But with all that’s happened, I’m hesitant. Aren’t adjustable loans too risky?” Answer: Right after I got this question, the San Diego Union-Tribune ran an excellent article by Lew Sichelman on the exact same topic. Here are some excerpts: “Adjustable-rate mortgages

“Gary– Looking to buy a home. Going to get my credit run shortly. Can you tell me what’s a good FICO score?” Answer: A FICO score is a numerical rating of your credit. My sources tell me FICOs range from 300-850. Here’s how the break down from something I read a couple of years ago:

“We talked with an agent about selling our home. She told us she never does open houses because they don’t sell the home, they’re just a chance for the agent to meet new clients. We always thought open houses were a good idea. What do you think?” Answer: Like many things in real estate, open

“I’m a vet and want to buy using VA financing. I’ve had offers rejected because they won’t sell VA or they take another offer because they don’t want to sell VA. Is that even legal?” Answer: THANK YOU for your service to our country. To answer your question, it is not illegal or discriminatory because