Gary Dwyer's Real Estate Blog

As an exclusive buyer agent working in downtown Boston and throughout the Greater Boston area, a large percentage of my clients are interested in purchasing a condo.  They know that they are not only buying the condo that they are going to be living in, but also become part of the wonderful world of condo associations.

Some sellers and their agents are very good - they know answers to every question that is asked by buyers and their buyer agent not only about their unit, but also the condo association.  Other sellers let potential deals go through their fingers because they don't answers to key questions about the condo assn that impact not only the desirability of living in a condo assn, but also the ability to get financing.

Stringent guidelines for condo loans have been implemented and, depending upon the program that the buyer has been pre-approved for, the buyer may not be able to get financing for a condo because of the condo assn.

Therefore, sellers, it is even more important to have accurate and up-to-date answers for these questions to help get and keep deals together.  Here are a few of the most important ones:

• How many units are in the condo association? How many are owner-occupied?
• Does more than one person own more than 10% of the total units?
• Is there commerical space in the building? What percentage of the building
is commerical space? Are there any restrictions on what type of business is permitted
in the commercial space?
• Do you know of any active lawsuits between the condo assn / condo trustees and
other parties?
• How much money is in the condominium reserve account? Is it more than 10%
of the annual budget for the condo assn?
• Are there any projects planned for the building? If so, will they be
covered through reserve funds, special assessments or a combination?
• For newer developments - Is the condo assn still within developer control?
If not, has it been a year since the condo assn was handed over to the residents?

A good buyer agent will help their clients "pre-screen" properties that are not going to meet their needs or ability to get financing, but sellers should also inquire about the financing package when an offer is made to prevent a false-start that is not going to benefit anyone.

Around a week ago, I wrote about how some sellers may be wondering why their homes are not getting as much traffic as they thought they would and how the pictures, or lack of thereof, may contribute to buyers not wanting to even view the property.

Once a client visits a house, I am often surprised (as are my clients) when answers to what are considered basic questions can not be answered by the listing agents or the seller.  Most listing agents will reply "I'll have to check" if they don't have the answer readily available and most will respond within a few hours after the showing. 

However, after a few "I don't know - I'll have to check", the buyer's interest in the property starts to wane and then they begin to question if there is something wrong with the property because the agent doesn't know (and appears to not want to know) anything about the property or the seller has not given any information about the property to the listing agent.  (Imagine going to a restaurant and asking some questions about the menu and the waitstaff not knowing anything about the ingredients, preparation, etc.)

As an exclusive buyer's agent, I work with my home buyer clients to help them identify and purchase homes that meet their needs.  In order to help my clients evaluate a home, there are some general pieces of information that are typically requested by home buyers that are of great help in determining if home is worth pursuing.

Here are a few of the questions that are consistently asked by home buyers and their buyer agent:

How old is the roof, heating system, hot water heater, windows?

How old are the appliances?  Are they staying?

Are the window treatments staying?  Are there any exclusions of fixtures that are not included in the purchase price?

Where are the lot lines?  Do you have a plot plan?

What are the average electrical / gas / water / oil bills?  What does the homeowner insurance typically run? (these are particularly important for first-time buyers that are on a tight budget)

Has there ever been water in the basement during the time the seller has owned the property?  If so, when and how much?  Is there a sump pump?

If there has been recent renovation work - were building permits pulled and have all the permits been signed off on?  Have all of the contractors / sub-contractors been paid-in-full?

If there is a pool - does the seller have a permit from the city / town for the pool?

If the home is on septic - do you have the Title V certificate?  When was the last time it was pumped?

Although these questions are very basic, you would be surprised at how difficult it can be to get them answered.  Having the information in advance and readily available to the listing agent and potential buyers can make the difference between a buyer feeling comfortable moving forward with an offer or moving onto the next house on the list.