I grew up on Ohio, Ontario, Ohio to be precise.  We had a mailbox across from our drive way.  Just like many homes all across America.  It was the same when I moved to various parts of the country until I moved to Tucson.  When I bought my first home here I was given “The Mail Key” and was shown the community box thing and said this would be where I would find my mail.  However, no one told me which box was mine. Trial and error, put the key in each box till one of them opens.

It depends on the neighborhood.  Some have individual mailboxes in front of the home and just a couple of streets over you will find community mail boxes.

Many of the individual boxes will have HOA requirements for size color and type.  A lot of them will have an animal, bird, plant or item depicted from the desert Southwest.  Every now and then you run into a box which has been altered to display something pertaining to where the home owners  were born or raised.

I can assure you we have no moose in Tucson that are alive.  You might find a few like this one out of metal or other materials but no living moose.

If you want to read an story about an Ohio Mailbox and The Snowplow you might get a chuckle out of this one.

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No matter how good you feel about the sellers and the rapport you have established you should do the final walk through and arrange for it before you sign the documents to close escrow.

Here is a quick review from The Final Walk Through - Sellers Perpective

There is a final walk through document provides for three options

1. The buyer finds the property to be as represented at the time of the Purchase Contract.
2. The buyer finds the property to be as represented at the time of the Purchase Contract with the following exceptions.
3. The buyers waves their rights to the final walk through.

 Why would the Buyer have things on the exceptions list?

There are a number of reasons something might end up on this list.  Here are some examples of possible issues to be resolved.

• Anything agreed to be fixed or repaired in the BINSR that is not yet fixed or repaired
• While moving out the carpets were strained or torn
• Holes were put in the wall during the moving process which need to be repaired
• The appliances which were in the home have been replaced with less expensive ones

These are all reasons the buyer might have things on their list.

These are all reasons why you as the buyer want to exercise your right as a buyer to do the final walk through.

Don’t stick you neck out and find yourself in a situation where you are unhappy with the property and you have waved your rights to the final walk through.

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There is a final walk through document provides for three options

1. The buyer finds the property to be as represented at the time of the Purchase Contract.
2. The buyer finds the property to be as represented at the time of the Purchase Contract with the following exceptions.
3. The buyers waves their rights to the final walk through.

The Final Walk Through - A Real Plus for Sellers

Some sellers at this point want the whole process to be done.  They have been through the inspection period, fixed things that needed to be fixed and they don’t want anything else to come up that might some how delay closing.  There is often an attitude of “Why is there a final walk through we have fixed everything we are going to fix, what is the purpose of this?”

The purpose of the final walk through is two fold.  From the sellers perspective it is the final signing off by the buyer that they are satisfied the property is in the same condition as when they made the offer. However, if there are things the buyer wants to see changed or fixed they have a place to list those items which are not satisfactory.

The final walk through helps document for the seller the buyer’s acceptance of the condition of the property.

The buyers signs the “Buyer’s Walk Through/Final Inspection” document and a copy is provided to the seller.

This provides documentation for the seller that the buyer was satisfied with the condition of the property.  This is a good thing to have on the part of the seller for any issues or concerns which might be brought by the buyer later.What

Why would the Buyer have things on the exceptions list?

There are a number of reasons something might end up on this list.  Here are some examples of possible issues to be resolved.

• Anything agreed to be fixed or repaired in the BINSR that is not yet fixed or repaired
• While moving out the carpets were strained or torn
• Holes were put in the wall during the moving process which need to be repaired
• The appliances which were in the home have been replaced with less expensive ones

These are all reasons the buyer might have things on their list.

Most of the time if something happens to the home during the moving process they want to restore this to the condition at the time of the purchase contract.

Sellers Things to consider:

One of the easiest bullets to dodge in this process is making sure you repair or fix any damage that was caused to the house during the moving process.

• Holes in the wall from taking down pictures fix them
• Make sure you have matching paint on hand for wall repairs
• Clean the carpets and floors after the movers have left
• Leave the house clean and free of junk or debris
• Don’t switch out appliances or fixtures at the last minute (I hope I didn’t need to put this on the list)

As the seller if you have taken precautions to preserve the condition of the home the final walk through is nothing to be afraid of or fear in anyway.  It one of the final steps in the transaction process and provides you the opportunity to show the pride of home ownership that attracted the buyer in the first place.

Why the Bear?  Sellers should be happy the buyers take the opportunity to do the final walk through and sign off on it.  At the very least sellers should grin and bear it. : )

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It is the start of a new week.  New challenges, new opportunities, new perspective.  We get to chose.  We can’t always chose what situations and circumstances we will be involved in, some are good, some even great, other . . .  But we can always chose the attitude with which we will meet them.

We have a doorway open to a new week. Potential is there for us to take and make our own.

Last week is behind us (Many would say, “Thank God”).  The new week is now ours.

Welcome it with a smile and a wave of the hand (not the finger) : )

My Doctor once said “Dead is for a very long time, try living.”

Enjoy the Journey.   Have a Great week!

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She wants horse property He wants Gated Golf, wearing each other down and killing your agent in the process is not a good plan for looking for a new home.

We will work it out as we go along. Oh, yeah, right. When more than one person is going to purchase a house it is an extremely good idea before you start making appointments to see homes you decide what you want, together. Looking for a home is not supposed to be an exercise in marriage counseling, not for the buyers and certainly not for their agent.

Talk this out before you get an agent involved. Looking at a hundred homes to try and “wear the other one down” is one of the worst approaches to purchasing a new home.

Having worked out what you are willing to compromise on and decide together what criteria you can’t give up will keep this process of finding a new home from deteriorating into a running battle as you go from home to home.

Each should make a list of what they want and must have to be “happy” and then prioritize this list.  Sit down together and talk through each list and combine them to a master list.  Now you have established the criteria for your agent to begin searching in earnest for you new home.

No one wants to move into a home that is going to be the basis for long drawn out arguments after the purchase.  Life is to short, buy what you both like.  Life has a lot more to offer than arguments over why neither of you like the home.  Make this process work and when it is over,  enjoy you new home.

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This past weekend we were in a town home that was memorable for a different reason.  The buyers headed up the stairs and both husband and wife let out a gasp when they turned to corner into the master bath.  They thought they had actually walked in on the seller in the tub.  They backed out of the room then realized what they had seen and gasps turned to nervous laughs.

When we walked in we knew there was something startling in there but not what, a big bug, a scorpion in the tub, no a gold mannequin with her hair up in rollers in the tub.  Not even a whole mannequin, just the upper half sitting there in the tub.

I’m glad we didn’t go there late in the day when the sun was setting.  Imagine flipping on the light and finding the lady of the house soaking in the tub.

Today the listing agent called for feedback and was told the mannequin in the tub almost gave the clients a heart attack.  The agent related someone else let out a blood curdling scream when they walked in on the “lady in the tub”

This is not what we mean by making your house memorable.  Being the cause of a heart attack, someone fainting or a call to 911 for an ambulance to restart someones heart is not the kind of memorable moment you want to create.

Stick to chocolate and keeping the AC on.

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Divine Intervention or Serendipitous Occasion

Almost everyone trying to sell a home in Tucson reads the papers and listens to the news and is lead to believe the sky is falling and they are doomed.  Their house will never sell and if it does they will end up loosing money.

It leads some to put extra effort into making their home stand out from the rest.  I wrote about this last week in Leave the AC ON.  (It was this same house, yes the AC was on)

One of those extra efforts came in the form of hanging a decorative wreath on the front door.  This time of year with the summer heat here in Tucson it is hard to keep living plants, well living.  As an alternative to this the home owner hung the wreath on the door.

We went to this home the other day and as we walked to the front entryway I noticed the wreath was different.  I thought the lady of the house had added a dove to the top of the wreath.

Thinking to myself “This is a nice touch” when suddenly the dove flew off about 1 inch above Barbara’s head as she was opening the door.

We go in and I’m smiling (I smile a lot) and she said “What was that?”  I told her it was a dove that almost flew right through her hair.  (You can always create a moment of panic saying anything might be in her hair).

What was a dove doing on the door?  I had a hunch.  I took out my pocket camera, held it over my head at the top of the wreath and snapped off a shot.  Looking at the picture confirmed my suspicions.  The dove had built a nest on top of the wreath.

I showed Barbara the picture of the nest with the two eggs in it waiting for mom to return.  I kept hoping she would return to the nest so I could get a shot of the door with her on the nest, but no such luck.  I guess my serendipitous moment didn’t include that shot.

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I hope by now you are saying “You’ve Got to be Kidding Me”.  Yes, I am : )

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1. I want a car that runs on water, gets 100 mpg and cost under ten thousand dollars.
2. I want a camera that has great focus, depth of field, and zooms a mile with image stabilization to the images are always sharp and in focus.
3. I want an acre with a guest house 4 bedrooms 3 baths 3 car garage for $150,000 in Tucson.

Which of the above seems the most likely? None, 1, 2, or 3.

I want a million dollars in the bank ($100,000 in 10 different accounts of course) and a barrel full of spending money.

Almost anyone can get an idea of what homes are selling for in any given area of the country with a few minutes spent searching properties on the Internet. It would be a good idea to run some searches for what you are looking for in a Tucson Home instead of listening to the media wonks saying the sky is falling and expecting you can come out and pick up a “Great Deal” in Tucson real estate.

Here is a snapshot look at Average Sale Prices for residential real estate in Tucson

There are some very good propertys at very good prices in Tucson. But this is not a disaster market. People are not giving away their homes. We still have the best weather and beautiful mountains for views which won’t be going away anytime in the next billion years.

When it says “Just reduced by $35,000 for quick sale” doesn’t mean the sale price is $35,000. Those bargains don’t exist.

The real killer is when we find a great deal, even a Gonga Deal and the buyer doesn’t realize it. It requires a little home work to educate yourself of the market as ir really is and not as it is portrayed in the media.

I’m looking on line right now for places that will sell me a barrel full of spending money “Cheap”. Oh, and I’ll take that car too if anybody has one.

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Since we work with lots of clients, many of them buyers, we find there are two types of buyers when it comes to buying a home. Those that measure everything and those that measure nothing. There are a few that measure a little, but not enough of them to call them a group.

Those that measure nothing

I am of this group. I don’t carry a tape measure with me when I’m looking to buy a new home. I just look and pretty much know if it will work or not. Maybe it comes from years spent in my woodworking shop.

Most measuring has to do with furniture. If it requires getting rid of something and buying a new piece of furniture so be it. I do make sure everything will go through the doors. Since I only buy single story homes I don’t have to consider if things can make it up stairs and around corners. I think that about sums it up for most of us that don’t measure. (more…)

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