I am considering buying a condo in cambridge area, and have just started my e-education :-p Got a few basic technical questions, which I hope that someone would lend a helping hand on:
1. Where could I find a real estate attorney in Boston/Cambridge? And any particular recommendations?
2. How long does it take from the time I contact an inspector to the time that s/he can come? Or put it in another way, how long does the inspection contingency usually allow for here?
3. Is it usually the buy side or the sell side that picks the escrow company? And again, any recommendations on that?
4. If the seller specifies appliances to be included on MLS listing (e.g. dishwasher, fridge), then does the offer still have to write them out in the contingency section?
1. Where could I find a real estate attorney in Boston/Cambridge? And any particular recommendations?
I highly recommend;
Attorney David A. Camiel P.C.
822 Boylston Street
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
O: (617) 244-4155
C: (508) 726-5457
We’ve recommended him to many of our buyers and they’ve all had wonderful results.
2. How long does it take from the time I contact an inspector to the time that s/he can come? Or put it in another way, how long does the inspection contingency usually allow for here? Once the offer is accepted you have 7-10 days to have your inspection and submit any requests to the seller to take care of. You can also set up the inspection with a tentative date/time before your offer is accepted if you want to be very proactive. In the spring time inspectors are usually very busy so we have a list of 4-5 people we like to work with so if one is busy we can try the next. We have been able to get inspections for most of our clients within a couple of days of the accepted offer.
3. Is it usually the buy side or the sell side that picks the escrow company? And again, any recommendations on that?
In MA there is no escrow company involved in the transaction. Usually the listing agent holds the deposits in an escrow account until closing.
4. If the seller specifies appliances to be included on MLS listing (e.g. dishwasher, fridge), then does the offer still have to write them out in the contingency section?
We usually do write into the offer…all appliances to stay including refrigerator and washer/dryer If there are any named exclusions they would be included in the offer and certainly in the Purchase and Sales agreement.
Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any further questions.
Regards,
Hannah Driscoll, Redfin Direct Agent Hannah.driscoll@redfin.com cell: 617.686.8104
Thanks a lot for your detailed reply, which is very helpful :-) Just got another basic question: is home owner association fee by any chance tax deductible?
