I live off of a stock market portfolio. Investments. Because I am 'unemployed' to them (Despite showing 1099s, tax returns, etc), they want 2x the security deposit. They've seen my portfolio and know that I can afford it, it makes me feel uncomfortable. Needless to say, it's around $2,950 for rent (Being split 3 ways with family members) and now they want double that just in the form of a deposit. I kindly asked "I don't understand? Why not put it to another month's worth of rent? How could I possibly cause $6,000 worth of damage!?". They're reluctant to budge and kind of said "We can just move onto the next person". I am talking about ethics here. They know I have a significant sum of money saved but this really seems excessive and like an unnecessary barrier. For whatever reason, allocating that money to an additional month's worth of rent up front want not what they wanted. What should I do in the circumstance? submitted ...

I’ve been thinking about getting into real estate — either investing or maybe even working in the field — but I’m not sure if it’s still a good move right now. Prices, interest rates, competition… it feels like a lot to consider, and I don’t want to jump in blindly. submitted by /u/MysteriousShoulder35 [link] [comments] source https://www.reddit.com/r/RealEstate/comments/1s9pfr9/real_estate_is_it_still_worth_getting_into/

We got connected to a real estate agent through a referral last month and very quickly found a house we liked and had our offer accepted. At the time, we asked him what we pay for his services and he said the seller would pay his fees and he "works for us for free". Our ratified contract has his compensation at 2.5%. We never signed a buyer's agreement with him at the time, and we're first time homebuyers so didn't understand this was a thing. We're now more than a month under contract and he sent us a buyer's agreement (backdated to the day before we ratified) with his compensation listed as 2.5% + $499. He's saying this is a transaction fee that is charged by his brokerage and he has no control over this, but it's listed under his direct compensation and not a brokerage service fee. Is this normal? It feels shady to be getting hit with an additional fee now a month after going under contract when it was not disclosed up front and we were told ...

I am doing a little DIY work by replacing my cheap window trim with something nicer but forgot my appraiser is coming next week because I'm wanting to drop my PMI (I have way more equity now than I need). Definitely don't have time to finish this before the appraisal walkthrough so they'll see my walls with gaps exposed between the drywall and windows. But everything's fine, it's not like my home can fall apart right now. Will they flag me or something? submitted by /u/Stuart517 [link] [comments] source https://www.reddit.com/r/RealEstate/comments/1s9k9xy/will_an_appraiser_be_upset_if_i_dont_have_my/