Article 1 (Is It Too Late to Buy a Property for June, 1999 Occupancy?) Article 2 (What Sellers Should NEVER Say to Buyers) Article 3 (Q&A with Michael Merrill)

Is It Too Late to Buy a Property for June, 1999 Occupancy? By Sara Rosenfeld, Sr. Vice President, Brookline Office of Hunneman-Coldwell Banker If you are reading this article in the month of May and you are still looking for a new place to live for June 1 occupancy and think your only option is to rent, PLEASE READ THIS ARTICLE! So many of us are busy with work, family, and just enjoying the Spring, that we have put off our need to find a new home by June 1., one of the most popular dates to move in the MetroBoston area. If you have been disappointed with the lack of selection, condition of the property, and the incredible rents! Let alone, just when you think you have found something, it has already been rented by someone else! There is still a nice supply of properties for you to choose from to purchase, but you need to complete a few tasks to assure your ability to move in by June 1. And, if you are still not certain that you want to purchase, please continue your rental search while you are completing the following tasks: 1. Speak to at least 3 different lending institutions (Banks or Mortgage Companies) to determine how much of a down payment you will need, and what you need to supply to the lender in order to facilitate the quick closing. Most lenders will suggest a pre-approval process which involves a complete mortgage application with verifications of employment and deposits, 2 years of income tax returns, and a credit report; 2. Speak to a real estate professional. Many people find a good broker by asking friends, co-worker, or family members for a recommendation. You may also consider calling an office and asking to speak with the owner or manager of the office so they could suggest someone in their office who is an expert in the location and type of property you desire. Or you can attend some open houses and speak to the broker running the open house to determined if you feel comfortable with them. Due to your limited time, I suggest getting an appointment with one broker as soon as possible in order to see the current inventory; 3. An important component of your decision in the financial decision regarding your monthly payments. You need to make sure to review a RENT VS. BUY ANALYSIS for any property you are interested in. The real estate professional should be able to supply you with all of the relevant monthly costs and the fair market rental value so you can make the comparison. Many listing brokers already have prepared a sheet with this type of analysis to assist the buyers with their decision making process. Many of the properties you will see are actually more affordable to purchase than to rent! Your timing is critical when it comes to your research and decision making process. You need to proceed quickly, especially with setting up and conducting your home inspection. If you are purchasing a condominium, you also need the time to review the condominium documents and speak to the Trustees or management company about the association. You can accomplish this in less than a week. You will need to proceed with your mortgage application process and make sure the lender requests the appraisal of the property as soon as possible. You will need to request the lender's attorney to start the title search process no later than May 15, which is something the mortgage originator can help you with to assure your June 1 closing. Good luck with your decision and enjoy your new home!

What Sellers Should NEVER Say to Buyers The door bell rings, you grasp the knob, and throw one last glance around. As your daughter quickly puts the vacuum cleaner away, you open the door with a big smile. There stands an agent and prospective buyers. "Hi!...How are you?...Come in," you say. Those are probably the last three unsolicited comments that should pass your lips for the remainder of the visit. The real estate field is littered with stories of potential sales that were killed by sellers who inadvertently uttered the wrong thing. Before continuing, you should understand that the types of 'better left unsaid' things discussed here have nothing to do with the Seller's Disclosure Addendum, or hiding anything from a potential buyer. To the contrary, all of the suggested "DON'T SAY IT!" topics presented here are based on personal preferences. Being human, sellers often find it difficult, if not impossible, to keep from offering opinions or information that they think makes them appear credible to the buyer. Without knowing the life's experiences and propensities of each buyer you see, how can you keep from opening your mouth and inserting your foot? Please don't talk about: How many kids are or are not in the area. Even if the buyer has children, you have no way of knowing whether or not they want gangs of them banging down their door on Halloween. The huge stone birdbath in the backyard that is visited by HUNDREDS of birds each year. How could you know the wife is deathly afraid of birds? How great your church is. They might be of different faith. How quiet the neighborhood is. They may want a more social atmosphere, and look forward to making new friends. The 'newness' of items in the home. New is most definitely a relative term! What you consider 'new', may be old to others. For example, an item that is two years-old may be 'new' to someone who has lived in the house for 15 years, but may be old to a buyer who thinks of new as anything in place for less than 6 months. Please don't offer the following statements as the reason you are selling: The death of a family member. Some people have a phobia about moving into a home where someone died. How you've outgrown the house. If buyers have the same number in their family, they may have second thoughts about their need for such a large home. How the home is too small for you. The buyer might feel that your home is 'plenty big' until you tell them how small it is for you. Your comment may give them the push to look for more expensive (bigger) homes. Your recent divorce. Potential buyers could be having marital problems. This could easily turn them off. That you bought another home. If a buyer knows there is urgency, this can be used against you in negotiating. If you get the distinct impression that everything you say to a potential buyer could get you into trouble down the road then you have correctly interpreted this article. Since you are under contract with a real estate agency, the best course is to make yourself scarce after the greeting. In fact, a good course of action might be to say: "Please take your time viewing my home. And if I do not see you before you leave, thank you for coming. You'll have to excuse me, but: important phone call, helping kids with project, deadline at work, etc." This extricates you from a potential "foot-in-mouth" encounter later, and does not make you appear to be avoiding the buyer's questions. Editor's Note: Article originally written by Judi Wolfson and Elaine Shreiber.

Q&A with Michael Merrill of Merrill & McGeary, a real estate attorney. Q: I own a condominium unit in the Back Bay. I have one parking space which comes with my unit. I intend to sell my unit and purchase another condominium unit close by. I would like to keep my parking space if possible and use it while I live in my new unit. Is this possible? Can I sell my unit and retain the parking space? B.L. Boston, MA A: First, you should read your condominium documents, particularly the Master Deed, and determine what the Master Deed states regarding parking and a unit owner's right to grant parking space easements to non-unit owners. The Master Deed, which is the document that creates the condominium and establishes restrictions on use of the units and common areas, will determine to a great extent what options are available to you in this situation. The Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled in the 1996 case of "Schwartzman v. Schoening" that parking spaces could not be separated from a unit absent an express provision in the condominium documents. If your condominium documents do not allow the grant of a parking space easement to a non-unit owner, you could attempt to obtain the consent of 100% of the beneficial interest of the unit owners as well as the mortgagees and amend the Master Deed. However, this is a difficult task to accomplish. My advice is to buy a new unit that includes a parking space and sell your old unit with the parking space. Q: Recently, I purchased a single-family house. While I was signing the bank's documents, I was handed a plot plan that showed a town sewer easement running through the property and directly under the house. I had no prior knowledge of this sewer line and easement. It was not reflected in the purchase and sale agreement or in the copy of the deed the seller gave to me. Shouldn't I have been notified of this easement in advance of the closing? After a few telephone calls to the town's engineering department, I decided to go through with the transaction, but could I have gotten out of the purchase at that time and obtained a return of my deposit? N.G. Brookline, MA A: As a general rule all easements that affect a property should be disclosed by the seller to the buyer prior to the signing of the purchase and sale agreement. The buyer then has the opportunity to investigate the easement and make an informed decision as to whether or not the easement will adversely affect the value of the property or the buyer's plans with regard to use of the property. The Greater Boston Real Estate Board's form purchase and sale agreement used by most buyers and sellers in this area states in pertinent part the seller will deliver the property to the buyer free from encumbrances except "easements, restrictions, and reservations of record, if any, so long as the same to not prohibit or materially interfere with the current use of the premises." Therefore, unless that provision in the purchase and sale agreement was amended, the issue is whether or not the easement prohibited or materially interfered with the current use of the premises. If you could make a good argument for material interference then you could have terminated the agreement and recovered your deposit. However, if the previous owner used the property as a single family home without a problem, then I doubt you would have prevailed. Michael W. Merrill