Are HOA Management Companies Simply About The Money?

By Tom Branch, on January 31st, 2013

Greedy Business PersonI’ve been working with a seller for several months. She is battling Stage IV cancer and has moved to another city for treatment.  We listed her local home and quickly had a contract on it.

As part of the sales process, an HOA Resale Certificate had to be ordered from the HOA via the management company hired by the HOA to manage their day-to-day operations. Their “processing fee” for producing this document was $325.

This sale took a turn for the worse when the lender denied the buyer’s mortgage. This was not the lender’s fault but rather the fault of the buyer who refused to cooperate and provide documents required by the lender. Either way, we had to go back on the market.

We got the property under contract again and the sale is set for February 8th.

Yesterday I receive notice that the management company is turning my seller’s account over to collections on February 1st for non-payment of the processing fee.

I emailed the management company explaining the situation and received a curt response with the text of their agreement. Basically, the fee is due within 30 days of the sale or within 90 days of the request.

I understand the fine print but the seller is not in the area and battling cancer so I sent them back a note asking for an exception to their policy and letting them know that I would personally be responsible for the payment if the sale did not close on February 8th and the seller did not pay them.

This time a member of management responded with another curt response

“This notice was sent as a courtesy since it has been over 90 days, it has been almost 120 days we can only hold the order until February 1st after this day the account is no longer with us and it will be handled by NECS, the collection agency. As stated on our agreement on line, the requesting party is responsible to ensure payment is received within 90 days even is contract is terminated.”

I went ahead and paid the processing fee for my seller. I simply cannot allow this to go to collection and have an impact on a closing set for next week. The seller is under enough stress and does not need this over $325.

Legally the management company is within their rights to enforce the terms for receipt of their processing fee. Ethically, I find it hard to believe that the HOA and their management company would not be willing to work with a homeowner who pays her dues and is fighting for her life.

Are HOA Management Companies Simply About The Money?

Tom Branch, Broker, CDPE, SFR

Photo Licensed from iStockPhoto

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Grand Opening – Quaker Steak and Lube – Plano TX

By Tom Branch, on January 23rd, 2013

Quaker Steak and Lube, Plano TXGina and I attended a VIP Party and Ribbon Cutting for Quaker Steak and Lube last night. Located on the southeast corner of Parkwood and SH121, Quaker Steak and Lube is a unique sports bar.

They offer a LubeStation with over 20 different flavors of wings ranging from Ranch to Triple Atomic. I tried several different flavors and heat levels. Note to self…avoid the “insane” ones in the future!

Along with a full-service bar, they have a huge menu with salads, wings, sandwiches, hamburgers, appetizers, as well as steak and seafood.

If you’re looking for something new and different, stop in and give Quaker Steak and Lube a try.

Tom and Gina Signatures

Photo: Copyright 2013 – Tom Branch

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Is This A Good Time to List My North Texas Home?

By Tom Branch, on January 22nd, 2013

Sold Sign in Neighborhood

Is this a good time to sell our home? This is a question we get quite often. Local data have indicated a Sellers Market since January 2012.

I just received the results of survey conducted by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) that shows that the trend is actually nationwide.

According to the NAR report, “Demand continued to expand faster than supply. The Buyer Traffic Index rose to 56 from 36 in the same period last year, while the Seller Traffic Index barely moved, ending at 38 from 37 last year. REALTORS® reported numerous cases of multibidding resulting in “properties selling above the list/asking price” or “distressed sales selling close to market price.”

NAR Buyer and Seller Trends

In our local market, 2012 was a great year for sellers. Home sales outpaced home listings by almost 10 to 1 and we don’t see that letting up in 2013. We have many sellers waiting for the “spring sales season” to list their homes.

If you want to get your home sold, get on the market as early as possible to take advantage of the lack of inventory!

Click here for more information on selling your North Texas home.

Click here to request a Market Analysis of your North Texas home.

Contact us at 214-227-6626 if you have any questions.

Tom and Gina Signatures

Graph: Copyright 2013 National Association of REALTORs® | Base Photo: Licensed from Buffini and Company

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Plano Texas – The Best Run City in America

By Tom Branch, on January 17th, 2013

Plano Texas Best Run City In America

Plano Texas was recently named “The Best Run City in America” by 24/7 Wall Street.

24/7 Wall St. has completed its second annual ranking of the 100 largest cities  in the U.S., based on local economies, fiscal management, and quality of life measures.  To evaluate how well a city is managed over the long-term, we looked at factors  like the city’s credit rating, poverty, education, crime, unemployment, and  regional GDP. The best-run city this year is Plano, Texas.

Plano was credited with the 2nd lowest crime rate and the 13th lowest unemployment rate among the 100 largest cities in the nation. 24/7 Wall Street also noted that 14% of Plano residents earn more than $200k per year while “a mere” 1.9 percent earn less than $10k per year. Plano, Texas is a great place to live and work!

Click here to see all homes for sale in Plano, Texas.

Contact us at 214-227-6626 if you have questions about Plano Texas real estate.

Tom and Gina Signatures

Source: http://247wallst.com/2013/01/15/the-best-and-worst-run-cities-in-america/

Photo: Licensed from Unique Exposure Photography

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Waterfront Homes in North Texas

By Tom Branch, on January 17th, 2013

Waterfront Homes in Noert Texas

“You know, we would really like to find a home on water.”

We hear these words quite often as people move into the north Dallas area. While there are many homes on water, the prices are considerably higher.

Why? Water is scarce in Texas.

Many of our lakes were built by the Army Corps of Engineers and while these lakes are available for recreational use, the Corps owns much of the land adjacent to the lakes and they do not allow homes on the water. In those places where they do allow access, land prices are quite high driving up the price of waterfront homes.

Many Waterfront homes in the urban and suburban areas are built on smaller, private lakes or running creeks. Most of the lakes are too small to allow docks or motorized watercraft.

If you’re willing to live in the more rural areas, lake homes and lots can be found at affordable prices.

Click here to view all waterfront homes for sale in the Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) area.

Click here to view all waterfront homes for sale in north Texas.

Contact us at 214-227-6626 if you have any questions about lake-front or other homes in the north Dallas suburbs.

Tom and Gina Signatures

Photo: Copyright 2011 – Imaged2Sell

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Aspens in Velvet

By Tom Branch, on January 16th, 2013

aspens-in-velvet

“Aspens in Velvet”

The snow that accumulated on the Aspen trees reminded me of the velvet on deer antlers.

Photographed on January 12, 2013 at the Steamboat Springs Ski Resort using a Nikon S9100 at f8.8. Post-shoot processing in Adobe Lightroom.

Copyright 2013 – Tom Branch

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