Not in my best interest to buy?
Inman Community brief
By Inman News, Friday, September 12, 2008.Editor's note: The following is a reader comment in response to the Sept. 4 Inman News story, "Realtors not immune to foreclosure."
"I highly doubt that a lot of consumers feel that Realtors are to blame for the present situation in real estate. Real estate has been and will continue to be cyclical. The trick is to be able to find the middle ground between feast or famine.
"The foreclosure crisis hits all nationalities, income levels, educational levels. No one is immune!
"My house is worth less than when I bought it, but what can I do? I will keep plugging away, keep exceeding my clients' expectations, and try to service my clients the best way I can.
"I know many a Realtor who bought too much house without regard to 'later on down the road.'
"I wonder how many agents, Realtors, brokers, etc., have told a client that it was not in their best interest to buy at a certain time? We as brokers, agents and Realtors should have some grasp of our clients' financial situation when they are searching for a home. You may not get THAT deal at THAT time but to be able save a client the emotional, physically draining and financial collapse a foreclosure can cause is huge! CLIENT SERVICE! CLIENT SERVICE! CLIENT SERVICE!"
--Michael Espiritu
Information compiled by Daniel Rothamel, Inman Community manager.
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Submitted by Ki Gray on September 13, 2008 - 8:49pm.
I have told a few clients that they should not buy a house. Often when they were excited to get a loan but we realized it was 10% due to poor credit. The problem is that in general we are not aware of their financial state and probing questions irrate clients. In their view our job is to advise them about real estate not their personal finances.
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Submitted by Kimberly Davis on September 18, 2008 - 11:01am.
I believe it takes working with a good lender who is not going to sell our clients on a bad loan. I've been telling people for years to get fixed rate 15-year loans, and no one wants to do it! People always want the quick fix and low up-front payment. I don't have a problem with a fixed rate 30-year loan, but in line with the original story here, I myself bought too much house back in 2003. Now I have sold it and am purchasing something more affordable. A lender had the audacity to try to push on me a low-downpayment, low-interest 5-year BALLOON note! I couldn't believe it! Just goes to show you that some folks still aren't learning their lessons!