Ask Phyllis! Canceling PMI Insurance Dear Phyllis, I have been enjoying your advice for years and have yet to see this topic addressed. My daughter and her husband bought their house in 2019. We gave them most of their down payment so they could put 10% down. They are paying about $250 extra […]
What To Do If You Find Mold? Dear Phyllis, I love all things real estate related – especially your advice column! We have an interesting situation: My aunt, who lives in Santa Clarita, passed and we are preparing her home for sale. Taking some of your prior real estate advice, we had a pre-inspection before […]
Issues With The Seller’s Disclosures My daughter is in escrow on a home in West Hollywood. There were three bids, and hers was selected. After she completed her inspection, she was given the disclosures provided by the home seller. In addition to the defects discovered by the inspector, she learned that someone had died in […]
Inspector Not Allowed To Walk On The Roof Dear Phyllis, My son purchased a home earlier this year when the market was much more difficult for buyers. There were more than fifteen offers on the La Crescenta home he bought. His Realtor advised him to waive his loan and appraisal contingencies to be competitive. In […]
Selling a Vacant Home Dear Phyllis, I reside in La Cañada and specifically hired a Seal Beach Realtor who lives close to the home my parents owned. He assured me that he would keep a close eye on it because he lived just a few blocks from the home. I interviewed three real estate agents […]
What is a Transaction Coordinator? Dear Phyllis, I have been following your real estate column for years. And, as a local homeowner, I am relatively savvy regarding real estate. I co-signed for my son to purchase a townhome. It was very well-priced and there were a few other offers. There was a delay in the […]
Why might a Realtor turn down a listing? Dear Phyllis, Fifteen years ago, I purchased a major fixer. It is a one-of-a-kind home on a large, sloped lot with a new four-car garage and a two-bedroom guest house. Although the main home is just under 1,500 square feet, it was built in the 1930s and […]
Buyers with small down payments Dear Phyllis, I have been following your column for years and don’t believe you have previously discussed this particular scenario. In January of this year, I closed escrow. When reviewing the eleven offers, my agent pressured me to accept a lower offer because another buyer’s down payment was substantially larger. […]
Should A Home Be Painted Before Selling? Dear Phyllis, I have been a loyal reader of your “Dear Abby-like” advice for years. My father, who lived in Salem, Oregon, recently passed. My sister and I are co-trustees, but she will take the lead on the sale as she lives in Salem. I flew up to […]
My Realtor Is Too Negative Dear Phyllis, I am going to help my son buy a house. He has a Glendale condominium which will sell quickly. When we find a Pasadena house that will suit him, my plan is to write a high offer with a long escrow, maybe 60-75 days. We can then sell […]