“My husband and I are in a bad situation. He lost his job and we can’t afford to pay the mortgage. And if we rented our home out, we’d have a $1200 per month negative cashflow. We owe $534,000, but our home is only worth $500,000, so we can’t sell. Out of the blue, an

“I saw that Farmer’s Insurance isn’t taking on new clients in CA. I’m afraid when I buy a home I might not be able to get homeowner insurance. Do I need an insurance contingency in my offer?” ***ANSWER: No. There are still plenty of firms writing homeowner’s insurance. And if the unlikely scenario that insurance

“I purchased a home 4 years ago with the assistance of your agency. In early/mid 2008, my 5 year fixed loan rolls to an adjustable rate. Currently, my APR is 4.875%, in ’08, it will go to 6.875%. I am watching interest rates skyrocket every day…the best I could find today is 7% with a

“Hi Gary. Thanks for your help, but we’re going to use an agent who said she’d guarantee to sell our home or she’d buy it herself…” ***ANSWER: Hold on! I’ll match her offer! Why? I mean, who wouldn’t jump at the chance to buy your home…at 10 to 20% under market value. Oh, she forgot

“We’re going to lose our home to foreclosure. We owe too much to sell and the bank denied our short sale. I lost my job and my wife isn’t able to work, so we can’t make the payment and definitely are going to lose our home. I hate the feeling of not knowing what’s going

“Hi Gary, I’ve got another question if you have the time. Do you think a lot of buyer’s agents start their client’s search by commission? Like would they limit their search to say 3% and up and as a result they might never see my condo (which is offering 2.5%) in their search? If so,

“My wife and I have been looking for a home since December. And we’re getting frustrated. Every home we see is too small, in poor condition, or priced too high for our budget. Can you give us some advice?” ***ANSWER: Sounds like you’re stuck in a holding pattern and need to make some changes. Assuming

“Hi Gary, If someone’s household income was around 85K and they wanted to buy a house valued at 570K but only need a loan for $410K, are there lenders who would touch this and bring in a house payment for $1,925 or less? ***ANSWER: For a 30-year fixed loan at 6.5% rate, they’d be looking

“I’d like to sell my Clairemont condo and buy a little house in P.B. An agent said I could do a tax-deferred exchange and buy another home without paying any taxes. Is that correct?” ***ANSWER: A little knowledge can be dangerous. The agent was trying to help, but applied rules for investment property (“tax-deferred exchange”)

“Gary, do all homes have to be tented for termites before you buy them?” ***ANSWER: No. It depends on a few things: 1. What does your contract say? There’s no law that says a home must be free and clear of termites when it’s sold. Most people buying a home expect it to be and