When buying a home in Atlanta, Georgia

The real Estate laws can vary from state to state. So here are some important considerations when buying a property in Georgia:

Time-  It can take between 3 to 6 weeks from when the contract gets accepted until closing the sale.

Representation - By Georgia law the seller is who should pay the selling commission, therefore must be represented by all agents.  The buyer can be represented if they had sign a Buyer's Agency Agreement.  It doesn't cost anything for the buyer to be represented.


Inspections - The inspections are done only after the contract has been accepted. The inspection can take between 7 to 15 days of the acceptance of the contract and both parties have approx 5 days thereafter to work out an agreement on what each party is going to pay per inspection report.

Inspectors don't have to be accredited or qualify by law, therefore its very important to check that they are a member of ASHI or GAHI

Binding contract - A contract becomes legally binding when all parties have sign it. Make sure all contingencies are detailed out in the contract itself.

Closing - In Georgia this is done by an attorney who represents the lender although both parties can have they own attorney present at closing to make sure the contract is fully followed.

Possession - This can be at any time from closing until agreed.

Closing cost - . Cost can be between 2 or 3 percent of the price of the home. Althought the higher priced the home the lower the closing cost run as a percentage.  Some closing cost are paid by the buyer and normally the seller can contribute to the buyers closing cost up to a 3 percent of the purchase price.
A HUD1 statement is prepared by the closing attorney outlining all cost and exact amount of money required to close and given to buyer prior to closing.

Lenders - in the case of buying with a lender, all lenders in this state must be licensed in Georgia in order to do business.

The top 10 cities in the USA with highest Vacant rate

According to the US Census Bureau the increase in vacant homes since the year 2000 has increance by 43.8 percent. This can be for a number of reasons, such as up for sale or for rent.
The census of 2010 shows that there were aprox. 15 millon vacant housing units in the US with a 11.4 per cent gross vacancy rate in the whole States.

Below you will find a list ranked by CNBC.com according to equal-weighted ranking in both rental and homeowner vacancies.

Here are the emptiest major US cities:
 

1. Tucson, Arizona

Rental vacancy rate: 15.9%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 6.8%

2. Indianapolis, Indiana

Rental vacancy rate: 13.5%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 5.2%

3. Toledo, Ohio

Rental vacancy rate: 19.3%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 3.6%

4. Memphis, Tennessee

Rental vacancy rate: 13.5%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 4.0%

5. Atlanta, Georgia

Rental vacancy rate: 11.8%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 5.4%

6. Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Rental vacancy rate: 13%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 3.9%

7. Dayton, Ohio

Rental vacancy rate: 10.7%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 4.7%

8. Detroit, Michigan

Rental vacancy rate: 17.2%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 2.4%

9. Houston, Texas

Rental vacancy rate: 17.4%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 2.3%

10. Kansas City, Missouri

Rental vacancy rate: 11%
Homeowner vacancy rate: 3.7%

Mantainance fees to consider when buying a property

It is very important to consider how much money to put aside for usual expenses once you bought the property. Considering you have purchase the property finance free here are some of the points we should look at:

• Management and mantainance (note that everytime a tenant moves out there will be an expense attached to it, like new paint, new carpet, etc)
• Letting fee  
• Tax and insurance (county and state taxes, LLC, etc)
• Vacancy factor  (see next post about vacancy rates in the USA)

However you should also consider that:

• Eventually be able to charge more and more for rent.
• Keep mind that any repairs you make to the property can be written off as well!