Go Back   EcoModder Forum > Off-Topic > The Lounge
Register Now
 Register Now
 


Reply  Post New Thread
 
Submit Tools LinkBack Thread Tools
Old 08-27-2021, 07:17 PM   #641 (permalink)
Human Environmentalist
 
redpoint5's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Oregon
Posts: 12,456

Acura TSX - '06 Acura TSX
90 day: 24.19 mpg (US)

Lafawnda - CBR600 - '01 Honda CBR600 F4i
90 day: 47.32 mpg (US)

Big Yeller - Dodge/Cummins - '98 Dodge Ram 2500 base
90 day: 21.82 mpg (US)

Mazda CX-5 - '17 Mazda CX-5 Touring
90 day: 26.68 mpg (US)

Chevy ZR-2 - '03 Chevrolet S10 ZR2
90 day: 17.14 mpg (US)

Model Y - '24 Tesla Y LR AWD
Thanks: 4,211
Thanked 4,390 Times in 3,364 Posts
I'm hoping my next real estate transaction is sans realtor. Really liked my buyers agent, but then again it was free for me. Would rather just get 2-3% off the purchase price, or 4-5% more on the sales price.

__________________
Gas and Electric Vehicle Cost of Ownership Calculator







Give me absolute safety, or give me death!
  Reply With Quote
Alt Today
Popular topics

Other popular topics in this forum...

   
Old 08-27-2021, 08:05 PM   #642 (permalink)
Not Doug
 
Xist's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Show Low, AZ
Posts: 12,186

Chorizo - '00 Honda Civic HX, baby! :D
90 day: 35.35 mpg (US)

Mid-Life Crisis Fighter - '99 Honda Accord LX
90 day: 34.2 mpg (US)

Gramps - '04 Toyota Camry LE
90 day: 35.39 mpg (US)

Don't hit me bro - '05 Toyota Camry LE
90 day: 29.44 mpg (US)
Thanks: 7,225
Thanked 2,217 Times in 1,708 Posts
RedFin only charges a 1% commission, so they say your average commission would be 4%.

The last time that I checked there weren't any agents around here. I could be the first, but I didn't like the math with 3% commissions.
__________________
"Oh if you use math, reason, and logic you will be hated."--OilPan4
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-27-2021, 08:32 PM   #643 (permalink)
JSH
AKA - Jason
 
JSH's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: PDX
Posts: 3,501

Adventure Seeker - '04 Chevy Astro - Campervan
90 day: 17.3 mpg (US)
Thanks: 309
Thanked 2,067 Times in 1,397 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Xist View Post
RedFin only charges a 1% commission, so they say your average commission would be 4%.

The last time that I checked there weren't any agents around here. I could be the first, but I didn't like the math with 3% commissions.
Read the fine print. They charge 1.5% but credit back 0.5% if you buy a house through Redfin within a certain number of months.

No Realtors in Show Low? Zillow shows pages of them.
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-27-2021, 08:34 PM   #644 (permalink)
Not Doug
 
Xist's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Show Low, AZ
Posts: 12,186

Chorizo - '00 Honda Civic HX, baby! :D
90 day: 35.35 mpg (US)

Mid-Life Crisis Fighter - '99 Honda Accord LX
90 day: 34.2 mpg (US)

Gramps - '04 Toyota Camry LE
90 day: 35.39 mpg (US)

Don't hit me bro - '05 Toyota Camry LE
90 day: 29.44 mpg (US)
Thanks: 7,225
Thanked 2,217 Times in 1,708 Posts
Zillow does, but RedFin doesn't.
__________________
"Oh if you use math, reason, and logic you will be hated."--OilPan4
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-28-2021, 06:31 PM   #645 (permalink)
JSH
AKA - Jason
 
JSH's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: PDX
Posts: 3,501

Adventure Seeker - '04 Chevy Astro - Campervan
90 day: 17.3 mpg (US)
Thanks: 309
Thanked 2,067 Times in 1,397 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Xist View Post
Zillow does, but RedFin doesn't.
Redfin only operates in certain metro areas.
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-30-2021, 06:00 PM   #646 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: USA
Posts: 1,170

Sport Utility Prius - '10 Toyota Prius II
90 day: 52.98 mpg (US)

300k Sequoia 4WD - '01 Toyota Sequoia Limited 4wd
90 day: 20.19 mpg (US)
Thanks: 352
Thanked 265 Times in 212 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by JSH View Post
It may depend on local circumstances but in the 4 states I've purchased a house you aren't go to be able to see a house for sale without a realtor unless you wait for an open house. A seller's agent isn't going to meet a random buyer and without a buyer's agent you aren't getting into the lockbox with the key.

Likewise when selling a house you aren't going to get on the MLS without a realtor listing the property. No MLS and 99% of buyer's aren't going to see that your house is for sale.

I certainly wouldn't try to buy a house for the first time without a realtor - especially in a hot market where houses are selling within a week.

I completely agree the way realtors are paid is crazy. It doesn't take any more effort to sell a $500K house than a $100K house so why is pay based on a percentage of sale price?
I really think this is just old sentiment from pre-internet crazy times but your mileage may vary if you don't live in the less regulated state of Arkansas. I was a random buyer asking to look at houses in the 250-300k range and not a single person told me to **** off. Some times the buying agent met me to show the house, and sometimes the home owner. I bought my current house and it says on the contract *sellers fee "3%" and *buyers fee is blank. So woo I was able to save 3% which is $7500.
On the old house i asked a realtor friend about mls and he said not to worry as its the same as Zillow now. So I took the chance and listed it on zillow. Had two main parties wanting to buy it both from zillow. Pending within two weeks. Both were first time home buyers, but one had a realtor. The realtor wanted 6%. I said okay but I will need a competitive offer as I have another offer as well. The realtor offered me asking minus 6% ($9,840). The other party offered asking split closing (I split $4000 with them. So I sent them $2000 at closing.) I actually went to the state of Arkansas website and found a buyers offer contract for them, filled it out, sent it to them with an earnest money section that they deposit $2000 into an account with a title company the moment I accept their offer (just in case they didn't close they would lose the money and if they did they would get it back in full towards closing). We all agreed on terms and signed and I sent it to my loan officer which i also used for a pre-approval on the new house. They accepted my recommendation and we closed in about 30-40 days. New house there was no snags as well but I also signed an earnest money thing as well. No problems with the new house process either.
So I saved about $17000 which helped a lot.
Forgot to add that i showed my house with phone, a smart lock with time windows, and my cameras from 5 hours away. Was a smooth process and never met anybody in person.
It sounds like a scary process but the market is hot right now so i had absolutely no issues in this era with zillow (no fees) and all of that.
__________________
"I feel like the bad decisions come into play when you trade too much of your time for money paying for things you can't really afford."

Last edited by hayden55; 09-03-2021 at 11:16 AM..
  Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to hayden55 For This Useful Post:
Xist (08-30-2021)
Old 08-30-2021, 09:51 PM   #647 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: USA
Posts: 1,170

Sport Utility Prius - '10 Toyota Prius II
90 day: 52.98 mpg (US)

300k Sequoia 4WD - '01 Toyota Sequoia Limited 4wd
90 day: 20.19 mpg (US)
Thanks: 352
Thanked 265 Times in 212 Posts
*15,300 not $17000. Old house was 164k sold. New house was 250k bought.
__________________
"I feel like the bad decisions come into play when you trade too much of your time for money paying for things you can't really afford."
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-31-2021, 12:39 PM   #648 (permalink)
Not Doug
 
Xist's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Show Low, AZ
Posts: 12,186

Chorizo - '00 Honda Civic HX, baby! :D
90 day: 35.35 mpg (US)

Mid-Life Crisis Fighter - '99 Honda Accord LX
90 day: 34.2 mpg (US)

Gramps - '04 Toyota Camry LE
90 day: 35.39 mpg (US)

Don't hit me bro - '05 Toyota Camry LE
90 day: 29.44 mpg (US)
Thanks: 7,225
Thanked 2,217 Times in 1,708 Posts
The snork house sold yesterday

The only houses currently available in my city are horribly overpriced and terribly undersized. It still doesn't show prices for anything that has sold in the last month or two. It showed this house in Lakeside (for some reason. What part of Show Low does it not understand?!) $190k for 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and 1,253 square feet on a quarter acre, but there isn't even a carport!

It snows much more in Lakeside!

It says that it is a fixer-upper and priced accordingly, but I didn't see anything that needs to be fixed, just a lot of clutter. Maybe that was distracting, but that depends on your perspective. Mom and I thought that my sister's new condominium in California looked amazing. She paid someone to demolish it to the bare walls and concrete floor.

Her remodel costs as much as a cute house around here!

It seems like when many people see something more than 5 years old they say "Oh my gosh! Demolish it!"

How much have cabinets changed in the last 10-20 years? I know that empty space above your cabinets is out of style. I like the idea of cabinets all of the way to the ceiling! Less dusting and more storage!

Except that most people don't use shelves they cannot reach and most people wouldn't be able to use the top shelves.

Some people put drywall over the top of the cabinets. Is that easier? It just takes up space, but in the end: Less dusting!

This is one of my preferred streets. $235,0003 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and 1,064 square feet 737 N 6th Dr, Show Low, AZ 85901

Houses on the next street sold for $10k more, but had over 200 additional square feet and a garage!

This doesn't have a garage!

I wonder if it was built that way for some reason while almost every house on the street has at least a one-car garage. I shared a house at the other end of the street that has a one-car carport, but I swear that is the only one.

I think this was built without a garage instead of being converted at some point because the driveway is on the edge of the property. A neighbor converted his garage and the driveway is in front of the house. They have gravel on both sides because their entire front yard is a parking lot.

Classy!

All of their cars run, though...

It is a nice-looking house:


It has a playhouse!

I would say it is cute, but I keep wondering how it would work as an office! It has 6' ceilings, so I couldn't stand up all of the way, but I have been working under a loft for several months. I also use my brother's old recliner and I need to climb over it each time that I sit down or stand up. I cannot stand up until I step over the recliner because the loft is in the way, so that playhouse doesn't look that bad.

It looks like there is a wooden base sitting on concrete blocks. How hard would it be to separate playhouse from the base, raise it 2', and add another 2'?

Just kidding! Look at this!

The shed on the left has 8' ceilings! The description claims there are 2 sheds and 1 is insulated. Clearly there are 3 [and a playhouse]. There would be no reason for any of the others to be insulated, although I doubt the playhouse would be fun if you could see your breath inside.

That would make an awesome office! It has a normal door!

However, without a garage, and just those 2 small sheds for storage, I wouldn't have enough space for all of my tools, and Mom wouldn't have anywhere to put her freezers, Christmas decorations, the 8 shelving units in the garage, and all of the other stuff.

I think it is weird that the second and third pictures are wider than the first, but with the same height. Why wouldn't you have the picture of the front of the house at least the same size as the others?

You can see the 5th wheel in the playhouse picture. I don't know what else is in the driveway, maybe a full-sized pickup hanging onto the sidewalk, but I am sure the realtor thought that took away from the curb appeal.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	1.jpg
Views:	71
Size:	93.3 KB
ID:	31222   Click image for larger version

Name:	2.jpg
Views:	74
Size:	128.2 KB
ID:	31223   Click image for larger version

Name:	3.jpg
Views:	72
Size:	105.5 KB
ID:	31224  
__________________
"Oh if you use math, reason, and logic you will be hated."--OilPan4
  Reply With Quote
Old 09-03-2021, 03:19 PM   #649 (permalink)
High Altitude Hybrid
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Gunnison, CO
Posts: 1,983

Avalon - '13 Toyota Avalon HV
90 day: 40.45 mpg (US)

Prius - '06 Toyota Prius
Thanks: 1,054
Thanked 545 Times in 436 Posts
Doing a bit of math and recommendations of how much income should be spent on house payments, insurance, average repair costs, etc. I figure I can, with my current income, comfortably afford an $80,000 to $120,000 home.

But in anticipation of some family needs, I may need to work less, putting my affordability at $60,000 to $90,000.

The cheapest home that's not really available in my area... a $155,000 (pending sale) condo.
The next one up is a $225,000 house.
And prices only go up from there up into the millions of dollars.
__________________
  Reply With Quote
Old 09-03-2021, 03:52 PM   #650 (permalink)
Human Environmentalist
 
redpoint5's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Oregon
Posts: 12,456

Acura TSX - '06 Acura TSX
90 day: 24.19 mpg (US)

Lafawnda - CBR600 - '01 Honda CBR600 F4i
90 day: 47.32 mpg (US)

Big Yeller - Dodge/Cummins - '98 Dodge Ram 2500 base
90 day: 21.82 mpg (US)

Mazda CX-5 - '17 Mazda CX-5 Touring
90 day: 26.68 mpg (US)

Chevy ZR-2 - '03 Chevrolet S10 ZR2
90 day: 17.14 mpg (US)

Model Y - '24 Tesla Y LR AWD
Thanks: 4,211
Thanked 4,390 Times in 3,364 Posts
I'd get approved for the most amount the bank is willing to lend. It's a good hedge against inflation, and if you get into a jam on payments you can always take on a roommate.

I had 3 roommates in my 4 bedroom house when I was single. When I got married it dropped to 2.

Now we're in a 5 bedroom house with the other being rented out to 4 individuals. Plenty of room to take on a roommate or 2 in the new house and we've considered it. Probably won't work as easily once we have 1 more kid and need to start utilizing the downstairs bedrooms.

__________________
Gas and Electric Vehicle Cost of Ownership Calculator







Give me absolute safety, or give me death!
  Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to redpoint5 For This Useful Post:
hayden55 (09-07-2021)
Reply  Post New Thread






Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.5.2
All content copyright EcoModder.com