Non warrantable condos and mortgage approval

Snappy,

You are right and wrong. You are right in thinking that a sponsor's attorney can draft a purchase agreement as he/she sees fit. And trust me, a sponsor's attorney would love to draft language such as what you have proposed and have it stick.

However, you are wrong in thinking that if there's a conflict between the offering plan and the purchase agreement, the PA controls. New construction purchase agreements MUST ALWAYS defer to what is in the offering plan, and if they don't then the AG/courts will make it defer. And offering plan's are required by law to notify a purchaser's right (also by law) to apply for a down payment dispute determinations by the AG's office.

So in this order - 1) Law 2)Offering plan: which is basically law 3)Purchase agreement

In case of a RESALE, you are correct. There's no AG or plan to look out for buyers.

Here's more:

"(viii) Disputes.
(a) In the event of a dispute, the sponsor shall apply and the purchaser or the escrow agent holding the down payments in escrow may apply to the Attorney General for a determination on the disposition of the down payment and any interest earned thereon. Forms for this purpose will be available from the Department of Law. The party applying shall contemporaneously send to all other
parties a copy of such application."

Posted by: k91 at March 23, 2009 12:09 PM in response to That's Me In The Corner, Losing My Deposit

Down Payment Dispute Form:

http://www.oag.state.ny.us/bureaus/real_estate_finance/pdfs/etf_1_application.pdf

If there is no written agreement between the parties to release the escrowed funds, the escrow agent shall not pay the funds to the sponsor until the escrow agent has given the purchaser written notice of not fewer than 10 business days. Thereafter, the funds may be paid to the sponsor unless the purchaser has already made application to the Department of Law pursuant to the dispute resolution provisions contained in these regulations and has so notified the escrow agent in accordance with such provisions.

Posted by: k91 at March 23, 2009 10:51 AM in response to That's Me In The Corner, Losing My Deposit

NY'ers who bought new construction and are faced with this kind of situation should immediately file a down payment dispute (it's in your offering plan) with AG's office. NY AG is NOTORIOUSLY, and rightfully so, buyer friendly. They take the regulation of new construction condos very seriously. Part of that is making sure sophisticated developers do not take advantage of less-sophisticated buyers.

Posted by: k91 at March 23, 2009 10:28 AM in response to That's Me In The Corner, Losing My Deposit

re: future mortgage rates.

Ridiculous to think that anything other than MBS spreads/pricing will be primary determinant of future conforming mortgage rates (this excludes treasury-based or libor-based Arms that have already), especially the ridiculous idea that secured lending is slowly becoming unsecured ledning and as a result, mortgage rates will rise.

For purposes of refi ing (if you can), I suggest anybody who has an Arm resetting follow religiously the mortgage news daily MBS blog. He provides live color on daily MBs pricing. Also go to HSH mortgage rates sight, click on Ny and see the many brokers/lenders who publish their daily rate sheets (which again reflect recent MBS activity). These sights provide us home owner fools, which we ALL are when you are at the mercy of one of the most opaque industries out there, at least some ammo when talking with lenders. In other words, we ALL have in some way been taken for a ride by our lenders be it with an orgination fee, the quarter point lender mortgage tax built into your point, the point itself, the ysp premium he takes that you have no verifiable way of knowing what it
is, a ridiculously high app fee in some instances, a processing fee, etc.... If don't think you have been juiced in some way, then you are clueless.

Posted by: k91 at November 11, 2008 7:42 PM in response to Citigroup Puts the Kibosh on Foreclosures

Miss muffet,

On the contrary, it's always east to see how much you are saving vs losing in a rent or own analysis. By the sound of your post, it seems your probably losing money renting vs owning. Sure in two years?! You could negotiate lower and save in the future but that's a Gamble plus what you save then And if there's any time I'd rather be saving owning vs renting, plus building equity instead of losing my profit in stocks or making a neglligle (and soon to be even more negligible with the fed continuing to dillute your savings rate) rate in a cash or cash equiv, it's right now.

The gist of it is is that re rationale to sell one two years ago was to cash out at the top and dump your profit into another asset class. Turns out what people thought was a great asset class that could return you roughly 7-10% is now a -25 to -40% BOMB. For anyone to have cashed out on this rationale (and not because they had to for some other reason) is losing and when they do decide to hop back in, they will have either a net loss or maybe, maybe be even.

Of course, if your numbers reflect differently, of be curious to hear. I know my numbers are slanted about 3-4k/year in favor of owning vs renting.

Posted by: k91 at November 1, 2008 5:09 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 145 Park Place, #2B

I know everything is negotiable I meant negotiable as in did you negotiate that the sponsor pay the TT's and his OWN damn Esq fee. But thanks for the cryptic response. I guess I should take it as you don't know?

I ask, because these are the terms of the K that you should concern yourself with not casualty and loss and first refusal clauses. In fact, you have wasted the energy for which you should have spent hounding your esq. That is what you are paying him for. It my view, as an attorney, that if you have to seek out a mortgage broker (although Adam is knowledgable at what he does - mortgages) and some jackas named kero who says a state regulated industry (new condominum development) possibly worth MILLIONS to you, is a no brainer and that you should consult a STORE BOUGHT contract for advice, then you sir chose the WRONG lawyer. Period. Your lawyer should have spent the time clearly explaining the gist of each and every clause prior to you signing, and then, if you still have questions, should spend the time necessary to answer them.

Instead all that you have done, although unwittingly andbthe courts may look favorably upon that, is
to goad Adam (and possibly his mortgage license), and even kero, into an unauthorized practice of law claim.

My advice to you, is to stay very far away from boards like this if you have questions about your
purchase K. Instead HOUND your esq. Get your answers and make sure they (his answers) make sense. If they don't, then seek out the AG's office or another attorney.

I am obviously fired up, but as I should be. Your probably unresponsive esq only provides an addtonal stain on an already perceivably dirty profession. And more generally, it's the same ad hoc attitudes and advice by RE professionals that got a lot of people and now the economy and your soon to be NYC RE in what was otherwise an avoidable mess.

Otherwise good luck brother.

Posted by: k91 at October 29, 2008 8:02 PM in response to Purchase Contract Questions (help!)

ctrl alt,

Curious. Did you negotiate transfer taxes and sponsors attorney fee? Also wondering whether he came down in price. Also what area are you in?

Posted by: k91 at October 29, 2008 5:24 PM in response to Purchase Contract Questions (help!)

Lechal,

You say you sold last year. I am curious about your details, specifically your hold period and in deciding to rent, how much cheaper (after tax) you are saving doing so.

Posted by: k91 at October 29, 2008 10:44 AM in response to Condo of the Day: 145 Park Place, #2B

although I loathe the ignorant renter rant from the likes of lechal or however you spell his username, I agree that this ask is too high. As an owner of two newly constructed pieces of NYC RE, I wish this ask is what would be fetched, but it won't. It's great unit though and contrary to what the renter drech on this site will tell you, it will sell. I also like the brownstoner pub idea. No pub is bad pub especially since bad pub is all you'll really receive on this site and others like it.

Reducing blows, but you can help offset. Negotiate that the purchaser pays the TT's and your ESQ fees at closing. These two costs, at your price point, represent a 12-15 k net in your favor.

Posted by: k91 at October 28, 2008 7:00 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 145 Park Place, #2B

Is your place not appraising at purchase? Your your posts re: you entering into K is from Sept? Puzzled.

Also:

1) one stop from the g (I assume Nassau) for only 524/sqft? Even for a first floor, this us low, especially for that area

2) also news for you. Being near Nassau puts you as far from Bedford amenitiea as richardson/frost. If you are not Nassau on G then there's no comparison.

3) is your place not appraising at purchase? If so, then start your negotiations with the dev. He may come down for you. Otherwise, I don't know how you know your place is overpriced unless you already closed and are actually try to resell?? Are you going off the babble spouted on this site?

4). You ARE in a pricey condo. At 628+ yes, you are. It seems your dev attracted yoU to a pricey place. How did he do it? With more space, right? Maybe a better layout. In other words, you didn't make your decision based on the area. You made it based on building and the unit. This gets me back to my point about the ridiculousness of knocking areas, when what really should be badmiuthed is the building itself. The luminous and the rental next to (btw, almost fully leased up) are terrible buildings in as good of an area as any in wburg (prime included). Hey if you can get to midtown or down in twenty to thirty door to door (which you can from those buildings) then most anybodys major goal in buying has been accomplished.

5) my area is not preposterously overpriced anymore than yours. In 2005 we bought in East 950 sqft (400 private roof overlooking manhattan for 560. This past summer it appraised for 650. (rest of country, -15 to -20%. EAST wburg +16). We now have that one leased up and used some of it's equity (still have 20 in it) to buy 1100 at 679. However, we negotiated sponsor down to 675, got transfer taxes and his ESq fee. All said and done, we got 19 off 679 for grand psqft total of 600. What did we get? 1100 on 3rd floor with elevator, 50 sqft of terrace and another 150 sqft of
panoramic manhattan view private roof, two beds and two baths and two blocks to L. Our hold for both props is projected for FOREVER. Both will always be viable income producing props. Anyway enough.

6). On serious note, I worked with really good mortgage guy to get us through our recent financing debacle. And it was a debacle. We signed k in June and did not close until oct. He got us good cheap money at 5.875. I can pass you onto him if you want.

Posted by: k91 at October 23, 2008 4:56 PM in response to Tough Times at Outer-Burg Scarano and Karl

Which is it? Does the area that these buildings are located suck or not? Because they ARE located in the same area you now call pretty cool?

I see from your previous posts that you purchased in GP and new construction at that. Without getting too specific, float some of your details - contract price, vicinity of greenpoint, how far you are from (cough) G, how bigs your space (ppsft), view, outdoor space, floor, etc. I'll tell you how exactly. Overpriced your unit and probably a multitude of other units around you really are. In other words,let truly put your money where you "preposterously overpriced" mouth is.

Posted by: k91 at October 22, 2008 3:11 PM in response to Tough Times at Outer-Burg Scarano and Karl

I have reread Paul C's post and feel compelled to write further...,

Paul C,

You are a fughen ignorant jackass who has no idea what prime anything is. In fact, your ignorant, "from afar" sentiment so infuriated me, that I'll actually concur with you - that east of the BQE is nothing more than the BQE itself and auto repair shops therefore it sucks- just so you'll stay the F AWAY.

Posted by: k91 at October 21, 2008 8:48 PM in response to Tough Times at Outer-Burg Scarano and Karl

while I'll agree that both of these buildings are out of character and should thus the devs should pay some price for bungling projects with good potential, I cannot sit idly by and let a bunch of slopers and heights and largely southern Brooklyn RETARDS dismiss the area these buildings are in as sub prime and shifty and worthless (which isnthe gist of all comments below).

I'll take the graham stop, which these buildings are not far from AT ALL over the ridiculous circus that the Bedford stop is ANY day. In fact, this portion of east Williamsburg is Probably the Only area in the burg that has and will retain any ofnits pre hipster character. For anyone to equate east of yw BQE as crappy and not worth it, OBVIOUSLY has not stepped foot here.

Posted by: k91 at October 21, 2008 8:33 PM in response to Tough Times at Outer-Burg Scarano and Karl

1998-2008 information a red herring? WTF does that mean. Please provide reasoning. Are you saying that you shouldn't factor past performance of Ny RE when deciding whether to invest in Ny Re? Ridiculous. Look it's simple. With I/0 products you pay less and get more of a tax benefit than you would on a principal and interest product. With io You are supposed to be disciplined and pay down your principal with your tax bennys. In addition you have your 10% to 20% equty in the RE and in Ny over a ten year period, like FROM 1998 TO 2008, you will receive passive market appreciation. Sure not every year and you may even lose some some years but over the course of ten years, depending on your market, you BET YOUR ASS you will see passive appreciation over ten year period. Consider even a 2% ten year average and you will definitely be able to refi.

So for example you take a 500000 loan amount that stays stagnant over course of ten years because you are io. Now take your 2% year over year, very conservative BTW even in downturn like early nineties that lasted only four years top to bottom to flat for two TOPS, and you will be more than RIGHT SIDE UP so that bank will finance a refi no PROB.

The real if is what will rates be like in tenyears. But even that can be speculated with more certainty than in the past. Will the volker years come back? Could we see ten plus gain? I don't think so. If anything the lendig rates over the years have become a lot less volatile due to better monetary policy.

But let's be honest even dr the naysayers out there. In the right market, manhattan virtually anywhere, BrooklynQueens near the water, jersey near the water as well, what's your first inclination? Remember these markets are in the beginning of a turn for a year plus now. The rest of the country is near it's bottom. Both will probably flat for awhile. BUT ten years from now?? That's an awfully long time away. My bet is on these markets.

Posted by: k91 at September 9, 2008 2:41 PM in response to Interest Rates Are Awesome

Unless the check has already been cut, meaning you are at the closing table, you can always shop. In fact, what you should do is fill out anlending tree app. It truly is a good way to "shop" for mortgages. You will be hounded, but that is a good thing. Itsnjust like anyhting else.

As far as bankrate goes, know that it documents a national avergae. Your rate still largely depends upon the quality of of your credit and the LTV of the mortgage eg the amount of intial equity you are willing to present at contract.

Posted by: k91 at July 9, 2008 6:08 PM in response to Mortgage Brokers