Home Buying, Home Selling, Real Estate

7 Common Real Estate Document Problems

7 Common Real Estate Document Problems By Karen Winrich @ Financial Literacy (financial-literacy.info) 

Buying a home might seem like a test of your patience  — if you’re tired of touring multiple homes, talking to your agent, and juggling the influx of paperwork, you’re not alone. Buying a home is a challenge. The latter of these elements — paperwork — can be particularly difficult to deal with when you’re trying to read, sign, and organize dozens of documents. Avoid these seven mistakes to simplify home ownership document management.

1. Incorrect Signatures

It’s unfortunately common for documents to cause delays due to an incorrect signature. If you’re rushing through paperwork and overlooking instructions, you may initial where a signature is required or vice versa. Take your time to avoid this mistake and ensure that you’ve signed every document in the homeownership process properly.

2. Wrong Mortgage Terms

Although it’s less common, it’s also possible to discover errors in the terms of your mortgage contract. If you received a specific guaranteed rate, for example — but your documents indicate a different rate — you need to contact your lender before signing. You should also research mortgage options before you sign any contracts. This will help you understand your budget and ensure that your credit score, employment, and income meet a lender’s requirements.

3. Ineffective Organization

Organizing your real estate documents effectively is yet another important part of the home purchase process. If your files are in a state of disarray, you won’t be able to find important information when you need it. Create a system to categorize and organize all of the files you’ve received and submitted.

4. Damage From Physical Storage

Even if you organize and store documents effectively, you shouldn’t dismiss the possibility of damage. Fires, floods, and break-ins are just a few of the potential threats. When you digitize your documents and store them online, however, you can minimize these risks. Use a PDF editor to combine multiple files, move pages, and order documents correctly, as well as quick and easy to delete certain PDF pages.

5. Lacking Legal Description

Sometimes, there are legal errors within documents that can cause a problem. If you’re reading your real estate contract and notice that it lacks a thorough legal description of the property, for example, you need to request a revision to remedy this issue. A legal description should include the physical address of a home as well as a description of its characteristics.

6. Unclear Contingencies

According to experts, some of the most common realty contract contingencies include conditions for financing, home inspections, and insurance. These contingencies outline the conditions which must be met in order for the transaction to close. If the contingency clauses in a document are unclear, though, you may find yourself dealing with delays.

7. Misspelled Names

Finally, misspelled names are a common cause of conflict in the real estate transaction process. Every party involved in a home purchase should thoroughly review its documents to make sure that their names are spelled correctly. Once a home deed is issued, if the name is incorrect, it can be difficult to change it.

Minimize Document-Related Stress by Avoiding Mistakes

If home ownership has you feeling like you’re swimming in an ocean of paperwork, you can take steps to get your files organized. Digitize your documents to organize them more efficiently, and research mortgages before you sign a contract with a lender.

Real Estate (Farm & Ranch Land)

Wood Deck looking Old and Rough

Is that wood deck looking old and rough going into winter? It might be time now to refresh the look of your tired deck by staining or painting.

Staining is by far the easiest method to use. Stains come in clear colors or different types of browns. Clear deck stains leave the wood looking its natural color. In our climate, apply stain every year for the health of the wood.

Semi-solid deck stains show a little of the wood grain, however, has a pigment to it like redwood color. They come in oil-based or water-based. The oil-based treatment penetrates the wood deeper. Once you use an oil-based stain, you need to keep using the same type of stain.

Solid deck stains cover the wood completely so you will not see the wood grain any longer. It will be like paint. Why would you use a solid stain or paint? If your deck is worn and looking rough, it might be a good solution.

You will pick paint over the stain for the endless colors and it will last a little longer. The con is to use paint, you need to use a primer, then paint (2 coats), and lastly apply a sealant on top of the paint when it dries.

Do not use house paint because it will peel and flake quickly. It is not made for high-traffic use.

Garden Pests

Deadly Nightshade

This plant is popping up in gardens and people are wondering if it is a ground cherry.  This weed is called deadly nightshade and has toxic berries. The berries are sweet; however, it does not take many to get sick. The scientific name is Atropa belladonna which was used by English nobles as eye drops to dilate the pupils of the eyes (a custom at that time) and to kill Roman emperors like Claudius and Augustus.

Deadly nightshade fruit borne singly on stems.
Deadly Nightshade

This plant is confused with the black nightshade related to the tomato family (which are also in the nightshade family) are eatable and can become a weed. They need to be cooked to remove the alkaloids. You can find the seed in some garden catalogs.

Black nightshade fruits growing in clusters.
Black Nightshade

The deadly nightshade fruit is produced singly on the stem. The black nightshade fruit is produced in clusters. It is best not to eat either one just to make sure unless you know you planted black nightshade in the area or row.

Ground cherry growing in their husks.
Ground Cherry

Ground cherries look like nightshades, however, have a husk around the fruit. They can be commonly found in seed catalogs and are eaten raw or cooked in many recipes. There are wild ground cherries you may find by creeks or cultivated areas, however, getting them before the opossums, skunks, turkeys, pheasants, or quail will be tricky. All three of these plants can spread like weeds.