Buying a Home: The 5 Biggest Mistakes that a Home Buyer Makes

As a Professional Real Estate Inspector I get to see and hear the right and wrong things people do when buying a home. These 5 tips will help you choose the right Real Estate Agent the first time.

Mistake #1: Not using an agent at all or using the Listing Agent as your 'Agent'. Not smart at all. By law, the listing agent is required to keep the Sellers best interest at stake, not yours! Why would anyone enter into a relationship handicapped like this?

I’m not aware of any state that makes a Buyer pay for their Agent. The Buyers agent normally gets paid from a cut of the Listing fees or the commissions are split.

If you choose wisely, you can put a trained real estate professional on your side for free! A true Buyers agent can help you negotiate a contract, fly through the mountain of paperwork, help you find the right home and help you schedule the needed inspections and appointments necessary when you do find your dream home.

Mistake #2: Relying on the Home Inspector your Agent recommends: I’m still amazed at how many people will blindly take the advice and recommendation of their Agent, or of the Listing Agent, when choosing an Inspector.

The agents have a financial stake in seeing the deal go through. Why risk the conflict of interest by solely relying on their choice of Inspectors? With a little research you can find your own home inspector who will have your best interest at stake. Don’t know where to start? The American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) has an easy to use search tool on their web site. You can choose by zip code or by state and city. You can find it here:
http://www.ashi.org

Mistake #3: Putting up “Non-Refundable” earnest money. This is like giving the Sellers a check and saying, “Here, you keep this. Even if we don’t buy your home, you can keep our money”. That’s just plain stupid. If your Agent recommends it, find another agent because they don’t have your best interest at stake.

I’ve seen Sellers request up to a $20,000 non-refundable earnest money check. Luckily my Client had a good agent and she told the Listing Agent “That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. We’ll give you the standard $1000 refundable earnest check. Take it or find another Buyer.” The Seller accepted rather quickly since her home had been sitting on the market for 5 months.

Mistake #4: Falling in love with the home: “Earth to love struck home Buyer, they’re building more homes every day!” The one group of consumers I see getting taken advantage of the most are those that “fall in love” with a home.

They will accept any terms set by a Seller. They will buy the home and tell themselves “It just needs a little work, I can do that myself.” Even though they have never picked up a hammer in their life. They let their “love” cloud their vision and Judgement and end up paying hefty ‘stupid tax’.

Mistake #5: Buying more home than what they can afford. There is a rule of thumb that says you should not buy a home that cost you more per month that 20 to 25% of your take home pay. I rarely see anyone following that rule of thumb today.

What I do see is consumers buying homes that take a large part of their monthly income. This leaves little room in their finances for emergency’s, furniture, vacations, investing, etc. With the relaxed lending requirements, people are buying way more home than what they can realistically afford. If you go down this road, chances are that you’ll grow to hate this home. You should own a home, the home should not own you.

I’m not a real estate agent, broker or attorney, nor am I a financial consultant nor do I claim to be an expert in any of these fields. The above views are my own and have been obtained from experiences in the Home Inspection field. Always consult with your financial planner and/or Real Estate Agent before making any decisions.

The Life Expectancy of Your Home's Fixtures and Fittings

Read on to find out just how long, on average, the fixtures and fittings of your home will last.

Concrete and masonry: 100 years plus

Concrete foundations, including chimneys and fireplaces, should last a lifetime and brick walls have a life span of 100 years or more.

Cabinets: 50 years

Good quality cabinets are built to last a long time but styles go in and out of fashion. Many homeowners replace cabinets after a fraction of their useful life.

Floors: 25 to 100 years

Hardwood is good for 100 years or more, as is stone. Expect 50 years out of vinyl and 25 from linoleum, but you'll probably tire of the pattern long before that.

Roofing: 20 to 50 years

Local weather conditions are critical but, on average, slate, copper and clay/concrete tile roofs last the longest, 50 years or more. Figure wood shake roofs for 30 years, fiber cement shingle 25 and asphalt shingle 20.

Siding and accessories: 20 to 50 years

Brick, stone, engineered wood and fiber cement siding should last a lifetime. Wood shutters should give 20 years of use and copper gutters 50 years and aluminum ones 20.

Countertops: 20 years to forever

Granite could outlast you - by a long shot, absent of a destructive child with a five pound hammer. Cultured marble has a life span of about 20 years.

Decks: Up to 20 years

With wooden decks the key is the weather. In moist climes, decks will rot much quicker than in ones that expose decks only to dry conditions. In ideal weather, figure 20 years. In monsoon conditions, you can't count on much more than half that.

Plumbing fixtures: 15 to 50 years

A kitchen sink has a life of 50 years or more but faucets go bad after about 15. Shower heads should last a lifetime but whirlpool baths, which get widely differing amounts of use, can last 20 to 50 years.

Windows: 15 to 30 years

Think wood, which lasts upwards of 30 years while aluminum windows have a life span of 15 to 20 years.

Gas ranges: 15 years or more

With no motor or many moving parts, gas ranges are the most trouble free of appliances.

Fridges: 13 years

The compressor on fridges work hard and run often. Add complications, such as automatic icemakers and there's more to go wrong. That they last as long as they do is a tribute to their generally high quality.

Electrical: 10 years to a lifetime

You shouldn't have to replace good quality copper wiring but switches and other controls may have to be updated every 10 years or so.

Dishwashers: 9 years

This appliance gets widely varying amounts of use, depending on the household. Big families may have them running a few times a day while a bachelor may keep his sitting empty most of the week.

This survey obviously accounts for wear and tear, as there's no accounting for taste over the years! Original survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders.

Quick Decision Loan - A Hammer to Defeat the Immediate Need of Finance

What is a Quick Decision Loan?

Misfortune never knocks the door. It comes all of a sudden. If we talk in terms of financial urgency, it assumes the most horrific significance. Sometimes we feel the urgent crunch of finance. In cases like accident or medical treatment or admission in colleges, we need money instantly. But due to some unwanted factors we can't use our money immediately. In these kinds of cases quick decision loans can be helpful to a great extent.

In quick decision loan money can be provided to the loan borrower swiftly, in most cases within 24 hours. As this loan deal doesn't take much time and cash can be provided to you through your bank account this deal is making waves in loan market of UK. But one must know all the aspects of this popular loan deal before going for it. Quick decision loan is basically for them who need money urgently but they have possibility to repay it within the agreed time. You can take it if your payday will take coupe of days or your fix deposits will take some weeks to be matured. At this moment borrower takes financial help from this deal and repay it when they get their own money.

How can I get it?

In order to avail quick decision loans you have to be qualified on some basic criteria which are as follows-

a) You must be above 18 years of age.
b) You must be an U.K. citizen.
c) You must have a full time paid job.
d) You have to submit proof of your address.
e) You must have a checking account in a bank.

One amazing feature attached with this deal is that it is also available for people with poor credit history. Just convince your loan lender that you have fix income and you are able to repay it within agreed time frame. Within 24 hour you will get the cash up to £1,500. Quick decision loans are offered for short duration, generally for 1 week to 1 month and carries high interest rate.

Chester - the Hammer of the Welsh

Celts rarely forget, are not quick to forgive. In the early fifteenth century Henry IV waged war on the people of Wales and their king, Owen Glendower. After a campaign that started in 1400 and lasted a dozen years Henry won handily. In victory, vengeance.

Henry vented his rage on the Welsh people with fines and restrictions and imposts that kept them poor and downtrodden for centuries. Mark you, this was only an extension of what Edward I had started at Rhuddlan Castle.

English history books rarely refer to this and, indeed, there is a spectacularly mendacious plaque at Rhuddlan which tells how Edward II brought the Welsh peace and prosperity. Pig's bum, he did.

My father used to speak of Edward II with considerable bitterness and it took me quite a while to realise that the subjugation of the Welsh had not happened in my father's time but in the twelfth century. My father was always pleased that Rhuddlan castle was slighted in 1648. (A lovely word, slighted. It means to bash great holes in castle walls so that they can never be again used for their original purpose. A speciality of Oliver Cromwell.)

Once he had beaten the Welsh Henry IV and his successors kept them caged and supervised from a series of castles many of which had been started by Edward.

One of the key points for the control of the barbaric Welsh tribes was the walled city of Chester which is right on the Welsh border, was called Deva by the Romans and is now one of the most attractive cities in England. Perhaps the most attractive. I am at one with James Boswell who wrote, 'Chester pleases my fancy more than any town I ever saw.'

Until the sixteenth century the good burghers of Chester were encouraged to murder any person of Welsh descent who was found inside the city walls after sunset and were rewarded for the efforts by the sheriff.

The last law allowing the Welsh to be penalised with a smart thumping for being Welsh and being in Chester at night was not repealed until 1958. Note most carefully that date. 1958. Less than 50 years ago. Recent history.

Thus, although I love Chester as a place of serene beauty, I tend to keep my eyes peeled when wandering around after sunset. Perhaps not everyone who lives in Chester has been kept fully informed as to the changes in the law.

The best way to get Chester into perspective is to walk right around the city walls. There is still a lot standing and restoration work continues apace. These walls are Roman with medieval admixtures. Indeed, parts of them might even be older than the Roman occupation.

The Romans enjoyed Chester although it was viewed as a frontier post to protect England against attacks by the ferocious Welsh tribes. For a time it was the headquarters of the Valeria Victrix legion whose proud boast was that it was never beaten in combat. Near Eastgate is the largest Roman amphitheatre in Britain which could hold as many as 8,000 spectators.

The walls cover a distance of just under four kilometres and give you marvellous views of the city and of the surrounding countryside and the threatening hills inhabited by the Welsh barbarians over there on the near horizon.

You also see the meandering river Dee which made Chester an important seaport during sailing ship days and exported cheese, candles and salt. When steam came the ships went to Liverpool.

A Roman engineer laid out the streets of Chester sometime around 79 AD. Chester was important then, has been important ever since. For the land surrounding Chester was rich farming land and the wealth from the land and from the seaport was used in the building of the city.

The most obvious aspect of this wealth are the rows. Great galleried galleons of buildings in magnificent black and white. Some ancient dating back to the 13th century; some Victorian conceits that meld in perfectly.

The cathedral is a wonder of 14th century sandstone. The bells call the people to worship with a peal of Bob Major where the lead bell is driven by a carillon, a system unique, I believe, in the world. William Makepeace Thackeray and his wife are buried there.

From the sacred to the bravely profane. Chester Castle dates from the 13th Century - an original Welsh restraining order - but was extensively modernised by the Victorians so that now only the Agricola Tower is original.

Try if you go to Chester to avoid Saturday when the whole of Cheshire dressed in its best comes to parade the town. A complete people jam. Made worse by the fact that Chester attracts the very best buskers in Britain.

Last time I was there I heard a Peruvian Band playing the Andean flutes and a group of dashing young men in white ties and tails playing 42nd Street con brio. Magic stuff but the crowds make it difficult to even walk from the Eastgate to King Charles' Tower.

Weekdays is the time if you want to walk with a guide. They depart at 10.45 am from the Tourist Information Centre in the Town Hall. Or you can patrol the walls with a Roman legionnaire. My legionnaire had flaming Welsh red hair and an accent which owed more to Wrexham than Rome but let us not be picky.

If, like me, you prefer more solitary pleasures early Sunday is the time. The earlier the better. Then you can wander round and see the wonderful architecture without bouncing off people.

If you lose your way and stop to ask for directions explain carefully that you are Australian. It could be a disaster they thought you were Welsh. Old habits die hard.

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Domestic Consumer Units and Circuit Protection Devices - A Glossary

Consumer Units, Circuit Protection Devices and Accessories - A Glossary

Consumer Unit

A consumer unit is the electrical device used to distribute power throughout a domestic dwelling. Acting as a safety device, protecting against injury through electrical shock, a consumer unit houses protection devices which also protect household appliances from overload.

A consumer unit's first function is the organisation of electrical 'circuits', such that the different ways in which we use electricity throughout the home may be safely and more easily managed. A typical domestic installation, for example will have the following circuits: Ring main for power sockets and items like washing machines and TVs, Lighting, smoke alarms, cooker, shower etc.

Main Switch

This is the 'Double Module' device which sits on the far right hand side of a consumer. It usually has a big red bar switch and acts to isolate the entire board. This means that by manual operation it can cut power to every circuit in the installation. Main Switches are almost always rated at 100 amp, allowing it to isolate an installation which pulls no more than 100 amps in total across all circuits.

MCB

Mini Circuit Breaker. An MCB protects its circuit against overload. When for example a bulb blows on a lighting circuit the MCB cuts the power to the that circuit, thus protecting the other lights. No other circuits on the consumer unit have been affected. An MCB does not protect people against electric shock.

RCD

Residual Current Devices protect multiple circuits against earth leakage. This is a vital function of a consumer unit as it is earth leakage which causes electrical shock. RCDs measure the amount of electricity flowing into the consumer unit against the amount flowing out. When it detects an inbalance between the two it cuts the electricity supply to the bank of circuits it's protecting.

It should be noted that this means that a fault on one circuit will result in a cutting of the power to any other circuit protected by that RCD. For example an RCD may protect the ring main and indoor and outdoor lighting circuits. In this instance a fault on the outdoor lighting circuit will knock out the indoor lighting and all power sockets.

It is for this reason that the 17th Edition Regulations demand 'Division of Circuits' to avoid 'Nuisance Tripping'

RCBO

Residual Current Breaker with Overload (RCBO). This clever device combines the functionality of an MCB and RCD and therefore allows for independent protection on individual circuits against both overload and earth leakage.

Din Rail

The mounting rail upon which are fitted the Main Switch, RCDs, MCBs and RCBOs.

Busbar

The device which connects electrically the Main Switch, RCDs, MCBs and RCBOs.

Neutral Bar

The terminal bar which accepts all the neutral wires from the RCBOs and MCBs.

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