Question: I have had my home on the market for more than four months and many real estate agents avoid it when they see that we back up to the power lines. Agents will make an appointment to come and "preview" for their out-of-town clients and then never show up. Upon contacting them, I learned that once they notice that there are power lines in the field behind us they will mark our home off their list.

One agent even commented that "she is a new agent and that she has been instructed to avoid any house near a power line." I feel that it's very unfair to us and, at the same time, doing a disservice to their clients. We have a beautiful home that we have enjoyed immensely for the past nine years and have put in upgrades worth more than $80,000.

I've done my own research and have had our local utility company to my property for an EMG evaluation. Upon reviewing the report, I have concluded that living near the power line is less dangerous than operating your microwave, cell phone, hair dryer or central air conditioning. We have never given the power lines an ounce of thought since we've lived there. Why, all of a sudden, is it such a big deal?

We have lowered our price $60,000 below appraised value. Would it be wise for us to rent it out and wait another six months when the inventory may be lower than to just "give it away"?

Answer: In six months -- next winter -- there may be fewer listings but there may also be fewer buyers. As well, the problem you face will not change.

There is much associated with environmental concerns which is accurate and important. There are also some things which are simply not believable and a few matters that are untrue. Worries about electric power lines have been repeatedly disproven. The American Physical Society -- a group which includes 45,000 physicists -- did a study of more than 1,000 scientific papers and found no link between power line electromagnetic fields and cancer. (See: "Cancer Fear Is Unfounded, Physicists Say," The New York Times, May 14, 1995).

Also, an editorial in New England Journal of Medicine (July 3, 1997) stated that "electromagnetic fields have no reproducible biologic effects at all, except at strengths that are far beyond those ever found in people's homes."

"Eighteen years of research," said the magazine, "have produced considerable paranoia, but little insight and no prevention. It is time to stop wasting our research resources."

Unfortunately, power line worries -- whether founded or unfounded -- are still a real-world issue.

Notice that lowering the price is irrelevant in this matter -- if I think that living in a given home will cause cancer there is no price at which the home is attractive.

Here's a suggestion: Other people have recently bought along your power lines. Why not knock on a few doors and ask why they bought. They may offer some reasons which you could use in your marketing.

Also, make sure copies of the electric-company report are available to buyers.

Question: I have a "pending contract" to purchase a home. The people who are supposed to be "working for me" -- my lender and my broker -- have been pushing me from the very beginning to pay the most for this house.

Now, here it is, two weeks until the final close and I see that homes on the same street are down at least $20,000 from what they were when I bid. As they have yet to sell, that tells me they will have to come down even more before they are sold.

I'm a first time home buyer financing with a stated-income program and I do not want to be upside down in this house before I even move in. Is there anything I can do to renegotiate the price before the closing?

Answer: Does the broker work for you -- a buyer broker? Does the broker work for the seller? Or, is the broker a disclosed dual agent?

Home values change and sometimes quickly. If the value went up $20,000 you would have no complaint.

What you can do is take the sale agreement to an attorney to see if there are grounds to exit the agreement without penalty -- or with an acceptable penalty.

Question: Our HOA board members have decided as a cost-cutting procedure to remove old units and install several cluster mailbox units themselves instead of hiring a contractor.

They had to handle 16 large mailboxes; some of the bolts broke off the old mailboxes when they were removed. Now, a drill-hammer is required to move the remaining studs from the concrete, and possibly a grinder.

Is it wise, or even advisable, to have HOA board members perform work on the premises using power tools particularly when the members are not bonded, licensed, insured, etc. My concern is that injury to a member, or a passerby from possibly broken bits, flying chips, could become an HOA liability.

Though I'm sure my fellow board members will argue the chances are remote, having been around the construction industry my entire life, I am concerned.

Answer: There's always a potential for damage and liability. But it's also true that people get killed crossing streets; that doesn't mean we should cower at home and never go out.

Would a contractor have done any better? Would they have used a drill-hammer? Do you need a license to remove mailboxes? Are bolts from the old boxes in the same place they need to be for the new ones?

The real answer to the question depends on the skills of the HOA members. It sounds as though they have a do-it-yourself project; they're not fooling around with gas lines, electricity or plumbing mains; and they're saving you money. In the worst case they'll hire a professional to finish the job.

However, there's another complication here: The Postal Service has an obligation to deliver mail and in a secure and timely fashion. If mailboxes are missing or insecure, it may mean that mail cannot be delivered. Before uprooting mailboxes, the HOA should check with the local postmaster to assure that deliveries will be made.

Question: We made improvements worth $30,000 to the property we've live in during the last 16 years.

Now the owner is finally offering a first right of refusal on the sale of the property. Will a court have to take into consideration the improvements we made before he gives me a price?

We are seniors and want fair treatment. We had a lease for life both written and verbal, the owner took it back to re-word but never returned it, but we know we have a verbal contract.

Answer: Let's take these issues one at a time.

Are you saying you have a written life estate to use the property? If so, has this been recorded in the local property records? Is such an arrangement in a will? What did you give as consideration for such an arrangement?

The work you did on the property belongs to the property owner under the terms of most leases -- it's a "leasehold improvement." It may well be that the rent has been discounted because of your improvements.

Why would a court be involved in this matter at all? Are you suing the owner?

A verbal agreement likely has little if any standing. Real estate agreements must be in writing so that all terms between the parties are clear and understood.

A right of first refusal means you have an option to buy a property at the same price as the best offer an owner can otherwise obtain. It is surely possible that an owner could also give you a discount, but these are matters which need to be resolved in writing.

At this point you are best served by speaking with an attorney who specializes in real estate law or elder law.

Question: House A is permanent residence on which I have a 30-year loan at 5.5 percent with an appraised value of $280,000. There is $84,000 left on the mortgage. I do not want to sell this house.

I took out a $106,000 second loan on house A to build house B.

If I take out $200,000 on a loan for house B, what are some of the ways I can prevent capital gains. Here is the double trouble.

Lenders are telling me I can't get a permanent loan until I have a certificate of occupancy. The house has been sitting for six months. The City said I have to put in sidewalks, curbing and a road before they will give me the occupancy certificate. What can I do to finance the additional work?

Answer: Replace the $108,000 loan on House A with a bigger mortgage. This is an expensive solution to the problem (think of closing costs), but an empty house is also expensive.

As to capital gains, if you have lived in House A for two of the past five years then sell it and shelter up to $500,000 in capital gains if married, $250,000 if single. If selling is not a choice then rent the property and create a will so your heirs will receive it at its stepped-up value and likely not pay an any tax.

Question: I graduated from college last year and decided to move in with my parents. Since then I have saved a decent amount of money and am now thinking about the economics of moving out. I believe that I will stay at my company, and therefore in the area, for about five more years. I like the idea of buying a house to build equity, but I know I won't be able to complete the purchase of an entire home in five years. Should I be looking to rent, or do you think I could pull off making a down payment on a house and then selling it if I decide to leave in five years?

Answer: You don't need to pay for an entire house in five years. If you have a fixed-rate loan then each year some of the mortgage principal will be reduced, a process called "amortization." In addition, prices can rise and fall. When you sell, if the price has not changed, you will owe less on the mortgage and thus get more credit at closing. If the price has gone up, then you'll take away even more from settlement -- less closing costs of course.

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