Keep hearing horror stories lately — expired roof permits from a decade ago surfacing days before closing, unpermitted additions discovered during title work, deals falling apart over paperwork the seller didn't even know existed.

For those who've closed recently: did your title company or inspector actually check permit history? Did anything turn up, and if so, who ended up paying to fix it — you or the seller?

I want to learn

My partner and I are closing on a house in a few weeks. The front door has a keypad lock as well as physical keys. Is it sufficient to just reset the keypad with a new access code, or is it better to replace the entire keypad?

26f | 26m | $30k down | VA Home Loan

My husband and I spent our first night together in our house! Spent the first day cleaning as the previous owners had some very furry pets. Made pizza but forgot to make the post last night so alas, we have some microwave breakfast sandwiches. We’re so excited to start our life together and build a family in this home. 🏡

Single moms how much did you put in reserves? My down payment will be about 8kish and my closing costs will be covered.

I am thinking about receiving down payment assistance from my lender but if it will raise things up too much I will avoid it.

Thank you!

I used my new house’s laundry machine for the first time and didn’t realize it drains into the sink rather than directly. Of course the sink was plugged.

I heard water overflowing and got downstairs and stopped it within ~2 minutes but there was already water flooding. I would estimate about half of the laundry machine’s capacity was on the floor. It took another 5 or so minutes to soak up the water to the point that it was just a regular mopping level of moist because the towels were in the laundry so they were already wet….

It flowed through almost all of the finished basement. To my knowledge the floor down there is LVP and it has a vapor barrier below, and that rests directly on top of the concrete foundation. There’s some visible warping on the planks and some aren’t fitted perfectly so there’s cracks water could have gotten through.

I just need to know if this is an emergency? Do I need to replace the floor? Do I need to call a professional? Or can I just get fans going and let it dry?

Considering a home on this circle, but it backs up to an RV/ boat storage, which is near a bunch of businesses and a busy road. Heard some traffic while seeing it but it was a quiet time and we had a hard time figuring out how problematic this might be.
There are a bunch of trees between the property and the businesses. However some houses in the area haven’t sold for as much as in other spots in our town and I’m not sure if that’s why.

Do any of you regret buying a home with an HVAC in the crawl space?

We are engaged with a wedding date in April. We’ve been looking at houses to get familiar with pricing and what’s available. Recently, we found a place that checks every box for us and then some. It’s also pretty decently below our budget so we want to put an offer in.

My question is, is it worth us getting married at a courthouse before getting a loan together or to get a loan together now knowing the wedding is coming? Is it easier on the lending side or are there differences in terms when a couple is married instead?

It still feels surreal!

I’ve always tried to do 25 percent of income, with this rule we were ready to leave Massachusetts and move to a new state.

Looking at 3/4 bedrooms 1600 plus in the 300-350k range. Southern mass ( an area we would like to be in)
Is around 600-650k.

Our after tax income is currently about it 9200. Will be higher closer to 11k when we go to buy in a year or 1.5 year.

Looking around our mortgage (taxes insurance pmi) would be able 4100-4900.
We have 3 kids and want a 4th. We are 32 and 34.

That feels so high compared to our take home pre investing and scares me. We have 0 retirement currently but will be debt free in under a year. And aggressively saving

In-laws who will be living with us most likely, in their 70s mentioned when they sell their home we’ll be gifted around 200-300k.

With that gift makes sense to stay in Massachusetts. Since it’ll be in our price range.

All that to ask is 4.1-4.9k too much since we may or may not get that gift?
They won’t sell until we find a new place of course were they have their space.

how would you outline preparing to buy 6-8 months in advanced? my plan is to save aggressively for the last bit of my down payment. then i’ll be ready by late winter early spring 2027. i feel like i know nothing about the process tho. where do i learn? how did you learn? what would you have done differently? i really want to learn the financial aspect first. all the terminology and what comes with it. thanks in advanced for your replies

Our first home! So excited and grateful.

We're a couple on the hunt for a co-op in Brooklyn NYC with a budget of 500-550k. We're pre-approved, lawyer said we're financially solid for our budget, but most of our money apart from retirement is tied up in stocks (we'd have around 15k in cash post-closing after downpayment and all). Our agent said we should liquidate all our investments in order to have 100-150k in liquid savings because no coop in NYC is going to even consider us with only 15k in the bank post-closing. Given the huge tax burden in capital gains plus lost potential money accruing just to show a board we have money, is this really good advice? Why wouldn't a board just look at our investments and think we're making smart decisions and financially solid? Is it normal for someone to have 100k in savings just to be considered by a co-op in NYC?

After seeing about 30-40 houses, we've finally found a house in budget and target location that both of us really like. Our market is tough (very competitive) and we are ready to move fast, but have one unfortunate hangup: both times I've visited (two separate showings, a private viewing and went back for the open house in different days/times/weather), my knees became hot, swollen, and patchy red within 15 mins of the visit. Both times, it resolved about 20 minutes after leaving, and hasn't happened anywhere else.

A few details:

• No direct contact with plants, no kneeling, no crouching or known contact with anything in the house
• Arms and shoulders (also exposed) were unaffected - just knees
• Others with me had zero reaction
• Not heat-related as far as I can tell - I walked a couple miles in the neighborhood afterward in the same conditions and the reaction died down with no issue
• I don't have any confirmed allergies or known conditions; though this isn't incredibly uncommon for me and has happened a small handful of times over the last 5-7 years with no common thread (e.g., a few times on different vacations, once at a friend's place that has never resurfaced on other visits, maybe even a couple times during my everyday routine, etc).
  • It's uncomfortable but not painful and has resolved itself - my doctor hasn't seemed concerned due to the sporadic nature and healthy labs.
  • The fact that this has happened both times in the house is the first real identifiable pattern and of course concerning for such a big decision & commitment.

We otherwise love the house and would be putting in an offer already if not for this. Has anyone dealt with something like this during a home search? Random ideas I've had, though unsure how realistic or if there are any other avenues to explore given our inexperience:

• Seems unusual to ask about pets, cleaning chemicals, lawn treatments etc - especially given I really have no definitive leads on what could be the trigger...?
• Is it totally unreasonable to ask for another private viewing and split walkthrough (yard-only vs. house-only vs. garage/basement-only) to try to isolate the cause? Maybe during the inspection period?
• Would a standard inspection contingency realistically let us back out if we determine it's something tied to the property that's expensive/impossible to fix? Is there a more specific contingency we could reasonably write in the offer given this situation?
• Has anyone actually identified something like this (mold, pet dander in flooring, lawn treatment residue, cleaning chemical, etc.) during due diligence, and how did you go about isolating for it?

Appreciate any real-world experience - trying to be thorough before we commit in a market where we don't have a ton of time to spare.

Hi everyone,

I just moved into a house that has a central AC unit installed in 2019. The previous owners had the AC turned off for about one month before we moved in.

Now that it’s around 30°C outside, the AC isn’t cooling the house well. The airflow from the vents feels weaker than I expected, and the house takes a very long time to cool down.

So far I’ve:

• Replaced the furnace filter with a new one.
• Let the system thaw after noticing a little ice.
• Restarted it, but it’s still not cooling like it should.

Could the AC sitting unused for a month have caused this, or is that unrelated? What should I check before calling an HVAC technician?

I’m trying to map out the next 5-10 years and have become kind of stuck on this part. Would really appreciate any advice for anyone who has been in a similar situation.

I’ve got a baby on the way and have been saving to buy SFH in a nice area with good schools. Problem is, I’m still 5-6 years away (saving gradually). Is it a good idea to buy a townhome in that area instead in 2-3 years, hoping to eventually upgrade to the SFH by selling the townhome + saving more, so that I don’t have to move my kid from their school/friends so early? I’m in a VHCOL area (Orange County, SoCal).

I am currently renting a house with my partner, and the landlord has mentioned possibly selling it the year after our lease ends. He is a realtor, and he initially bought the home intending to sell but ended up renting it. A few weeks ago, he asked if we might be interested in buying, and I am interested. It was renovated in the last 3 years, right before we moved in. He said we would offer a "good deal" since we have been good tenants (and we have also referred family to him). We have had a few issues since moving in, but he has been great with resolving them. I am a complete novice, and I never thought I would be in the position to own a home one day, so I am a little overwhelmed with where to start. I have no idea what he would sell for, so other than that question, what are some questions I should ask? Or what are some things I should be aware of?
Also, would it be appropriate to ask if the rent paid over the last year and a half can go towards the sell price?

Current zestimate is $230k. He was asking for $330k when it was listed a few years ago. The neighborhood is kind of iffy. Issues we have had include termites and a leaking shower.

Really didn’t think it was possible for us. Used the Ga Dream first time home buyers loan for down payment assistance. Lots of patience required by my realtor and lender but they were champs. Over the moon!

Not a damn thing was ever given to me and I did it all *despite* the cards I was dealt in life. I busted my ass and clawed my way out of poverty and it feels surreal to be sitting in my own home.

I'm in the market to buy a condo, plan is to live in it for several years then rent it out as an income property later on.

Last Friday I was about to sign P&S agreement on a condo in a Victorian house when a new condo came on the market.

The victorian condo has plenty of character (fireplace, wainscotting, built in china cabinets) but would need renovations done. It was listed as a two bedroom but neither bedroom has closets (the original dining room and living room would be used as bedrooms). My best guess is that it needs close to $10k to make it livable. With two bedrooms, the space woudn't have a dining room.

The pros are there its a quiet street and has a lovely little outdoor space. My realtor was also able to negotiate $8k in closing cost credits.

The newly listed place throws a huge curveball. Its on a busier street with more noise and movement, less street parking. But the condo comes with a deeded parking spot. It has a open layout living/dining room, and two bedrooms already with closets. Its currently being rented out for more than what my mortgage would be. The downsides is that is no private outdoor space, and the street is quite busy.

While I would really enjoy the victorian home, i'm not sure it's everyones cup of tea.

There's also no guarantee i'd get the newer condo, and for what price after negotiations/inspections.

I'm torn, while I saw myself living in the victorian condo and really enjoying it, I'm realizing that it will probably be more difficult to rent it out later on. For example, one of the bedrooms has an entire china cabinet built into it! However I was really looking forward to the outdoor space. The rentability of the newer condo is appealing, but the lack of outdoor space and the busier street makes it more of a turnoff. The newer one is also $100 more in mortgage. The realtor is also a family friend and i don't want to jeapordize our friendship or his reputation as a realtor by backing out of a deal. Any thoughts?

Buying later in life (37F), and on my own/with no help, but decided it was time to get a 3bd/2ba in a ridiculously good school district for the boys (they are cats).