Question: I bought a beach house for $736,000 and put in approximately $30,000 in improvements. The market here is going down, it seems to be actually stopping. With tremendous advertising we finally dropped the asking price from $1.35 million to $999,999. We were just offered $950,000. Am I being greedy to want $960,000?

We already purchased another home in the area just before the real estate drop for $1.7 million and of course I'm kicking myself now because I got ripped off.

Answer: Are you greedy to reject $950,000? I'll pass on any personal characterizations, but in terms of dollars and cents you ought to grab the $950,000.

You have $766,000 in the property. You're being offered $184,000 more then you paid before taxes and costs. If you reject $950,000 in a slowing market you may not get an equally good offer for months. In fact, you may never get an equally good offer. Meantime, you have various costs to hold the property. To quibble over $10,000 in the context of this situation is not a good strategy.

As to the property purchased for $1.7 million, how were you "ripped off"?

If you're going to be an investor then you must recognize that risk is part of the game. You did well on one property and you may have a loss on the second if you were to sell today. But why sell today?

Real estate is not a short-term investment. You may need to rent the second property until the market recovers. Of course, there's no guarantee that the market will recover quickly -- or at all.

Question: If you have a contract pending and have already had your final walk through, can a broker still show the house? Can anyone take any of the fixtures down or remove anything from the house? We bought a house and when we started moving in we realized someone had taken the mirrors out of the bathrooms, taken the surround-sound out, and removed the keyless entry to the garage.

Answer: A home can be shown after a walk-through because until closing what you have is a home "under contract" and not a property that has actually been sold.

As to the items removed from the property, a "fixture" is generally seen as something attached to and a part of the property. Thus, a built-in microwave is a "fixture" while a microwave sitting on a counter is not.

Was the bathroom mirror attached to the wall? Or, was it merely hung like a picture?

When you buy a home it's smart to make a photo record of the property during the home inspection or when you see the property. This way you can document what was there at the time of making an offer.

You don't know that the broker removed any items. What you do know is the sellers have an obligation to deliver the property in essentially the same condition as when you saw it at the time you made your offer. The sellers need to either return any missing fixtures or provide compensation satisfactory to you. If the broker did remove the items, that's something for the sellers and the broker to resolve, it's not your problem.

Question: I live in a neighborhood that has several covenants. One of the covenants states that the house should have a value of at least $85,000 and that was in 1987. How would I calculate what this number should be in today's market.

Answer: Do the covenants have any provision for a corrected value? If not, then the value is $85,000.

Alternatively, you could look at the value of money corrected for inflation. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics , $85,000 in 1987 would be worth $152,566 today.

Question: I recently married a widower whose home is titled to the estate of his first wife and himself, although the last name recorded on the title with the county is incorrect. We want to put the house in his correct name and my name. He is the executor of his wife's estate and has letters of testamentary, etc. Do we have to get a lawyer, or do we get to do this through the county?

Answer: In most jurisdictions property owned by a husband and wife is titled as a "tenancy by the entireties." This means that each spouse owns 100 percent of the property. When one spouse dies there is nothing to inherit because the property is already owned by the other. This principal trumps whatever a will might direct.

The spouse's will may be irrelevant in this situation. But, title may have been recorded differently for some reason, thus it makes sense to sit down with an attorney and see how the property was held. If not a tenancy by the entireties, then the wife's will can direct who gets her interest property -- and it may not be the husband. He is the executor of the will, but not necessarily heir to the entire estate.

Question: Due to lack of work, I am becoming further and further in debt to my landlord. He has been very understanding, yet I do not want to be thrown out on the street .

I'm a handyman and people are just doing their own repairs. I guess this is due to the economy right now. I'm also trying to learn computing. I'm three months behind on my phone bill, however my computer online service goes through my phone and if I do not get that paid I will not only have the means of getting work on the website I'm building.

I have a couple of jobs lined up but not enough to get me out of debt. What can I do?

Answer: Given your skills, go to the landlord and offer to trade work for rent. A landlord with a number of properties is likely to appreciate such an offer.

Also, speak with other real estate brokers about doing work on the properties they manage. Speak with community groups about free computer training.

Most importantly, go to every store and office in your area with a business card offering your services. There's a need for competent, reliable people who can do repair work.

Question: What do I do if I am EXTREMELY unsatisfied with my real estate agent -- but he refuses to let me out of my contract? He does not return my calls; the broker in his agency does not return my calls; there are no responses to my emails; my house is almost never being shown and I am extremely frustrated.

I am trying to sell my home, and am considering moving to another state and the stress of this problem is becoming great. Any assistance you can give would be move appreciated.

Answer: It happens that brokers and sellers sometimes do not get along. However, you have a listing contract with the broker and that contract must be honored -- that means the broker is not obligated to end it early unless there is contract language to the contrary.

Given your local market, is it reasonable to expect better results from the broker? The property is being shown, so it is not as though the broker is not working on your behalf. That said, the broker is obligated to communicate with you on a reasonable basis.

This is one of these situations where common sense should prevail. By not communicating with you the broker may be giving you grounds to file a complaint with the state real estate commission. By not terminating the agreement early the broker has a PR problem.

Why not offer to terminate the agreement with the payment of x dollars to cover the broker's expenses? As a practical matter such an offer might make sense for everyone.

Question: My uncle passed away in August, and while the will has his house going to my mother, my mother wants me to have the house. Must I find my own mortgage, or can I assume my uncle's mortgage.

Both the estate lawyer and the bank said "no" and insist that I have to pay off the existing mortgage. Doesn't the Garn-St. Germain Act apply in this situation?

Unfortunately, my credit needs some adjusting before I can apply for my own mortgage, but I was hoping I could assume the existing mortgage. If that is not possible, can I rent the property from the estate? The lawyer seems to think that the "due-on-sale" clause would be enforced in this case as well. Is this accurate?

Answer: The Garn-St. Germain Act is designed to prevent the abusive use of due-on-sale clauses. Let's look at your situation and what the Act says.

First, the property is going to your mother, the sister of the owner. Garn-St. Germain says that a due-on-sale clause cannot be activated upon "a transfer to a relative resulting from the death of a borrower." Thus your mother can get the house without accelerating the loan.

Garn also says that a due-on-sale clause cannot be used when there has been "a transfer where the spouse or children of the borrower become an owner of the property." However, you are not a spouse of the borrower (your uncle) nor are you his child.

What you want to do is to get title to the house from your mother. But you did not inherit the property, there was no transfer to you by your uncle. Thus the lender has no obligation to continue the financing with you.

As to renting the property, Garn says that a due-on-sale clause cannot be started as a result of "the granting of a leasehold interest of three years or less not containing an option to purchase." Thus you should ask the attorney if you can rent the home from your mother for three years or less and without an option to purchase.

Question: If a new home sale contract requires a loan commitment within 30 days and the project hasn't been built, how do you get financing when a loan commitment is contingent on appraisals? If the pre-approval letter states its contingencies and they cannot be met by the home buyer isn't it a contract default by the impossibility of performance? Would love to hear your opinion.

Answer: One of the basic concepts of legal writing is that unclear and conflicting language is interpreted against the author of the agreement. Thus if the builder wrote the agreement and it includes a clause which conflicts with other clauses, that's a problem for the builder.

However, one needs to ask: When does the 30 days begin? What's a "commitment"? Is a conditional loan commitment acceptable to the builder -- in other words, is the builder just trying to get a general idea that you are qualified? By any chance, are you using the builder's lender? A local attorney can provide specifics.

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