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Who Pays The Real Estate Agent?
Posted on November 19th, 2009
Huis-Huis
Don't fight about who pays!
Nobody wants to, but somebody has to – pay the real estate agent, that is. So, exactly who’s responsible for paying the realtor’s commission?
No, this is not a silly question. The average person buys and sells property only once or twice in their lives. So, how would you know without asking? The rest of Who Pays The Real Estate Agent? »
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Buying house – a pain in the behind
Posted on October 15th, 2009
Huis-Huis
Buying doen't have to hurt... much
Buying a home is the biggest financial transaction many people ever get involved in. Buying house can be a down right scary business, even if nothing goes wrong. People’s hopes and dreams are often tied up in that home purchase, and it can be hard to keep emotions at bay. So, naturally, everyone would prefer it if their house purchase goes as smoothly as possible and is over in a jiffy.
Someone once confided to me that his experience of buying property was a lot like his experience of rectal exams: He knew it was important and had to be done, but he just wanted it over and done with!
Luckily, if you’re not scared to ask for help, buying a home does not have to be as bad as a rectal exam. If someone holds your hand, the scary stuff doesn’t seem so scary anymore. And once you know what is hiding around the corner, your heart can stop racing and your hair can relax again. But who do you get to champion your cause and look around the corners for you?
Don’t worry. I’ll tell you. See more of Buying house – a pain in the behind »
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What is a contract?
Posted on October 14th, 2009
Huis-Huis
Know before you contract
Someone recently asked me what a contract is. Who that was, is not really important for the purposes of this post, so I’m not saying who.
Because this question is rather vague, I will answer it as if it was intended to be a question about contracts in general, even though I realise that the person was looking for information about real estate contracts specifically.
When you start dealing with contracts on a regular basis, as most people eventually do once they grow up, one forgets that you had to start at the start once. And quite frankly, the basics of contracts are not really as basic as all that, and probably not common sense at that.
So here goes my explanation of contracts: (Remember to let me know if I don’t make sense, or if you like what you see.) See more of What is a contract? »
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Open Mandates
Posted on September 4th, 2009
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"Open" does not mean "good"
My mother always insists that, if she ever sells house again, she’ll only grant an open mandate.
No matter what I tell her about the dangers of open mandates, she won’t budge in her determination. And there are many home owners out there who feel the same. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if this article on open mandates don’t convince you either.
Read the full Open Mandates »
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Suspensive Conditions
Posted on August 27th, 2009
Huis-Huis
Suspensive conditions are all about waiting
Suspensive conditions are just words. But because these specific words might very well be in your contract of sale when you buy or sell real estate, it is important to know what the function of a suspensive condition is, and exactly how the suspensive conditions in your offer to purchase will affect the sale of your property.
“Sticks and stones may brake my bones, but words can never hurt me“, is a myth properly debunked where suspensive conditions are concerned. The wording of suspensive conditions are very important to both buyers and sellers of immovable property.
In this article we’ll discuss the specific type of contractual condition called suspensive conditions. The name is very descriptive of the function of this contract condition, as you’ll see once we’ve explained, but if you’re not familiar with contracts and legal speak, it’s function really isn’t that easy to guess just by the name. Find out more about Suspensive Conditions »
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