You may be paying too much in closing costs for your real estate.

Recently, a client of mine closed a purchase money loan with a big lender, who shall remain nameless but whose initials are Quicken. (oops) Although the client paid the going rate for interest that any other lender would charge, the fees the lender tacked on were way high -- 2% origination fee, processing, underwriting, etc. And then both the title and escrow company loaded on what we call garbage fees. These, too, were higher than what's competitive in the market. If you are buying or selling a home, please ask your Realtor to review the lender estimates and the final estimates before you automatically pay them -- you could save a $1000 or more out-of-pocket closing costs.

The Realtor buys a house: What I re-learned

If you've been reading this blog, you know that my husband and I bought a townhouse in Studio City.  This will likely be the last of the "Realtor buys a place" posts.  I go through all of this all the time with my home buyers and sellers, but somehow, when you do it yourself, it's...different.  Anyway, here's what I re-learned.

1.  No matter how excellent you lender and staff are, the loan paperwork is burdensome.  And some of what lenders ask for? It's unbelievable.  Thank God for the ability to scan.  Here's a picture of all the stuff we have to keep.

2.  Many of the disclosures are redundant, and after you've signed about 100, you tend to take them less seriously.  We signed a disclosure about the Mullholland Scenic Parkway (wha?) three separate times.  The disclosures are worth reading, though.

3. The inspection period is a little nerve-wracking.  Power through it.  With appropriate drugs if necessary.

4.  I still don't know what many of the closing fees are for.  After all these years, I can't get a straight answer from anybody at an escrow company or a title company about what they are, either.  I'm talking about "loan tie-in fees" and "sub-escrow fees" and miscellaneous other fees.  The best answer I got was "Oh, those are for doing all the paperwork." Okay, then what are the fee fees for?  Good news here: there are very few lender junk fees these days.

5. And, at the risk of stating the obvious, moving is hell!

4552 Morse, Studio City: Open Sunday 1-4 - SEE BELOW FOR BUYER INCENTIVES!

4552 Morse Ave. in Studio City will be open on Sunday, Sept. 12, from 1:00 to 4:00 pm! This gorgeous 2 bed, 1 bath traditional is being offered for $659,000. More info and pics can be found on my website at JudyGraff.com. And there's more -- the motivated sellers will consider paying buyer nonrecurring closing costs.  This could result in a cash savings to a buyer at escrow closing of $12,000 to $18,000!