LJ;561789 wrote:I just find it funny that he slams EVERYONE. Just letting him know that his words don't go unnoticed

And trust me, it doesn't get me anything more than free tickets to the UA prom at the LC

LJ;561811 wrote:It's not up to the seller to make that decision, that is up to the buyer.

thedynasty1998;561816 wrote:I'm just bustin your balls. Steel Valley likes to preach to everyone and it's not surprising what his stance would be on new home financing. Sure he might think it's a scam, but for the people buying them, they are a good deal.

Steel Valley Football;561827 wrote:Do you know how it works or are you just taking sides? Don't talk shit when you can't back it up. Meaning, explain why the property price is inflated with rate buy-downs or say you don't know.

thedynasty1998;561838 wrote:I don't know what you are asking. But a guy came on here asking about his lease, and you want to get all fired up about new build financing. If you are so passionate about it, how about teaching a class or trying to inform the public?

Steel Valley Football;561842 wrote:I said they weren't a good company. LJ said they were. This is the conversation that followed. I'm not trying to be a dick with you, but you are talking shit and you aren't even informed about the topic.

thedynasty1998;561853 wrote:I understand the conversation and have seen other converstations where you talk real estate. I understand you are a professional in the field and are maybe the most educated person regarding real estate on this forum.

However, it's not a secret what type of financing builders offer and it hasn't been deemed illegal. So, although you might not like it, and I certainly wouldn't buy into a builders financing, many do and many are very happy with it.

LJ;561750 wrote:Also, Lifestyle is a good company, the Deasentis (I always spell their name wrong) family is a good family, known them for years. First place I bought was a Lifestyle condo, you will like living in one of their communities

Cat Food Flambe';561904 wrote:Would this be the same DeSantis family whose patriarch recently did some serious federal prison time for various financial misbehaviors?

Steel Valley Football;561839 wrote:Here's another "legal scam":

The Lakes at Ballantrae condos offer condos for $300,000 (example price) and then cut you a check $25,000 at closing. The recorded price with the auditor is $300,000.

How much is that property worth the day after you buy it?

thedynasty1998;562231 wrote:The property is worth $300,000 because that's what the listed price was. I got a check from the government for $8,000 after I bought my house this year, I know it's not the same, but it is similar in certain ways. I'm sure the $25k was more for "home furnishings" than looked at as a buy down, but we all know there isn't a difference.

I'm really not here to argue against you, because I agree with you for the most part. But those practices have not been deemed illegal, so it is what it is.

Steel Valley Football;562275 wrote:In order to sell your property for $300,000 the day after you bought it, you would have to give the buyer a $25,000 check at closing. This is because of the market law of substitution. There are similar and substitutable properties on the market competing with yours. In this case EXACTLY similar properties not yet sold by the builder for $300,000 that include a $25,000 refund.

In other words, nobody will pay $300,000 for a USED condo when they can buy the exact same property NEW right next door for $300,000 and then be issued a $25,000 check at closing, for an out of pocket cost of $275,000.

Your condo is worth $275,000.

thedynasty1998;562278 wrote:I understand that. So what is your point? That it's illegal? It's not. That it's unethical? I would say it is perfectly ethical. That builders shouldn't do it? They should, in order to push sales.

It's obviously an advantage that a builder can offer.

queencitybuckeye;562289 wrote: It would be interesting if your correspondent knows the actual business reason for doing it this way.

thedynasty1998;562300 wrote:What do you mean by this?

Steel Valley Football;562359 wrote:I have no idea about the builders' business plan, but I assume it would be to incur additional expenses. Not only can they write off the condo expense, but also the $25K.

Legal or not; legit business plan or not, the end result is scamming the buyer who thinks their condo is magically worth $300,000 after paying $275,000. They are then shocked when they can't sell the property. It's essentially worth less than $275,000 because it's used. The new ones can be bought for $275,000 (after the refund) so the used ones are actualy discounted even further.

The most important aspect of this practice, when it's done widespread by all builders over many years, is that it creates an inflated market and the result, when coupled with other factors, is an eventual crash in housing prices. We've had that happen lately, right?

thedynasty1998;562369 wrote:Is this not capitalism? If there wasn't a market, then the homebuilders wouldn't survive.

Maybe it's great for a first time homebuyer, because they don't have the capital to furnish their home, so they go this route and are able to.

And who is to say that the homeowner can't just apply the $25,000 kickback to their mortgage? Ever think about that? You can't fault the homebuilder for the lack of knowledge of the consumers.

Steel Valley Football;562456 wrote:Applying the $25K to their mortgage is the exactly right thing to do. Buying interior items is not.

These kickbacks/refunds pale in comparison to what rate buy-downs to do the market, but, regardless, it's not good for the housing market when builders artificially inflate prices. I'm surprised you are arguing in their favor actually cuz aren't you the real estate guy? The builder refunds were an easy example so I mentioned them first.

Btw, there's a thing called predatory lending which was made illegal because of a lack of consumers knowledge.

thedynasty1998;562483 wrote:Like I said, I'm not disagreeing with you. I appreciate your passion regarding this topic, but nothing illegal is being done. Sure it's not an ideal system, but it is what it is.