Florida Real Estate Blog

It depends on which county you are in. First check with your Real Estate agent they should be able to get you the name and number of the utilities companies. Verify if

You have gas heat or hot water as that can be propane or city gas. Some companies require you to bring your closing document (HUD1 legal size document you signed 8 different copies). You will want this order place 3 to 5 days before closing to assure you are not without utilities over the weekend.

Home Insurance companies make the rules and some of them require a 4 point inspection there is no rhyme or reason for the requirement so please check with your insurance company and just as we do with Lenders we recommend you check with at least three. Make sure you give them the exact coverage you desire so the quotes will be apples to apples.

So back to the 4 point. It is an inspection of 4 different parts of your home to be. They are 1. Electrical, 2. Roof, 3 Plumbing 4 Air Conditioning and Heating Plant. If you know that your insurance company requires it and you negotiate it up front with your home inspector the fee will be less than $100. If you call them the next day to generate the same report the fee jumps up. So check with your insurance company before you order your inspections. Yes that means the first 5 days after a seller has accepted your offer. You must secure your insurance, secure your inspections(all of them) secure your loan application (make sure they have all the documents they need). Yep a very busy 5 days but it will be worth it.

Surveys identify your property corners and confirms the legal description of your land. If you will add any structures to your home you will need an official survey(not a copy). It will be provided to your County building division for a building permit it may also be needed with your Home Owners association. Yes this will be needed even if you just want to place a shed or a fence in your back yard.

It will also save you major headaches if there is a fence currently around your home. You will want to know who owns what part of the fence ( it will help clarify when it is time to replace the fence). We suggest you take digital photos of each corner with the flag in place. The flag identifies where the Rebarb is buried. That is your actual corner, usually about 3 to 6” below ground level. So the photo will remind you where to start digging.

So the Title Company or the Lawyer handling your closing will be asking you if you want a survey done. Normally you have no choice your lender will require it. If they do not (check with them first) we still recommend you do it. It will also identify if you are in a Flood Zone or not.

Yes it is a home but the state does not treat it as such. When you buy one you get a Title (like when you purchased a car). If you have a double wide which many are, you will get two titles and if you own the land then you will get a deed for that. You will also need to know the VIN number (vehicle identification number) as your insurer will want that and the name of the manufacturer. If you can find out when the home was moved to this location. It can save you on the depth of inspections you will need to have done. Florida has a Statue for the tying down of these homes it is 320.8325 and the installation standards are on the SunBiz.org site it is 15C-1.0104.

Lenders are very tough to come by on older Manufactured Homes so be prepared to go all cash. Insurance is also a chore. Currently hear in July 2010 Citizens and AARP are the only two companies writing insurance on these homes.

Inspections are treated differently. Only Companies that Install them can inspect them so your normal home inspector is not going to work. The good news is the state has a list of all the Licensed Installers at their site. Just Google “Florida Mobile Home Installers”

Here is why, we just closed 3 homes this past week and in reviewing the closing documents (we get to see them at the closing table or just before) it reminded me why I always harp that buyers must get a second opinion and recommend at least 3 opinions.

Of those 3 loans we just closed buyer number 1 did shop his loan and paid $750 or 0.59% of the loan amount. Buyer 2 did also and paid $1,560 which was 1% of the loan amount. While buyer 3 had a friend recommend person and paid $3,187 or 1.59% . Please shop

your loan, buyer 3 over paid by $2,437. Another thing to stay away from is buying down your rate. It is strictly a way for them to increase their commissions.

I see this happen far too much yet at times I feel like a buyer will think I am steering them to some loan officer. That is not my intent as we have at least 5 companies on our web site. One thing I can guarantee you. Buyer 3’s Loan provider will not be there.