Fort Washington Home Buying Made So Easy, A Cavem....Nah!

Across the country, markets are suffering and Fort Washington is no exception. Seller can't sell their homes in the traditionally manner because home prices have declined so much and buyers are required to put more and more money as a downpayment on homes to get decent financing through the conventional method. One of the ways I have been able to help homeowners and buyers is through lease options.

I have many properties in Fort Washington and throughout Prince Georges County that the Seller wants to sell but do not want to (or can't) do a short sale, so I suggest a lease option. Lease Options are way to buy and sell homes without immediate traditional financing. It is a great way for buyers to get into a home and have some "skin in the game" while they, either, build up their credit and/or save for a downpayment. While advantageous for the buyer, it is equally advantageous for the seller. They get a leg up on the competition buy being able to sell their home quicker and, more than likely, a better price.

Other advantages for the Seller is that it allows the Seller to actually sell the home. This is not a pure rental arrangement. More times than not, Sellers can sell their homes in a soft or down market (like we have now). The best advantage for the Seller when I do Lease options for them is that it allows them to beat their competition of people who are trying to sell their homes the traditional way.

Advantages for the buyer when buying on lease options are that they are not obliged to purchase the home at the end of the "option" period if they decide the home is not the right one for them in the long run. They have built up their credit in a manner which is suitable for purchasing a home with conventional or government financing and they can get into a home right now even if they don't qualify to get the financing.

So how does this all work? Simply put a lease option works where the buyer and seller agree to an option that gives the buyer the right to purchase the home within a set period of time. Now during the "option period", the seller is not allowed to sell the home to another purchaser but at the end of the option period the buyer must, either, buy the home or forfeit the option fee paid to the seller at the time of lease signing.

The million dollar question for us as Real Estate Agents is "How do I get paid doing this?". A very valid question and to put it simply - when the buyer and seller agree on a purchase price and the length of the term, the buyer gives the seller an "Option fee" (similar to a downpayment on a regular purchase). A portion of the option fee is yours. I usually do around 2% of the final sales prices. If an agent brought the buyer for your lease option listing (or vice versa) then that 2% is split between the two of you. Then you collect the rest at the actual time of purchase, whether it be 12 months, 24 months, whenever. Now, when I do lease options for clients, I usually charge a premium on that service. 1. I am not getting full commission right now and 2. It is actually a higher level of service than most agents are giving. So, I usually get 7-8% when the house is actually sold to the lease optionee.

This provides me with a current stream of income and more income in the future. One thing that I was taught is that you have to adapt to market conditions and life, in general. The adapt or die principal. Just ask the short necked giraffe. They said to themselves, "I'm not eating from those tall trees, are you kidding me?" Look what happened to them.

For more information on selling your home through the lease option in Fort Washington, MD in Prince Georges County, reach out to me at my blog at http://www.MoriLangshawSr.com and talk soon.