Lately some of the big builders of Sunnyvale & Santa Clara new homes have been conducting very questionable sales practices either to avoid to shorten their inventory holding time. Such as not allowing the Santa Clara new homes buyers to have their own “independent home inspection” for the Buyer’s final walk through. With most builders trying to avoid whatever they can to avoid the delay in closing & shove down the building as fast as possible to consumer even if construction & corrections are not completed 100% for move in.

For one of this Sunnyvale & Santa Clara New Homes builders the situation is even more serious with the Builder’s  i.e Seller agents attempting to intentionally bypass the Buyer’s broker in order to negotiate the  earlier closing date etc directly with buyer, while denying the Buyer from having proper final walk through conducted by their own Licensed Home Inspector. To make a story short in this case  as a buyer’s agent – I have to confront the builder’s agent & call upon Realtor’s association’s legal hot line to consult for this unreasonable & unfair practice as a Buyer’s broker. Result: the builder eventually make an exception on my client’s unit & and allow our own home inspector to conduct final walk through inspection.

Though, my clients had already done visual inspection twice for his New homes in Santa Clara  without my (his Realtor) & the inspector presence, due to builder’s agents blockage earlier, upon the new inspection, as I’ve expected, our professional home inspector has found several  issues with the home. First, central A/C unit completely failed to work , there was serious water leaking into basement from side retaining walls, there was also damaged or improperly installed washer dryer hook up & unfinished exposed stucco walls etc .

The inspector’s findings were disappointing because this inspection was actually done 2 days later than builder’s intended closing date, where builder was previously pushing so hard on my client to close or even threatening with per day late closing penalty charges on us. At this stage, this home really should be in , move in ready condition with builder’s own inspector completing & passing the inspection check list. Major items such as inoperative central A/C units should not be missed , if only they have care enough to do a proper job.

As most unsophisticated consumer will, one may think that nothing can go wrong since you are buying one of the new homes in Santa Clara , Right? Unfortunately, there are a lot of common things that can go wrong in new homes & your dedicated Buyer broker shall assertively takes initiative to protect your rights & most importantly protect your investment. For my clients it was a happy ending at the end because we get done with what we needed & all issues were taken care before closing without us paying a penny on late penalty etc. But as a consumer advocate Real estate broker, I wonder how will many of other consumers who walked into the builder’s sales office without their own buyer agent defend themselves? In fact, it makes me think, “if consumer do not know their rights then it’s same as they do not have one”.

Here are the some basic points that buyers of Sunnyvale / Santa Clara new homes must remember when dealing with new home builders & their agents:

Builder’s agent do NOT represent you or your interest. Ensure that you have an experience & caring buyer agent of your own who can protect you from builder’s 1 sided contracts & questionable sales practices. Try not to have direct contact with builder’s agent . ( The way builder agent ask questions & communicate, you might not even aware that they are in fact negotiating some of the terms with you, e,g be it a closing date or what items to repair etc)

Always conduct your own independent home inspection before closing of escrow by licensed , experience Home inspector professional & by your Realtor.

If any time during transaction if you don’t feel comfortable talking with builder’s agent or answering their question, state clearly to them that you prefer they talk to you through your buyer’s agent so you buyer agent can properly protect your right through out the transactions. Just because it is new home builder there is no excuse, Builder’s agent are obligated & bind to follow Realtor’s code of ethic article 16 & upon your request , they must communicate you through your buyer agent, as not to take advantage of less experience & knowledgeable consumer .

Remember that , home warranty plan provided by builders should not be an excuse for builder to deliver you an incomplete or defective home in the 1st place. Insist on all repairs, replacement etc are completed 100% before the close of escrow, since builder is more inclined to entertain your request more seriously & promptly before closing & funding . Of course builders like to do repair etc while you are paying the mortgage & taxes. Why not right? It is the same as free borrowed money for them.

Do not just stick to what builder’s lender offer. Always ask your Buyer Broker (agent) to help find you a better mortgage deal. In my client case e.g , one major builder’s lender offered my client their so called unbeatable rate at that time @ 6.5% for 5 years fix , where I managed to help my client get the same rate  with more secure 30yr fix loan while our own lending partner paying more than $5000.00 as buyer closing cost helps towards my buyer client’s closing.

Before start shopping on your Santa Clara new homes /  new homes in Santa Clara or any other  Bay Area new homes, be sure to request & read FREE report on : 6 Secrets Every New Home Buyer Must Know & Builders do not want to talk about.

If you are 1st time home buyer thinking of buying Santa Clara CA homes for sale , be sure to take advantage of many of the Government & Non-profit Home Buyer Assistance Programs available for Bay Area home buyers.

For eligible buyers, most  Santa Clara CA homes for sale are eligible for $75,000 Government Down Payment Help with 0% interest rate for 1st 5 years & another $6,500 Closing Cost Help loan with 3% simple interest rate.

Most home buyers including Non 1st time Buyers can also take advantage of Below-Market Wholesale Interest Rate Home Loan available from non-traditional lenders. It is also available for all houses for sale in Santa Clara CA.

There are many other Home Buyer Help Programs in Bay Area. Most Realtors & loan officers are NOT specialize in these programs that can help Santa Clara home buyers save thousands , so make sure you are working with  specialist local Realtor who is verse with full knowledge about such help programs to make your home affordable.

Our experienced real estate consulting team provide complete service from helping you obtain appropriate Government & Non-profit down payment programs to finding the right property that you can utilize these programs.

Simply E-mail us with your name & Tel# NOW to request for FREE & No obligation consultation to find out how you can benefit from these special home buyer programs & Save money every month.

P.S: Click the link to Search ALL Santa Clara CA homes for sale from ALL Real Estate Companies.

Santa Clara Condos are popular choices among young home owners & many first time home buyers as rental replacement  or even for investment since Silicon Valley properties are one of the highly sought after & yet one of the most expensive  in united states  & the rest of the world.

Contrary to general real estate norms & rules of thumb, during the real estate boom time  silicon valley’s Santa Clara condos had experienced a higher appreciation growth rate compare to that of area’s single family homes. This phenomena is outrageous  and contradicting to rest of the country real estate market trend.

Part of the reasons being is, that single family home prices in area had risen up so much over the boom years that most entry level home buyers can not afford it and at that time it was better for these home owners to hold on to relatively cheaper & more affordable Santa Clara condos and ride the appreciation to upgrade later.

Fortunately recent  few year’s much welcomed real estate price correction has bring back the current Santa Clara condos value to relatively  affordable range for home renters. At current market of  mid 2010 you can easily purchase a very common 2bed/2bath  $300,000 Santa Clara Condos with net total housing payment of $1700 after tax deduction at current low 4.8%  interest rates.

For long time renters who are currently paying  $1600~$1700 on rent , at current market,  it may makes more sense to own a simple Santa Clara condo knowing in due  time the home is his, regardless of real estate market condition rather than helping pay off  landlord’s investment loan months after months with no gain to show at the end. Decision, of course is more complicated than this depends on your live style & current financial situation etc.

However if you are dreaming of owning a Santa Clara condo know that there are special home buyer programs from government & non-profit organization allowing you to bay a Santa Clara condo  with ZERO to Low down payment. Also Many of the Santa Clara Condos for sale are eligible for $75,000 Government down payment assistance.

We specialize in helping many of the 1st time home buyer own their home with little to No down payment using these special programs. Click here to schedule for obligation “FREE 1-hr custom home buyer consultation“  to figure out whether you can benefit from these special home buyer programs & become a proud home owner safely.

P.S: You can click the link to Search up-to-date & complete Santa Clara condos for sale from ALL Real Estate companies.