Interviewer: Today we're talking with Pat DeFeo, Vice President of Colorado Home Warranty. Welcome to the show.

Pat DeFeo: Nice to be here Dan, thank you.

Interviewer: We've talked a lot about home warranties, and realtors purchasing home warranties for clients, or what a home warranty is. Today I kind of want to talk about things that are included in your policy and things that are excluded. My wife and I were trying to decide if we wanted to buy a home warranty policy for our house and we started immediately going over, well, what's it going to cover?

Pat DeFeo: Okay.

Interviewer: Let's start there.

Pat DeFeo: Okay. The standard policy on our home warranty covers all the mechanical systems in the house to include: the furnace, the water heater, all the kitchen appliances to the built-in microwave, garbage disposal, ceiling fan, sump pump, garage door opener, plumbing leaks, electrical issues, stoppages, a panel. Sub panels on the electrical, we dont have on our standard coverage, that's it. Or we have optional coverage.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: For buyers, that is washers and dryers...

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: ...spas...

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: ...if you have a hot tub, gas fireplaces...

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: ...and air-conditioners.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: I mean, we have we also have some for well pumps and septic, but that's for up in the hills.

Interviewer: So my wife says to me, "So what do you think could go out like relatively soon?" And I said, "Well...

Pat DeFeo: Anything.

Interviewer: ...you know the garbage disposal's kind of old." I say, "We havent had the air conditioner furnace, air conditioner serviced, in quite some time, thats a possibility, and maybe the hot water tank." I said, "But I dont think the air conditioner is covered," and the first thing she says is, "Why?"

Pat DeFeo: Well, most, okay. We're in Colorado, now newer homes now have air conditioners or swamp coolers.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: Not every house has a swamp cooler or an air conditioner, so to keep our prices low, we don't add them into the standard policy. We add them, we have them as add-ons, if you have that, if you have that thing.

Interviewer: All right, so give me an idea if I want to add air conditioning?

Pat DeFeo: If you wanted to add air conditioning, air conditioning coverage is an additional $75.

Interviewer: That's it?

Pat DeFeo: That's it.

Interviewer: Wow! That's like a service call.

Pat DeFeo: It's like a service call, exactly, and with this new 13 sear, it's very prudent to have AC coverage on your house.

Interviewer: Okay, one more question then, and so, then the washer dryer is optional, but somebody would say, well doesn"t everybody have a washer dryer? Why would that be option?

Pat DeFeo: Not every house is sold with a washer and dryer.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: A lot of people take their washer and dryers with them.

Interviewer: Right.

Pat DeFeo: I mean, every case is different, but it's not a standard thing that's left in the house.

Interviewer: Well, it's a good option because I suppose if you are buying it as a real estate agent for a buyer or seller or whatever, that you may be able to save some money and be excluded, but if you're a home owner like me who wants a warranty program, and not so buying and selling their house, you might want to add in the washer and dryer.

Pat DeFeo: Yes, you would. We have a lot of realtors that have our warranty on their homes.

Interviewer: Yeah.

Pat DeFeo: And they are covered, everything is covered.

Interviewer: Well, yeah, I already got burned down and so I am not going to, not going to go down that road again.

Pat DeFeo: Don't go there.

Interviewer: All right, any other things that we should know about optional add-ons? And how expensive do they usually range? Is it mostly $75 to add something on, or...?

Pat DeFeo: $60 if you have a gas fireplace, $50 if it's for washer and dryer, and $150 for a hot tub spa.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: Roof--we have limited roof coverage.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: It's $60. It patches the roof. It doesn't replace the roof, so if you have a leak, it just patches where the leak is, and we have septic pumping for $45 and well pump.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: If you are on the hills, you know, for $75, so the most expensive we have is $150 for spa or a hot tub.

Interviewer: Okay and a standard policy where you talked about all the inclusions, what are they usually?

Pat DeFeo: $250, yeah.

Interviewer: For a year?

Pat DeFeo: Yeah, for a year.

Interviewer: Okay.

Pat DeFeo: And we have 15-month option as well. I mean, we have lots of options, but basic policy is $250.

Interviewer: Thanks, Pat.

Pat DeFeo: Thank you.

Interviewer: I appreciate you being here.

Pat DeFeo: Bye now.

Posted in Headlines, Home Selling Services

Interviewer: Today we're talking with lawyer Nicole Vincent of the law firm of Robinson & Henry, and welcome to the show.

Nicole Vincent: Thank you very much.

Interviewer: Glad you're here. We're talking about real estate--people getting divorced and selling their house, and the role that the lawyer and the real estate agent all play in this little soup.

Nicole Vincent: Yes.

Interviewer: So talk a little bit about that, because its kind of a complicated situation.

Nicole Vincent: Well, it's important to remember that these two parties have all of a sudden been thrust into a situation of high conflict, there's some trust issues, and as a realtor, it's very important to look back at how this home began. It started off as two people coming together. They bought the home jointly, they were joint borrowers on the loan, and the bank was okay with this in the beginning.

Interviewer: Yeah.

Nicole Vincent: Because they had two people to go after, they're both jointly and so, reliable. Now these parties are in the process of becoming individuals again, and unless one of them has the ability and the desire to refinance and keep the home, you have to help them sell it, and it can be very difficult when you have two parties who've lost trust in each other.

Interviewer: Yeah. So let's assume that they decide that. We're going to go ahead and sell the house, the realtor comes in the mix, and now we've got another partner that, you know, we may have some trust issues with it, is that correct?

Nicole Vincent: Yes, it's most certainly correct. It's very important as a realtor that you make sure your clients are now aware that you are, in fact, a neutral third party. You have, in a situation a wife who may think that her husband is trying to take advantage of her, or a husband who thinks that his wife is trying to take advantage of him. So it's very important, as a realtor, you make it very clear that you are working in the best interest of them both, and that you are, in fact, neutral and not really on anyone's side, per se.

Interviewer: And how often than not does the realtor deal directly with the attorney?

Nicole Vincent: It happens quite frequently when we're in the process of negotiation, the settlement agreement, selling the house is very important in these situations. So it's very strongly recommended that the attorney and the realtors actually communicate about these, about these issues, because it affects both of them and it can affect certain things such as alimony, maintenance for the wife, because that does make a difference to the judge in the court.

Interviewer: Now we should also say that in some cases these are amicable splits.

Nicole Vincent: Yes of course, there's...

Interviewer: But most of the time, not...

Nicole Vincent: Of course, yes. Unfortunately it's a very hostile situation in a lot of cases. If it's amicable and the parties agree, it's, you know, it can be very good situation for everyone but unfortunately, it's not that way most of the time.

Interviewer: So everyone may be same in this transaction?

Nicole Vincent: Right.

Interviewer: Lastly, what can, I guess, a realtor do, or what can the clients do, to make sure that they're not getting the short end of the stick, so to speak?

Nicole Vincent: The most important thing is constant communication and very clear communication, and because you're working with two parties who may not be communicating themselves, as a realtor should communicate, mostly by writing is what we would recommend, thats how we do it as attorneys, because that way you have a clear record of what you've said. It can't really get twisted, and generally we would recommend e-mail, because that way everyone can see, especially you know, nowadays, you can see who's getting the e-mail and then there is generally not a he-said, she-said problem later on, but it's important in that situation that you let both parties know that their, the information they are providing, it can be passed on to the other party and most likely will be.

Interviewer: Good information. Thanks for being with us. I appreciate it.

Nicole Vincent: Thank you.

Posted in Headlines, Real Estate Industry

Interviewer: Today we're talking with Laura Nicole Vincent from the law firm Robinson & Henry. Welcome to the show.

Nicole Vincent: Thank you.

Interviewer: Well the topic is real estate and newly divorced moms, and as we were talking in the break, you know, you can kind of empathize with this situation. A couple gets divorced, the mom has devoted her entire life to raising the kids, probably hasn't worked since she first got married, now she's out on her own, probably has to find income and needs to get a house.

Nicole Vincent: Yes, and there're several concerns that, you know, that a newly divorced mom has to worry about, especially in today's economy. A lot of these women are coming out of a marriage with credit problems, and that has to be dealt with when they're applying for a home loan. The best way a realtor can help out this, this client, to help her get a home loan and to get a home, is by talking with her and looking over her separation agreement and the divorce decree, because although her credit report may show that she has a high monthly payments based on payments that they had to make during the marriage, she may not be responsible for these payments any more. For example, let's say during the marriage her husband wanted a new truck, and the car lender wanted her signature on that loan as well. Well, now they're divorced, the husband has the, ex-husband, excuse me, has the truck and the debt that goes along with it, but you wouldn't know that from the credit report. So you can take that, take the separation agreement to the bank, and show that she's no longer responsible for these monthly payments, and that, you know, will show what she, as long as the separation agreement is clear, it will show what she's responsible for monthly.

Interviewer: And the realtor could possibly introduce her to a good loan expert who might be able to establish credit for her for the first time if she doesn't have much. That would be another situation, right?

Nicole Vincent: That would be another situation, and that's another very important situation because in the case where the mom hasn't had a job, or she's been dependent on her ex-husband's income, she may not have credit and it may be very important to her to start establishing credit.

Interviewer: Okay. So now she goes out and gets a job, but it doesn't pay all that much. She hasn't been in the work force a long time. She's an older person trying to get a job. Again, is she stuck?

Nicole Vincent: She's not stuck, she has income in most situations. If she had been married for a long time and she's been dependent on her husband's income, in a lot of cases the court will have ordered alimony, and all the banks and credit card companies will consider that as income, so it's very important that her separation agreement and support order be very clear because that can be supplemental income or it maybe her sole income for the time being, but it's very important and it can be a significant amount of money.

Interviewer: So alimony, maybe child support, maybe the income from the small-paying job maybe enough to qualify.

Nicole Vincent: It very well may be, and if the support order is very clear, then it's easier to show the bank what she's making.

Interviewer: All right, any final other concerns for newly divorced moms we should consider?

Nicole Vincent: The other most important thing to look at is to look at the separation agreement with your client and see if she is restricted on areas. They've made, the courts have made it very complicated for some of these people to move, especially when they have small children. You have to inform the court and your ex that you are moving if it's outside of a certain school district, or if it's outside of a certain metropolitan area. In these cases it's important that the client get a written agreement with the husband that it's okay for her to move out of the metro area, or she has to go to the court to get an order stating that she can move, and that can be quite a lengthy process, and really, all these, you know, all these issues that we're talking about boil down to this separation agreement which can be a very lengthy and very confusing agreement, so it may be a very good idea to get an attorney involved at a very early stage to help either the client or the realtor understand the limitations.

Interviewer: Got it. Good, really appreciate it.

Nicole Vincent: Thank you.

Interviewer: Thanks, Nicole.

Posted in Headlines, Real Estate Industry

Interviewer: Today were talking with Kristy Cook, service manager for Colorado Home Warranty. Kristy, welcome to the show.

Kristy Cook: Thank you for having me.

Interviewer: So were talking about home warranties, and I will actually do full disclosure here and use my own story. I come home, my heats out, I dont have a home warranty, I cant get my furnace to turn on. If I did have a Colorado Home Warranty, though, what would happen?

Kristy Cook: The home owner will place the service call, we would then in turn discuss the service issue, place the work order...

Interviewer: Okay.

Kristy Cook: ...write it up, and tell the home owner to go ahead and expect a call from one of our licensed contractors, and they would in turn call the home owner back within an hour, and make the call to come service their item, and then we would advise them theres a $55 co-pay.

Interviewer: Okay.

Kristy Cook: They would go out there and make the call, then we would follow up the next day to make sure that the...

Interviewer: Repairs have been done.

Kristy Cook: Yes, exactly.

Interviewer: Yeah, all right, and the best part about that, though, in that situation, is the only money out of the persons pocket is the $55 co-pay, so the fan had to be replaced and the furnace, the circuit board, wherever it may be. I came up from downstairs and say, "I think there is something wrong with the circuit board." My wife says to me, "How much is that going to be?" I say, "Probably 350 bucks." But if I had a warranty, my out-of-pocket would have been 55, right?

Kristy Cook: Correct.

Interviewer: So do you ever deny a service request?

Kristy Cook: We only deny service requests if its not part of the warranty or it couldnt be warranteed.

Interviewer: Its not covered item.

Kristy Cook: Yes, exactly. For example, say the washing machine goes out and they dont have the covered switches and optional coverage they could purchase but say they didnt have it...

Interviewer: Yeah.

Kristy Cook: Then we would deny it at that point.

Interviewer: Okay. So like an air conditioner, I know some policies dont cover air conditioning, is that right?

Kristy Cook: Yeah, thats correct.

Interviewer: Okay, so that might be one thats excluded. Somebody calls in, says my air conditioners out, its not part of the policy.

Kristy Cook: Right, the standard policy. However, we do offer it as an optional coverage.

Interviewer: Oh you do?

Kristy Cook: Coverage, yeah.

Interviewer: Oh good. All right, so what happens--I understand service issues during normal hours, although I should tell you, I called to see if I could get my furnace repaired and they were like, in no hurry to help me. Theyre like, ah, maybe we could get out there today, maybe we could get out there tomorrow, and Im like listen, I got babies. This house cannot be freezing tonight. So I understand what happens during normal business hours, but also after hours, how fast can we get somebody out there?

Kristy Cook: Well, what we have is a 24/7 service line where people call in. They would leave a message and one of our personnel people would get back with them within an hour.

Interviewer: Okay.

Kristy Cook: They would then tell them that service would be--a contractor would be called, and you know, be dispatched to them within four hours, so they would hear back within four hours as to when the contractor would be there.

Interviewer: Okay, so many times its same-day service?

Kristy Cook: Yeah.

Interviewer: You know, if its 2 oclock in the morning...

Kristy Cook: If its an emergency, yeah.

Interviewer: ...or if its 12 noon.

Kristy Cook: Yeah, absolutely.

Interviewer: Thats what I needed. Last but not least, how do you differ from other home warranty companies?

Kristy Cook: Well, were the only home warranty company that offers the quickest turnaround time, as far as call backs and service. Some of the other competitors out there have up to 48 hours before they will contact a customer, so we definitely have, you know, a quicker service time.

Interviewer: Well, Ive heard that about your company. Thats what I like about it. Thanks so much for being with us.

Kristy Cook: Thank you.

Interviewer: I appreciate the information.

Kristy Cook: Thank you for having me.

Posted in Headlines, Home Selling Services

On Friday, January 15, 2010 the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) waived the 90-day Flip Rule for one year, effective February 1.

A press release issued by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) stated that "FHA research finds that acquiring, rehabilitating and the reselling these properties to prospective homeowners often takes less than 90 days. Prohibiting the use of FHA mortgage insurance for a subsequent resale within 90 days of acquisition adversely impacts the willingness of sellers to allow contracts from potential FHA buyers because they must consider holding costs and the risk of vandalism associated with allowing a property to sit vacant over a 90-day period of time."

The waiver is limited to sales meeting specific conditions:

• All transactions must be arms-length, with no identity of interest between the buyer and seller or other parties participating in the sales transaction.
• In cases in which the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller's acquisition cost, the waiver will only apply if the lender meets specific conditions.
• The waiver is limited to forward mortgages, and does not apply to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) for purchase program.

The waiver can be read in its entirety as a PDF from the HUD Web site.

Posted in Headlines, Real Estate Industry, New Home Builders, National News