Think Twice Before Cleaning A Neighboring Yard - A Good Dead Could Lead To Jail Time

A Bay City, Michigan commissioner who says he was trying to clean up the yard of a blighted home now is facing a

misdemeanor charge.

Reports are that Chad Sibley was arraigned this month on larceny of $200 or less, which is punishable by up to 93 days in jail and a fine of $500 or three times the value of the property.

Police reports say Jeana L. Wolcott told officers in April she recently lost ownership of her home due to unpaid property taxes and said she had until July to get out. She told police that a lawn mower and grill were missing from her backyard.

Sibley told police he took the grill and broken mower to the curb. Trash pickers apparently took them away.

"I have been cleaning up the backyard of that house," he said, according to the report. "The house is a blighted property. I haven't seen anyone at that house in months. Once the house was foreclosed, I started to take down the fence and I cut a bunch of the Mulberry trees down. I took a grill and a broken lawn mower to the curb. I know it was broken because it had no connection piece. These things haven't been moved for months.

"I am just trying to clean it up because it looked bad. I am certainly willing to replace anything that they say was taken or damaged. I figured if the new owners wanted the fence back up that I could just pay for a brand new one."

A few simple ways to save thousands on your new home purchase

Mortgage lender Fannie Mae just made a move to make

homeownership more affordable, and it's one of many things that can help you save some cash when buying a home. If you're not taking advantage of every money-saving opportunity out there - and there are a lot of them - you're just leaving money on the table.

1. Take advantage of new programs       

The aforementioned Fannie Mae program "will now pay your closing costs, up to 3% of the price of the home—provided you take the mortgage giant's home-buyer counseling course first," said Realtor.com. called the HomePath Ready Buyer program, it "allows first-time buyers (defined as those who have not owned a home in the past three years) to take an online course, get certified, and become eligible for what could amount to significant savings. For instance, on a $150,000 home, Fannie Mae could contribute up to $4,500 toward your closing costs—which typically range from 2.5% to 3% of a home's price."

2. Ask the seller to pay closing costs

In an appreciating market, you may have a hard time getting the seller to kick in—especially if they have other offers to consider. Make sure you ask your real estate agent for advice (and listen to it). You don't want to offend or amuse the seller into outright rejecting your offer.

3. Negotiate everything

Want the seller's refrigerator or dining room set? Ask for it. Could be that they're trying to get rid of them anyway.

4. That goes for new homes, too

If you're buying a new home, you may not have a ton of negotiating power when it comes to the sales price, but you may when it comes to upgrades. If you love the wood floor or quartz counters in the model, you just may be able to get them thrown in at no extra cost.

5. Use your builder's in-house lender

Another way to potentially save money on a new home is to use the builder's in-house lender, if they have one. A builder can't require you to use their lender, said Bankrate, but they may offer incentives to do so.

6. Fix up your credit

NEA Member Benefits found that poor credit can account for an extra $82,000 in interest on a $250,000 home loan. "The total interest paid for a home with a 630 score—nearly a quarter-million dollars over the lifetime of the loan—is enough money to buy a second house. There is always a cost to credit, and that cost can increase tremendously due to a low credit score."

7. Shop for the best loan

Settling for the first loan that comes your way might not be the best bet. Different lenders offer different rates. Shop around to see what your best options are.

8. Get a co-signer

If you're having trouble qualifying for a home at a low enough interest rate, a cosigner can help. "Part of that person's income can be considered toward your loan amount regardless of whether the person will actually be living with you or helping you pay the bill," said Investopedia.

9. Put 20 percent down

Twenty percent is the magic number when it comes to whether or not you have to pay Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI). PMI can add hundreds of dollars to your monthly payment, and can't be removed until sufficient equity in your home has been realized. If you can swing 20 percent, it will save you money. If you can't, try asking a family member for a gift or get down payment assistance, said Chase.

10. Buy a fixer-upper

A lesser-known FHA loan may present a great opportunity for those who are having a hard time finding an affordable home in a competitive market and who love a project.

This loan "not only covers the cost of buying the property, but also for remodeling expenses and closing costs allowed by the terms of your FHA home loan," said the FHA. "The best part of these ‘fixer upper' loans? The approved FHA loan amount also includes a percentage of the total remodeling costs (as spelled out in your submitted plan) set aside just in case there is extra work needed."

11. Read the fine print

When you get your good faith estimate from your lender, read everything. There may be some miscellaneous fees that can be negotiated out.

Can You Use Monetary Gifts For Down Payment On A New Home?

In order to get into the housing market, many homebuyers are accepting gifts from family or friends in order to meet down payment requirements by lenders. In fact, as of 2012, one in five Baby Boomers has either gifted, loaned or co-signed a loan to help children or grandchildren buy their first home.

But along with other borrowing restrictions following the housing bust in 2008, lenders cracked down on down payment gifts, too. No longer can a homebuyer "pass the hat" to relatives and friends in order to come up with enough cash to put down on a home, whether it's a 3% minimum required for an FHA government-guaranteed loan or 20% required for a large conventional Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac-bound loan.

Because gifts are a gray area, lenders are requiring more documentation for down payment monies. For example, a parent may provide a few thousand dollars to an adult child to use as a down payment -- but is the money a gift or a loan? Lenders may require borrowers and gift-givers to provide a certified downpayment gift letter or to sign a affidavit.

Such affidavits must include:

• The amount of the gift, accompanied by a corresponding cashier's check

• The name and address of the gift-giver and relationship the gift-giver has to the homebuyer

• The purpose of the gift -- to be used only as a down payment on the subject property, complete with the property's address

• A statement confirming that the gift is not a loan, and does not need to be repaid

Signatures of the borrower and the gift-giver

Because lenders require a paper trail, allowing parents to simply transfer money into the borrower's account to mix with the borrower's funds is discouraged. First, a large deposit raises the borrower's income and alters the bank statements, possibly allowing a borrower to qualify for a home that in reality is too expensive.

Banks also limit the size of gifts in relationship to the total down payment. For example, some loan programs require the borrower to contribute at least 3% to 5% of the down payment if the down payment is less than 20%, while other programs allow the entire down payment to be supplied by a gift.

If you're planning to use a gift as part or all of your down payment, ask your lender how to meet the appropriate requirements.

Read Next : Ten Steps To Take When Buying Your New Home

5 Smells That Could Prevent Your Home From Selling

As you live in your home, you get nose-blind to odors that can hit your buyers on the honker harder than a right cross. We're not talking about forgetting to change the cat box. Some smells are so pervasive that they could signal real trouble to a buyer. And that means no sale for you.

Here are five smells that could turn your home into a stinker.

Stuffiness. To make our homes more energy-efficient, we've caulked, blown insulation, weather-stripped and sealed our way to greener utility bills. But for every action, there's a reaction. The result of making your home airtight is that you lock all odors in.

Homes are more comfortable when they breathe. Open a window and reintroduce yourself to the aromatic delights of fresh-mown grass and flowers and the light undulating touch of natural breezes.

Dusty, musty odors linger in rooms that aren't used much or aren't updated like old tile bathrooms. Sniff out culprits like guest bedspreads, long curtains that are rarely opened, and old carpets that could use a good cleaning.

Pets. Poop and pee are part of the deal when you have pets. From goldfish to iguanas, you have to deal with feeding and cleaning up after pets. When you're selling your home, you have to really keep on top of it.

And if you have pets with fur, you have to groom them. Dogs need As you live in your home, you get nose-blind to odors that can hit your buyers on the honker harder than a right cross. We're not talking about forgetting to change the cat box. Some smells are so pervasive that they could signal real trouble to a buyer. And that means no sale for you.

Here are five smells that could turn your home into a stinker.

Stuffiness. To make our homes more energy-efficient, we've caulked, blown insulation, weather-stripped and sealed our way to greener utility bills. But for every action, there's a reaction. The result of making your home airtight is that you lock all odors in.

Homes are more comfortable when they breathe. Open a window and reintroduce yourself to the aromatic delights of fresh-mown grass and flowers and the light undulating touch of natural breezes.

Dusty, musty odors linger in rooms that aren't used much or aren't updated like old tile bathrooms. Sniff out culprits like guest bedspreads, long curtains that are rarely opened, and old carpets that could use a good cleaning.

Pets. Poop and pee are part of the deal when you have pets. From goldfish to iguanas, you have to deal with feeding and cleaning up after pets. When you're selling your home, you have to really keep on top of it.

And if you have pets with fur, you have to groom them. Dogs need baths, and most need brushing. If you let them get on the furniture, they slobber on their toys, scratch themselves, shed piles of fur, and so on. Febreeze is one idea, but you might have to do a thorough steam cleaning of all fabric surfaces in your home.

Food, smoke and grease odors. If you have a preference for stinky foods like cabbage and fish, you may need to go on a different diet while you're marketing your home. And if you cook a lot, it's a good idea to clean your oven, burners, and any other equipment that may have burned on food or spills. baths, and most need brushing. If you let them get on the furniture, they slobber on their toys, scratch themselves, shed piles of fur, and so on. Febreeze is one idea, but you might have to do a thorough steam cleaning of all fabric surfaces in your home.

Food, smoke and grease odors. If you have a preference for stinky foods like cabbage and fish, you may need to go on a different diet while you're marketing your home. And if you cook a lot, it's a good idea to clean your oven, burners, and any other equipment that may have burned on food or spills.

CREDIT SCORES EXPLAINED

Lenders want to give you a mortgage, but they also want to minimize their own risk. The easiest way to reduse risk is by using your credit scores to make lending decisions.

Credit scores are compiled separately by three consumer reporting agencies -- Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. These credit reporting bureaus calculate scores differently, and base their scores on information that may differ from other bureaus.

Equifax Beacon 5.0 Facta: scores range from 334 to 818.

Experian Fair Isaac V2: scores range from 320 to 844.

Trans Union FICO Risk score Classic 04: scores range from 309 to 839.

Your credit score is a number that reflects the information in your credit report, whether you pay your bills on time, how much you owe creditors, payoffs, and derogatory information such as liens. It also includes inquiries into your accounts from lenders, landlords, and employers.

When you apply for a home loan, your application includes giving your lender permission to "pull your credit" and base the decision to lend to you and the rate of interest on the information contained in your credit scores. The higher the score, the better terms you'll receive from the lender.

Burney Ashley of Guaranteed Rate
Teaching About Credit At A Seminar

Once your credit scores are reviewed by your mortgage lender, you'll receive a computer-generated report of the findings in the mail, but it won't have a copy of your entire credit report. It may include key factors that adversely affected your scores. Some examples might include:

• Too many inquiries in the last 12 months
• Time since most recent account opening is too short
• Proportion of loan balances to loan amounts is too high
• Too many accounts with balances
• Amount owed on revolving accounts is too high
• What if you're declined for the loan, or your lender wants to charge higher interest than you were expecting? Is there anything you can do?

Yes, talk to your lender and ask for help repairing or correcting your scores. For example, you may have innocently done something that resulted in a negative score, such as closing a line of credit. Or, you may not have realized that a late payment would bring your score down as much as it has. The lender will tell you exactly what you need to do.

Under federal law, you have the right to obtain a free copy of your credit report from each of the national consumer credit reporting agencies once a year. There are several sites where you can go to get your free reports includingAnnualCreditReport.com or FreeCreditReport.com.

If you find an error such as derogatory data that doesn't belong to you, or an account that shows the wrong balance, simply show the lender your canceled check, release of lien or other proof that the credit report is wrong.

You'll also have to correct the information yourself separately with each agency, and it may take a few weeks for the agencies to record the updated information.

In the meantime, work with your lender and do what he/she tells you to do to get the best rate, including paying more than the minimums, paying on time, and making sure that your debt to income is well within your ability to repay all your loans.

HOME SELLERS: THE CURSE OF THE FIRST OFFER

Sometimes when everything goes right we have trouble accepting that fact. Perhaps nowhere is this phenomenon more clearly illustrated than in the case where a seller receives a good offer right away.

There are so many stories of sellers who refused to take a good, but not perfect, first offer, and who then waited a long, long time before finally accepting something else at a considerably lower price. And most agents who have been around for a while know to shudder when a good strong offer is made almost at the outset of a listing; for the seller's reservations are almost inevitable. "Did we list it too low?" "If someone will offer this much so soon, maybe we should wait a while and see if we can get more." Etc.

When we read in the news of homes in some areas selling well above list price, and when we've just recently come through a period when multiple-offer situations were commonplace, it is understandable that such thoughts come to mind. Nonetheless, they are generally unfounded, especially if the market is anywhere near "normal", as ours is today.

As an antidote to the ill effects of the "curse of the first offer", a couple of observations might be kept in mind.

First, the fact that an offer is received early in the listing period -- even in the first few days -- doesn't mean that the property has been listed too low.

It is easy to overlook how very efficient the residential real estate marketplace has become. Modern multiple listing systems (MLS) provide agents, and thus their buyer clients, with virtually instant access to information about existing inventory and about what has newly come on the market. In the old, old days a buyer's agent did not become aware of new listings until "the book" (i.e. the compilation of MLS listings) was published. There might have been a lag time of ten days or more from the time the listing was taken.

Today, a good buyer's agent will have electronically entered a "profile" of his client's needs and price range into the system. Then, whenever he logs on to the MLS, he will be notified if a listing has been entered that matches that profile. In a low-inventory market such as we have had recently, buyers' agents will log on a half-dozen times a day, or more, to see if an appropriate new listing has been entered. Moreover, in most systems the buyer's agent is able to place the buyer himself on a similar notification.

The point is that potential buyers learn quickly of the existence of an appropriate new listing. Thus a flurry of activity at the outset of the listing does not necessarily imply a too-low price; rather, it reflects the efficiency of the system.

Secondly, an early first offer does not imply that the seller should hold out for full price.

We all know that there is typically a bit of a dance in the pricing and negotiating for a property. Sellers, with the concurrence of their agents, will usually list their property for an amount that is both higher than what they believe its value to be and higher than what they would be satisfied to receive. Why? Because they know that buyers almost always want and expect to pay less than the listed price

However, when an otherwise acceptable offer comes in near the outset of a listing period, sellers are frequently tempted to hold out for full price, or much closer to it than would normally be expected. Caution should be exercised in this regard.

For one thing, as we have noted, exposure of the property to buyers occurs pretty quickly nowadays, and sellers shouldn't assume that there are going to be more, much less higher, offers as the listing period progresses.

Secondly, there often can be a transactional benefit to "leaving something on the table." A real estate transaction is a process. These days, with inspections and disclosures, there are almost always "second negotiations" during the course of escrow. A buyer who feels ground down in the purchase negotiation may well be more difficult to deal with as other issues arise.

SELLER'S ADVICE: STEPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL HOME SHOWING

Once your home goes on the market, real estate agents may call to show your home anytime, day or evening. Keeping your home "showtime" ready can be challenging, especially if you have children and pets.

What you need to stay organized is a handy checklist so you can be ready to show at any time. When you get the call that buyers are on their way, give everyone in the household a basket and assign them each to a room to pick up clutter quickly. Set a timer and tell everyone to grab up any toys on the floor, clear tabletops and countertops of junk, and quickly Swiffer-sweep the floors. Check for hazards like dog chews on the floor.

Turn on all the lights, and get ready to skedaddle. You have to let buyers have privacy so they can assess your home honestly. Take the kids for an outing. Put pets in daycare, sleep cages or take them with you:

Keep your home show-ready with these nine tips:

Eliminate clutter: Not only is clutter unattractive, it's time-consuming to sort through and expensive for you to move. If you have a lot of stuff, collections, and family mementoes, you would be better off renting a small storage unit for a few months.

Keep, donate, throw away: Go through your belongings and put them into one of these three baskets. You'll receive more in tax benefits for your donations that pennies on the dollar at a garage sale. It's faster, more efficient and you'll help more people.

Remove temptations: Take valuable jewelry and collectibles to a safety deposit box, a safe, or store them in a secure location.

Remove breakables: Figurines, china, crystal and other breakables should be packed and put away in the garage or storage.

Be hospitable: You want your home to look like a home. Stage it to show the possibilities, perhaps set the table, or put a throw on the chair by the fireplace with a bookmarked book on the table.

Have a family plan of action: Sometimes showings aren't convenient. You can always refuse a showing, but do you really want to? If you have a showing with little notice, get the family engaged. Everyone has a basket and picks up glasses, plates, newspapers, or anything left lying about.

Remove prescription medicines: Despite qualifying by the buyer's agent, some buyers have other intentions than buying your home. It's also a good idea to lock your personal papers such as checkbooks away. Do not leave mail out on your desk.

Get in the habit: Wash dishes immediately after meals. Clean off countertops. Make beds in the morning. Keep pet toys and beds washed and smelling fresh.

Clean out the garage and attic: Buyers want to see what kind of storage there is.