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RiPPin LiPS

I am a U.S. Army Veteran, so I am using my VA loan. My contract on my house is already in Escrow and tomorrow morning I sign the papers with my mortgage broker. My question is, does anyone know of a reasonably priced inspector ? The VA automatically picks the person to send out for the Appraisal, so I have no say so on that. Also, I need to know who is reasonable as far as getting home owner's insurance through, and the one year warranty. And any and all information that you think would be helpful in this important part of my life would be greatly appreciated. Every dollar that I can save is very helpful.
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Skipper · Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 4:09 pm Post subject:

Since you are a veteran. I would check with USAA
for homeowners ins. I use Allstate and have no issues.
Hope this helps... Adios

Skipper
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fishinglady · Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 4:17 pm Post subject:

I second USAA for all insurance.

As for a home inspector, that is one place that you do NOT want to cut corners/go with the least expensive. Getting a good, thorough home inspection may be the most important thing in the whole process [that and interest rates]. A good inspector may take up to 8 hours, checking every electric outlet, dishwasher runs,AC, all electrical breakers, roof, insulation, plumbing, etc. He will note in writing, with pictures, all deficiencies/problems which you can then use to lower the amount you pay for the house/or demand that seller fix before closing. He could end up saving you thousands of dollars.

Jellyfish · Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 4:39 pm Post subject:

CROAKERSOAKER · Flour Bluffian in training Joined: 16 Jan 2012 Posts: 491

Look into the company you use for your vehicle insurance. When you bundle you can get some pretty good discounts. I am with Farm Bureau and they are very personable and good rates.

Warranty I have through Republic and even though we have a fairly new home we have definitely been thankful for it. Replaced hot water heater and AC compressor and a few minor things. If you are good at fixing things though I would not recommend it. Statistically they make money off of you.

Only other advice is try and get best finance rate and try and make some extra payments and you will save thousands..

RiPPin LiPS · Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 6:24 pm Post subject:

Thanks everyone so far for the advice, I will definitely take everything yall said into consideration.
_________________
Come out & gig some flounder with Straight to The Point Guide Service!! http://floundergiggin.com/ for more info

"While everyone else is asleep, we're out giggin em DEEP"!!

Big Irv · Pony Mullet Joined: 14 Apr 2006 Posts: 56

USAA is not good for home insurance on the coast at least in my opinion. They were not even close to the ball park on price to insure my house. They do handle everything else for me though, and great to work with otherwise. As far as inspection this is usually done before closing, and different from the appraiser. Dont forget the VA rolls in a 2% funding fee on a VA note as well which is why I only used my VA cert once and went conventional after that.

SharkBait · Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 8:19 pm Post subject:

is this for corpus? i know a inspector in san antonio who would treat you right, (he inspected my house)
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RiPPin LiPS · Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 12:38 pm Post subject:

Yes, it is in Corpus...
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Come out & gig some flounder with Straight to The Point Guide Service!! http://floundergiggin.com/ for more info

"While everyone else is asleep, we're out giggin em DEEP"!!

B-1 83 · Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 12:46 pm Post subject:

ward438 · Horse Mullet Joined: 12 May 2011 Posts: 102

Being a vet myself, I was wondering on how you got the ball rolling for the VA Homeloan. I never received a briefing on obtaining mine. I would like to purchase a home in the Port A area in the next 5 years or so. Oh yeah, congrats on the home.
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Tyler · Site Admin Joined: 06 Mar 2006 Posts: 12865

RiPPin LiPS · Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 2:46 pm Post subject:

Yea, USAA was definitely way higher than anyone else. It turns out that my mortgage broker's sister is already taking care of my home owners insurance. I got it for $120/mth !!! That blew everyone else out of the water... To answer your question about obtaining your VA home loan, you have to start by filing the proper DD form on the internet. Im not sure exactly what the form # is anymore bc I filed for my mine a while back but just never used it until now. But if you have any ?s just feel free to PM me and I will help you out.
_________________
Come out & gig some flounder with Straight to The Point Guide Service!! http://floundergiggin.com/ for more info

"While everyone else is asleep, we're out giggin em DEEP"!!

Drunkswimmer · Flour Bluffian in training Joined: 13 Apr 2010 Posts: 255

Angies list! I have a home here in corpus and one i rent in New Orleans. Its 15 bucks a year and well worth it.. alot of the time you can find well reviewed business that offer big coupons if you mention angies list that covers the annual memebership price. It is also a must have if you want to have some peace of mind ifyou are out of town and need to rapidly find someone trustworthy to do some work.

As for insurance etc.. i have USAA and while they are a bit more expensive i bundle everything with them and don't mind paying a bit extra for the service they provide. If you get other quotes and talk to them they can lower their premiums to be more competitive.

As for the home warranty.. i have found they are total BS. If you are buying a home and they offer one, you should do some reseach and pick a well reviewed company instead of settling for the $500 lowest bidder (if that is even still an option.) So many of those business start up and crash, provide crappy service, require you to pay deductibles.... never ever ever had a good experience trying to cash in on one of those.

As a new home owner, you can write off all the interest you pay on your house (which is typically ALOT the first 10 years). If you use it as a home office, you can claim a portion of your utilities. If you earn income by renting out a room, garage or dock space, you can claim a portion of all of your insurances.

When you get your inspection back, you can request to have some of the items fixed.. but it is usually more beneficial to just get them to drop the price. Also, if you read over their disclosure and they claim they dont know about any major problems (AC/Heating/Mold/Water/Cracked foundation etc.) and you find it on the inspection and they refuse to do anything about it (as i posted above) you can let them know they need to (legally) change their disclosure statment to show that they DO NOW KNOW of major issues otherwise their Waiver of Redibition will be null and and the future buyer could find them liable. This can force their hand if they want to leave the table or get cheap on you... but it is a D i C K move!

Just business!

I used a VA on my first house and went conventional on my second. Work hard to get 20% into the appraised value so you can drop PMI Insurance.. that will save you money and lower your monthly payment.

Also get started on your homestead tax exemption ASAP! We just got ours in the mail the other day and im sure there is a deadline!

EDIT - My wife and father are Real Estate agents and my 2 inlaws (Brother and father) are both Lawyers (prolly a bad move on my part right?). So im not just making this stuff up! Let me know if want any other tips.

rodandroll · Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 10:59 pm Post subject: