RP from home and garden: selling our house/ FHA q.

[SusanBAnthony]

Our house has been on the market for 5 months now, we have steadily dropped the price, and cannot go any lower.

It went under contract a month ago, and they backed out after the inspection for stupid crap (cracks in the driveway... Hello, didn't you notice that before you made an offer? Their "inspector" was actually a friend of theirs who was in construction. Whatever.)

So we put it back in the market, and also put it for rent, as we are in the red every month paying the mortgage and rent in our new town. It is listed for rent about 200$ more than the mortgage payment including taxes and insurance, but the taxes will go up since now we won't have the homestead exemption. We have had interest in the house for renting- one person is filling out the application so far, and apparently it will get busier as we get closer to the first of the month.

We got an offer today for 187k. House is listed at 199. Previous contract was for 192. Both offers included us paying 3% CC as well. This new offer is an FHA loan, though, and I am concerned that we will end up being asked to pay for a bunch of stuff since I know FHA loans are pickier. With the first contract at 192, we were going to be bringing 7k or more to closing.

So my worst case scenario is we go down the path of selling, agree on a price, aid spect and appraise, and they want a bunch of stuff fixed, and by that time we have missed the window to rent for sept 1 move-in. Now we are looking at oct 1, and the later we wait, the fewer people are going to be moving in freezing cold MN, ESP since the house is commanding higher rent for being in a super good school district- people with kids want to move before school starts the first week of sept.

So. Thoughts? What stuff can we expect FHA to be picky about?

[rubytue]

Here are the FHA appraisal guidelines: www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/handbooks/hsgh/4150.2/41502c3HSGH.pdf I'd look through it and compare it to the previous inspection (as much of the report as you have).

[tripleshot]

We just sold our house in February to an FHA buyer. To be honest, we were worried about the same stuff. However, everything went through without issue. The appraisal and inspection were both flawless and we didn't have to fix anything.

[sjh722]

In my experience, FHA's biggest things are peeling paint (exterior) and safety violations (handrails, gfci outlets in kitchen and bath, etc.). If your roof is really rough (like obviously needs to be replaced, peeling shingles, etc), the appraiser will red-flag it and require it to be replaced.

If your home is well-maintained, they typically go through with no problem. Don't try to out-guess an appraiser and make repairs before they come; often, if they find something small (like a missing gfci or handrail), they won't nitpick for something else.

They can get pickier than a conventional loan, but nothing to be afraid of, IME.

[Deleted]

I bought with an FHA loan. It was just as easy (if not easier, really) than when I refinanced using a conventional. Not one problem. The conventional I didn't think we'd close on time.


ETA: I bought a foreclosure with missing doors, a busted in front door, and holes in the wall. It could not be lived in as is and not one thing was required to be fixed.

[SusanBAnthony]

Ok, this is somewhat reassuring. I know some of the trim paint is peeling a little, and the gutter paint as well. Tere is also a small area of stucco on the back that is missing. I was worried about those things.

We just talked to our REA, and it looks like another offer is coming in as well. Weeeeeeeee!

[lys]

Try to fix the stucco and peeling paint and you will be good to go.
Good luck