WHAT IS ESCROW AND DO I NEED IT?

Many states do not have escrow requirements for real estate transactions and many people do not know about escrow and how it works. If you are in a state or relocating to a wonderful Vancouver neighborhood or the Portland area where escrow is required for all real estate deals, then you need to know more about escrow and what it is for, and one of the best ways is to ask your Realtor or Broker any questions you might have.

Whether you are the buyer, seller, lender or borrower, you want the assurance from a fiduciary company that no funds or property will change hands until ALL of the instructions in the transaction have been followed to the satisfaction of buyer and seller.  The escrow holders (escrow company) job is to safeguard any funds and/or documents while they are in the possession of the escrow holder, and to disburse those funds and/or convey title only when all of the provisions, or instructions, of the escrow have been complied with.

The seller, buyer, lender or borrower will give instructions, in writing, to the escrow company on what exactly is going to happen on the real estate transaction that is taking place or on the refinance of a piece of real estate if it only involves a refinance loan. If a real estate broker is involved in the real estate transaction, the broker may recommend an escrow holder. Usually the lender or bank will open escrow on the transaction if it is only for financing or re financing a piece of property and there is no transfer of title. The escrow instruction will indicate the amount of fees to be held   back at closing, the down payment which has to be paid to the seller, taxes to be paid, or held out of the final disbursements, or any other monies that are supposed to go to the seller or to the buyer. Usually the escrow company will coordinate the appraisal, the home inspection etc. Each escrow, although following a similar pattern, will be different in some respects, as it deals with your property and the transaction at hand.

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Portland – Vancouver Metro Area Tributes

Over the last few years, the Portland – Vancouver metro area has received numerous “Best Places” tributes, by Forbes and other media, and has made the “top city lists” for many things, including:

Forbes Lists:
* #15 Best Places for Business and Careers*
* #106 in Cost of doing Business*
* #86 in Job Growth*
* #39 in Education*
* #10 America’s Most Wired Cities 2010*
* #3 America’s Safest Cities 2010*
* #16 Best Cities for Singles 2009*

Combine these with the beautiful neighborhoods such as Edgewood Park and homes, great schools, wonderful houses of worship, city amenities, hometown pride of the residents, great shopping, entertainment, medical facilities and caring city fathers and you have a winning and forward looking team.

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Some Things to Consider When Buying a Vancouver Home

It is a known fact that the best single investment a anyone can make is owning their own home, whether its a single family type home, condominium, or town home.

When purchasing a home, whether it is your first time or if you are moving up to a bigger home, or for whatever reason, there are some things that are important to consider.

• Lot: Most people only think about the house, or building, when considering a purchase when, in fact, the lot or land parcel plays a major role in the overall value and appreciation.  Is the lot rectangular, or is it odd shaped? Most typical modern neighborhoods have rectangular building lots. It should also be as level as possible.Yard sizes are smaller in modern homes than in older homes, but there should still be a good sized front and back yard. Try to purchase a home with decent landscaping but not over landscaped.

• House Size: In each residential neighborhood, houses will vary in size and number of rooms, but they should not be too different. If resale value is an important consideration, you should not buy the largest home in the neighborhood. When determining values, the houses closest to yours are most important. If most of the homes closest to yours are smaller, they will drag down your homes value. If you buy a small or medium house for the neighborhood, the larger homes can help pull up your value.

• Bedrooms and Bathrooms:
  Three and four bedroom houses are the most popular among home buyers, so if you can stick in that range you will have more potential buyers when it comes time to resell.There should always be at least two bathrooms in a house, preferably at least two and a half.

• Garage, Closets and Laundry:
  Walk-in closets are extremely desirable for the master bedroom. For the rest of the house, just be sure there is plenty of closet space. Garages add to the resale value and you should always make sure to get at least a two-car garage.The laundry facilities should be located somewhere convenient on the main floor of the house, but not in a place it will create an eyesore.

• The Kitchen:
  Larger kitchens are better, and they should be provided with modern appliances, as the kitchen is the most important room in any home. Breakfast nooks and dining rooms should always be close to the kitchen.

• Access to BackYard and Garage:
  Having easy access to the garage is important as you do not want to have to carry groceries too far, and you want easy access to any Bar B Que area, or patio.

• Fireplaces
  The only room where you absolutely have to have a fireplace is the family room, or area used for family gathering, etc.

• Swimming Pool:
  A swimming pool is nice, but if you have children, then safety factors are involved and swimming pools make it harder to sell your home later on down the line.Paying a contractor to install a pool for you is like throwing money away. You will never get a dollar-for-dollar return on your investment, and when you go to resell the home in a few years consider that many people do not want pools.

• Location within a neighborhood:
  Within your residential neighborhood, such as Fishers Creek you want the nearby properties to be fairly homogeneous – alike in style, size, and structure.Avoid the edges. In short, you do not want your property to back or side to a busy street. If you are buying a single family home, you do not want your property to border a condominium, apartment complex, business, school, or even a park.You also want to make sure the street you buy on is not used as a shortcut between two busier streets. Nor do you want to buy a house on a corner lot, as those tend to attract more street traffic and are not as safe for children. Buy in the middle of the block or on a cul de sac.

 

• Choose a new city carefully and be sure that all modern amenities and conveniences are provided for by the city. Look into local crime statistics and see how the city compares to the national average and other local communities. Is the police force effective and responsive to community needs? Are fire stations located strategically around the community so that they also can respond quickly in an emergency?

Your Vancouver Realtor has all of the answers for you  regarding property values, city amenities, even Mortgage Loan Sources. Talk to your Realtor and ask the questions you have regarding any property you might be interested in purchasing.

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Support the Home Mortgage Interest Rate Deduction

One of  the many debates that continues to take up valuable time in Congress today,  is the ongoing controversy  about doing away with the tax deduction for interest paid on home mortgages.  Most people are not aware  that  having the interest on your mortgage payment as a tax deduction actually can lower the amount of tax you will pay? This makes home ownership affordable for many families, and keeping this tax deduction makes it possible for many renters to purchase a home.  This in turn will keep the real estate prices stable, once again guaranteeing a continual stream of new home buyers in the Vancouver real estate market such as  in the Evergreen Highland neighborhood as in the rest of the United States.

If you would like to know more on the subject, I would be happy to answer any questions or suggest a tax accountant who can explain in detail this tax deduction and how it affects your total tax responsibility.

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Get A Pre-Approval Letter To Get That Home

You are getting ready to start looking for a new Portland or Vancouver home . You have a down payment and want to impress a seller that you are serious about purchasing a property that you have looked at.
A pre-approval letter is one given by a third party lender that not only qualifies you but also approves you for a particular range of loan price. This means that a lender has pre-approved you for a certain loan and has found you qualified to purchase a property within a price range.

The main advantage that a pre-approval brings to you as a buyer is the fact that it will get your offer to be noticed by the seller or lender. The loan approval letter will signal to the seller that you are a serious buyer.

This means that your financial position and capacity have been all checked and found to be adequate to handle a new mortgage loan Payment.

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