In Seattle’s competitive real estate market, we’re seeing offers coming in with shorter closing times, appraisals waived or even financing waived. It’s not unusual for me to have a Real Estate Broker say “the offer has been accepted, you can order the appraisal now!” I recently had a Real Estate Broker from Seattle ask an excellent question:
When can an appraisal be ordered?
September 25, 2015 by 2 Comments
Waiving your financing contingency?
September 4, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The greater Seattle real estate market is hot. With the lack of inventory, some home buyers have found themselves in a position where they feel they need to waive their financing contingency or the appraisal. I see this strategy happen when home buyers have been competing with multiple and/or cash offers.
What is an escrow holdback?
August 25, 2015 by 2 Comments
Sometimes an appraiser may call for repairs to be done on a home typically for safety reasons. In a seller’s market, like the greater Seattle area is experiencing, it’s not likely that the seller will agree to make the repairs. If the buyer has enough funds, they may be able to do an “escrow holdback”. An “escrow holdback” is when funds are heldback at closing to cover the estimated cost of the repairs. The buyer brings the amount of the holdback to escrow (or sometimes the lender) and the funds are held until after closing, when the work has been finished.
Avoid Delays with Appraisals
June 4, 2015 by 8 Comments
Washington State has a couple of regulations that require certain safety features are installed in a home before a buyer can purchase it. When these items are not installed in the home at the time of the appraisal, or if the appraiser cannot easily find them, then the appraiser or underwriter will require that these items be installed prior to closing. This can potentially delay the closing and/or increase cost if the appraiser has to go back to the property to re-inspect for the missing items.
You just “won” the highest bid on a hot Seattle home… now what?
May 2, 2015 by Leave a Comment
The Puget Sound Business Journal recently posted an article about a 1,100 square foot home in Ballard that sold $158,000 over list price. There is no denying that Seattle’s real estate market is hot largely due to lack of inventory and rising rents. (A’ hem…if you have been considering selling your Seattle area home, now could be the time).
How will Fannie Mae’s Collateral Underwriter (CU) impact appraisals?
April 15, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Over this weekend (April 18, 2015), Fannie Mae will be releasing the highly anticipated “Collateral Underwriter” (aka CU) to lenders. CU is intended to be a tool for lenders to use to help ensure the quality of appraisals on loans that originated as conventional/Fannie Mae. Fannie Mae’s tagline for CU is “Taking appraisal review to the next level”…many in the industry, from lenders, real estate brokers and appraisers, are a bit anxious over this new “tool”.
When an Appraisal Comes in Low: Seattle Real Estate Chat
November 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
In the last episode of Seattle Real Estate Chat, Jim Reppond and I discuss what happens when an appraisal comes in low for a home purchase. Since appraised values are based on comps (recently closed homes), the data used to determine an appraised value is often “lagging” behind current home prices. Factor in bidding wars when prices may be escalated along with HVCC (regulations that do not allow lenders to select appraisers) and it’s not entirely uncommon to have an appraisal come in lower than the offer price.
HARP 2 and Appraisal Waivers
April 19, 2012 by 1 Comment
When the expanded guidelines of the Home Affordable Refinance Program (aka HARP 2) were released late last year, they announced that loan to value (LTV) restrictions were being removed. It all sounds very simple however, no big surprise here, there’s a little more to it.
Recent Comments