First-time home buyers may find it difficult to know where to start with their home search. Whether attending an open house or a private walkthrough, there are many aspects of home buying to keep in mind that important details can be easily lost by inexperienced home buyers.

These home buyers are particularly in danger of forming an inaccurate opinion, as they may lack experience evaluating homes. It may help them to sit down with a real estate agent and list the most important traits they are looking for in a home, such as the distance to a workplace or school, the number of bedrooms or the condition of the plumbing and electrical systems.

Floor plans

According to MarketWatch, a good place to start when evaluating a home is to examine the overall layout, including the number of rooms, their size, the number, size and location of the closets and the home’s traffic patterns. If closets are too small or poorly located or the rooms are arranged inconveniently, home buyers may wish to keep looking.

Starting with the floor plan reduces the home to basics, making it easier to consider objectively and compare properties. Home buyers can also consider where they might place their furniture and any other items of significant size and think about the placement of electronic devices, keeping an eye on the locations of windows and electrical outlets in the process. When looking at windows, consider the natural lighting of the home.

MSN Real Estate notes home buyers should consider factors that can and cannot be changed when looking at the floor plan. For example, the location of the kitchen is fixed and if part of the home is a finished basement, the family may not want to locate a bedroom down there even if the previous owners did.

What to watch out for

MarketWatch recommends planning furniture arrangements beforehand to ensure that pieces will fit.

According to MSN Real Estate, some home buyers purchase homes with more space than they need without giving enough consideration to what the space will be used for or how they intend to fill it. This can lead to unused rooms while increasing the maintenance and utility costs of a home.

Home buyers should also look for hidden problems, such as water stains, damage under sinks or rugs, cheap or poorly done bathroom tile and any other characteristics that may mean additional expenses later. One expert noted an older home may be a better buy if the features are more durable and higher-quality.

Via ColdwellBanker.com…

“What do you do when the appraisal on the dream home you want to buy comes in below the price in the offer the seller has accepted—even as much as 10 to 20 percent below?”

According to RISMedia you have five options…

1. Get the seller to lower the price. By far, this is the easiest solution, especially if your appraisal comes in less than 10 percent of the contract price. Obviously, a lower price is a great idea for the buyer, but why would a seller go along? In July, 2011 the average home in America took about 88 days to sell. Demand is soft and time is money. Your seller, particularly if they are selling to buy another home, could be in a real bind if you are forced to back out and they have to put the house on the market again. After all, there is no guarantee that if you walk away, the seller won’t receive a low or even lower appraisal from the next buyer’s lender. Today, many buyers are offering incentives to sellers, such as payment of some or all closing costs. Lowering the price might be a cheaper option for the seller in order to get the deal done on time. Sometimes a bird in the hand is best.

2. Ask the seller to offer to carry a second mortgage for the difference. This solution doesn’t cost the seller anything but the buyer incurs greater debt. If the buyer really wants the home but cannot come up with the difference in cash, making payments or a lump sum payment at a later date to the seller is an option. After the escrow closes, sellers often retain the right to discount the second mortgage, and can sell it for less than face value to an investor.

3. Do your research and dispute the appraisal. Is the contract sales price a fair assessment of the property value based on a well-prepared comparable market analysis (CMA) from your real estate agent as opposed to an online AVM? Was the appraisal done by an appraisal management company that may have used a less-than-expert or out-of-town appraiser?

Disputing the appraisal may sound a little aggressive but you might be the victim of a poorly prepared appraisal. Do some research first and go to war if you have the ammunition.

You have the right to get a copy of the appraisal from your lender and to find out who did it. What is the appraiser’s reputation? Have any complaints been filed with your state appraisal licensing agency? Where is the appraiser based? Did they perform an appraisal in a housing market that they may not know well? Did the appraiser have adequate information about the subject property? If your appraisal was conducted by an out-of-town appraiser unfamiliar with your market, you have every right to demand a new appraisal.

What comparables did they use? Ask your agent and the seller’s agent to put together a list of recent comparable sales that justify the agreed-to sales price. Submit that list to the underwriter and ask for a review of the appraisal. Also, ask the agents to call the listing agents of pending sales to try to find out the actual sales price of those properties. Listing agents do not have to disclose the sales price, but many are happy to help because they could find themselves in the same situation. Pending sales are more current and are not closed, so the original appraiser would not have access to them.

The key to a successful dispute is data. You will need as much data you can get to back up your dispute.

4. Ask the lender for a new appraisal. Should you find that you have a good case that the appraisal wasn’t fair or accurate, ask your lender for a new appraisal, which you may be charged for.

Another strategy is to get two additional, unbiased appraisals and use the average of all three to arrive at a fair price. This is a risky strategy, in light of the fact that another appraisal might not come in higher than your first; it might even be lower if values have fallen.

Depending on how convincing your argument is, your lender has the ability to override the appraisal estimate, which is unlikely, or to order a new appraisal, which is more likely. If a new appraisal is ordered, talk with your agent about somehow splitting the cost with the seller. Perhaps the listing agent and selling agent will split the fee so the buyer does not have to incur additional costs associated with the transaction. Appraisals cost around $400 or so.

5. Get your own, independent appraisal. If you order your own appraisal and your loan is an FHA loan, ask the lender for a list of approved appraisers. Usually the bank will review your appraisal and ask the previous appraiser if they agree or disagree with the newly submitted one.

If the first appraiser disputes your appraisal, the bank may request a third appraisal done by another appraiser, or they may just reject your appraisal.

However, if the first appraiser agrees with the disputes you present, they may adjust their original appraisal and you may get a better price.

If these tactics fail and you cannot make up the shortfall in the appraised value, you may find yourself moving on. If so, be sure that you were protected by a contingency clause in the sales contract, stating that the transaction can be terminated if the home doesn’t appraise at, or above, the sales price.

Colington Harbour is a waterfront community located in the town of Kill Devil Hills on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Colington Road separates the Harbour from the rest of Kill Devil Hills, creating its own community of neighbors and businesses.

With over 2,400 lots, the “Harbour” is the largest neighborhood, and serves as home to a thriving boating community featuring miles of canals and scenic sound front homes along the beautiful Albemarle Sound.

Originally developed as a mix of retirement and vacation cottages, the Harbour has grown into the permanent residence for thousands of families and children galore.  The deep water canals, ideal location, and friendly faces of the residents have made the community one of the premier destinations along the Atlantic coast.

Amenities within the Colington Harbour neighborhood include a huge sound side park with sandy beaches, a playground, and sheltered picnic areas, a basketball court, as well as a boat launch and boat slips for rent.

Via CNNMoney…

Photo courtesy of CNNMoney

Despite the on-going dismal news surrounding the Real Estate industry, CNNMoney reports on a bright spot… the rental market.

Foreclosures have turned more that four million homeowners into renters, which means demand in the rental market is rising along with the rates renters pay. Also, many other prospective homeowners, worried about losing their jobs or housing prices falling a lot further still, are reluctant to buy now… which is good news for you. “As with many investments, the best time to get in is when most others are sitting on the sidelines. To figure out whether you can benefit by investing in rental property, here’s what you need to know.”

Many factors make this a better time than ever to invest. Mortgage rates are at a 40-year low, homes in most areas are more affordable than ever and according to recent US Census data, demand for renting has rising in almost 500 cities nationwide.

“Work with a local realtor who has experience with rentals and can help you assess how attractive a given home will be to tenants.”

Contact a Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty agent today with questions about your future investment property.

With hurricane Irene gone and clean-up underway, many of us are encouraged by the help of our Outer Banks community and neighbors.

For a storm with the amount of news coverage that she was given, Irene began relatively mild. We experienced the standard gusty winds and rain, watched as the ocean began to swell, but were hesitant to believe the hype that had so far surrounded this hurricane. Conditions began to worsen towards the afternoon on Saturday.

Winds were picking up, along with ocean waves, but eerily the sound was looking empty. The east winds had pushed the sound west, away from the barrier islands. The sound was so dry at one point that it was possible to walk 200 to 300 yards out passed the usual water line.

The ocean-side of the Northern OBX (Corolla to Nags Head) fared relatively well. The ocean never washed over the dunes, a first in my memory for a major storm. The damage to ocean-front and ocean-side homes has been minimal, if any.

Photo courtesy of News & Observer

The true power of the storm was realized once the eye passed over our barrier islands, pushing the sound onto the west side of the OBX, flooding many of the waterfront neighborhoods. The water began rising in the late afternoon Saturday and continued to rise into the early hours of Sunday. The water rose more quickly than any of us imagined or could remember from past storms.

“The sound-side flooding (Sunday) night was epic,” Dare County Board of Commissioners Chairman Warren Judge said at a press conference with local officials. “Entire neighborhoods were engulfed.”

Bay Drive, a sound front road that is home to many Outer Banks residents, was hit hard by the rising waters. By Sunday morning, the flood waters were beginning to recede. It was amazing to see how many people were so quick to begin helping their neighbors.

Photo of Chase Patterson courtesy of News & Observer

From sun up to sun down, then bright and early again today, men and women were out clearing the road and each other’s yards. It brings a little beauty to a situation that has been so ugly for so many. I know that for me, it reminds me why I love the Outer Banks and my neighbors. Everyone you run into has been eager to hear how your home and family fared in the storm and quick to offer any help they can give.

Most of the Outer Banks is now open for business today with the exception of Duck and Hatteras. We are still waiting on word from Corolla.