Can Civil Judgements Affect You Selling A Home In Charlotte, NC?

Civil judgments are judgments against you the person. In some states, North Carolina being one of them, civil judgments not only affect your credit but impact your ability to sell a home. In North Carolina a civil judgement against you as a person automatically ties in to any property you own. So, if you are going to sell a home and have civil judgement against you on your credit report you will need to ensure you have enough proceeds from the closing to pay them off or satisfy them prior to the closing. I was educated on this situation a few days ago. A client has a home for sale. He has a secured lien on the house (his mortgage). There are no other liens on the house.... We agree to a sale price on the house. the buyer's attorney runs a title search and finds the mortgage listed. In addition finds an OLD civil judgment against the client that has been accruing interest. The net proceeds from the transaction are insufficient to cover the difference owed on the civil judgment. We are unable to close on the house unless the seller comes to the closing table with the difference in money to satisfy it. The irony of this is that the civil judgement against the seller is NOT attached to the house. So there is no lien form it on the house. But in North Carolina it does not matter. It is to the person on the house and all judgments in your name must be satisfied in order to sell the house. I have always asked if there were any liens on the house outside of the mortgage. A question all sellers usually know the answer to. But I have never asked about civil judgments against them. I guess the old adage that you learn something new everyday is true......I just learned something new..... Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com

Why You need A Title Search Prior to Listing A Home As A Short Sale

As short sales have become more predominant in the housing market in Charlotte, NC.; there are steps that you as a consumer can take to ensure that the transaction moves smoothly. One such thing is to have a title search done on your property prior to putting it on the market. or at the very least make sure the Listing agent insists on having one done on the house prior to selling the house. A title search is by definition just that. An attorney will perform a search of the title of the house (or deeds of trust) and ensure that first the home was conveyed properly through the channels on prior sales up to 30 years. In addition they check to see who has a secured interest on that property right now. Most homeowners are aware of their mortgage being a secured interest on the property. In addition if you have a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit; that will be attached as a secured interest on the home. What homeowners are unaware of is that unsecured debtors can place a lien on a house. Some of the most common ones are HOA (Homeowners Associations). If a family is doing a short sale because they cannot afford the house anymore; there is a good chance that they are not going to pay the HOA dues. To protect their interest they will file a lien against the property for back dues. Another one is a judgment against you as a person. In North Carolina a civil judgment against you as a person would have to be satisfied in order for clear title to a house to be conveyed. Most civil judgments are credit cards. it is uncommon for credit cards to do this but it does happen. And when it does and no one knows about ti until the closing attorney does a title search it can cause a whole transaction to blow up. Having a title search done upfront also helps eliminate any questions and helps the attorney prepare the closing statement letting everyone know how the money is going to be divided...A bank/lender may agree to a certain dollar amount and then find out there is another lien on the house that has to be satisfied. Now, they are getting less and you have to renegotiate the whole transaction all over again. A title search is invaluable for any short sale and not doing one upfront can be disastrous to a transaction. Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com

New listing: 9801 Bella Marche Drive Charlotte, NC. 28227

This 3 bedroom two and half bath home located at 9801 Bella Marche Drive in Charlotte, NC. 28227 is a handyman dream. Priced at $65,000, this home is in need of some work and repair. Located in the desirable Mcalpine woods subdivision of Charlotte, NC. This home borders very closely to Mint Hill, NC. With over 1500 square feet of living space in this home; it is truly a great value for the money. As you enter the house you are greeted by the two story foyer; and open up to a large open living room with a wood burning fireplace centered in the room. Off the living room is the eat in dining area that is open to the living room and adjacent to the kitchen. The kitchen offers a lot of cabinet space, pantry and a patio door which takes you out to the large fenced in back yard. In addition off the kitchen area is a large laundry room with access to the one car garage. When you venture upstairs you are greeted by a large master bedroom that boasts a cathedral ceiling and two large windows facing the front of the house bringing in a lot of natural light into the room. there is also a large walk in closet and a private master bathroom. Down the hall on the opposite side of the master bedroom are the two spare bedrooms. Both are very good sized and have ample closet space. Separating the bedrooms from the master is the second full bathroom located upstairs. The feature of the house that sells the home is the yard. It is a completely fenced in rear yard that has both a patio and deck on the back. The grounds have mature landscaping which adds to the character of the house. Being located on a cul de sac road there is no drive through traffic and you can see kids outside riding bikes, and playing ball... A great neighborhood to raise a family with some good schools to boot. The house is currently slated for J.H. Gunn elementary school, Albemarle middle school and independence High School. Come see why a lot of families love calling Mcalpine woods subdivision home.

What to look For If Buying A Vacant Charlotte, NC. Home

As we move into 2012 I started thinking of the cold weather. In fact, this morning they were talking about freezing temperatures as I was driving the kids to school. it made me think of vacant homes I have been looking at with clients. Everyone knows that the bank owned homes are vacant...They have been probably even before the bank got them (not always). The bank goes into these homes and secures them and winterizes them. This is to protect their investment in the home. When you view a bank owned home you will see orange stickers on the faucets and the various tubs and showers telling you not to turn the water on the house has been winterized. It gives a little peace of mind knowing the bank has sent a professional company in to secure and properly winterize a home. But, what if the vacant house that you are looking at is not a bank owned one? Is the water and power still on? Or if they have been turned off, were the lines properly drained and the house properly winterized? These things can make a difference in whether that house is going to cost you an additional sum of unexpected money. Pipes freeze all the time in the winter time when there is no heat on....But not all pipes freezing break and when they do break the expense can be minimal or expensive depending on where the pipe is located. When I visit a vacant home (that is not bank owned) I turn the first faucet I see on to see if there is water running or not. Chances are if the water is on the heat is on and the house will not suffer any damage from pipes freezing. But what if the water is off? If my clients have an interest in the home I check with the listing agent to see if they know how long the water has been off and whether the house has been winterized or not. If not I caution my buyers to the potential of broken pipes and make sure that if they pursue this house that they have an inspection to check the pipes.... Even if the house has been winterized...on the orange stickers they put the date they did it. You want to make sure it was done before the cold weather came in. Because if it was not they may have a broken pipe and are preventing further unknown damage to the pipes. I ran into this experience recently where a home had been vacant for over a year and the homeowner did not winterize the house but the bank did when it got it...however; in the intern the pipes froze and a pipe under the slab of the house cracked....The problem was you would never know until you ran the water for a few days and saw the ground get wet when there was no rain. So, looking at vacant homes check dates on orange stickers for when they did winterize the house and have your Realtor check with the listing agent on ones that you are unsure about....it could save you thousands of dollars..... Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com