Real Estate Questions

[Matryeshka]

Hello wise FSUers! I am having a lot of problems with my apartment managers--one of them I swear is the mother of all Karens--and I am done. DONE. I always said I never wanted the responsibility of owning a house, but my complex that I love and have lived in for TWO YEARS WITHOUT INCIDENT has become a living nightmare to the point that I am having genuine anxiety attacks. And what they've done to my mother who also moved to the complex after I sang its praises is even worse. So basically I am learning that in an apartment, your situation can go from a dream to a nightmare with one incompetent, inconsistent, unpleasant manager. (One of the teachers I work with also lived in my complex and ended up moving back in with her parents to save up to buy a house because dealing with this same manager made her not want to deal with apartments ever again.) Long and short of it: I need to buy a house.

So I am meeting with a lending officer person on Wednesday--she's a friend(ish) of mine and she used to be a teacher. I trust(ish) her advice, but I also know that she's looking to make money and probably wants me to take the biggest loan I can, and I'm looking to be cheap. Also, I will have a renter in October who will be paying 900/month (my mom. I never wanted to live with her again, but this is what will make it possible, and it's better financially for both of us.). My credit is terrible, but in the acceptable limits of terrible. I just qualify for a loan. Since I'm not looking to buy until my mom's lease is up in September, I'll have time to get it up 40 points to qualify for the good loans. (We're talking specifically about that on Wednesday, how to raise my credit.)

So dear FSUers, what are some questions I need to ask? What did you wish you had known when buying your first house, especially with the lending aspects of it? This is not necessarily btw my forever home--I'm just looking to get in the market. I don't need stainless steel and granite. I need functional--I am NOT handy nor is anyone I know--but it doesn't have to be new. I'd prefer no HOAs.

Any advice appreciated!

 

[Aceon6]

Check for first time buyer programs in your area and take the classes. If you do, you’ll qualify for a better interest rate. DO NOT sign up with your friend’s firm until after you take the classes!

I forget, are you in/near NOLA? There are some grant programs that you might want to check out.

And check in with your teacher’s association and its credit union. There may be programs specifically for teachers.

 

[Spun Silver]

Your saying your credit is bad is a bit worrisome. It would be a shame if that prevented you from getting the best possible mortgage rate. I loathe paying interest.

Owning a home almost requires you to become handy. The number of problems that can require fixing and maintaining beggars belief for a first time homeowner - especially if you can't afford to buy a house in mint condition. Of course this costs money, so you need to plan for that. Also, in choosing your home, it can happen that you are better off with a home that costs more but needs fewer fixes than a cheaper home that needs a lot of work. Finding handymen or contractors to do them for you is also challenging. If you don't have a clear understanding of what their work involves, that can lead to misunderstandings and even dishonest work. You may as well start getting used to the idea now and checking out DIY and home improvement websites like Family Handyman and Next Door where neighbors offer contractor recommendations. There is a site called City Data Forum where you can ask questions and find helpful advice on different towns, neighborhoods, mortgages and many other topics.

An experienced, honest realtor should help you understand the condition of the home from the get go -- if not, he or she is not serving you well and you should consider changing realtors. Getting a really good home inspection is important. The inspector should walk you through all aspects of the home and what fixes it need, and a rough idea of what it should cost to fix them. Be sure to ask what aspects of the property are NOT being inspected and try and get a handle on those some other way -- for example, by getting a contractor to come give you an estimate on the fix. Make sure you get an inspector who works solo. I made the mistake of hiring a two-man team. During the inspection they split up and I could only follow one of them, so I couldn't ask all the questions I should have. Try to look critically at the home yourself before the inspection so you can ask intelligent questions. The inspection findings affect the value of the home significantly. At least in the US, they give you grounds for renegotiating the purchase price with the seller.

I'll stop here for now. Best of luck to you!

 

[Rob]

Learn the difference between fixed and adjustable rate mortgages. Be wary of adjustable rate mortgages (rates can go way up). Be wary of "interest only" mortgages (which may be a thing of the past, but my friend got stuck underwater with a property that never appreciated).
What is PMI?
Do you qualify for any first time homeowner grants?
Do I get my earnest money back if I decide not to buy?
How much are property taxes and home owners insurance? Will they be included in the mortgage and escrowed? How does escrow work?
What are points?
How much are the closing costs?
What concessions can I ask the seller to make? (Fixing things, paying part of closing costs).
How much does flood insurance cost (if you are in a watery area)?
Who will schedule the home and pest inspection?

• How old are/have you had any problems with: the roof, the plumbing, windows/window wells, the furnace/HVAC systems, the sheet rock, the electrical systems/circuit breakers, flooding, fire, or other environmental damage, leaks in the basement or attic, termites/powder post beetles, cracks in foundation or driveway, large settling cracks.
• Radon or asbestos?
• Have the water tested

If the property is sold "as is'" what does that mean and what are my rights?
If there are any extensions, were they permitted? How old?
What is included with the home (appliances, fixtures like lights, handrails, and faucets, light bulbs, etc.)? Get it in writing.
How old are the appliances?
What are your average utility bills?
Sewer or well/septic? How old, what are the costs of service/replacement?
Is there street parking, if not a driveway or garage?
Have you had any issues with the neighbors?
Why did you take all the light bulbs out of the basement lights? They are hiding something.
If an HOA, read the bylaws. What are the dues and what do they cover?
Can I have a backyard shed? Do I need a permit to put one up?


I will come back with more as I think of them.

 

[Debbie S]

Why did you take all the light bulbs out of the basement lights? They are hiding something.

And why is there a large sofa and tons of other junk along the back/outside wall of the basement? And why don't the windows open? OK, I'll stop.

Great suggestions by previous posters. I would add that you want to think about your needs, not just now but in the future, esp if your mom will be living with you. Do you want a single-family house, townhouse, or condo? Stairs or 1 level? Outdoor or indoor/garage parking? I bought a townhouse and as a single woman w/o kids, it wasn't a good choice. Most of the neighbors had kids (and I don't dislike kids) and it was very cliquey, and as the single person, basically my yard and parking area (technically a common area but we each had 2 spaces in front of our homes) were considered an extension of their kids' play area (and the side of my house was their bouncing ball area) and their dogs' bathroom (b/c it's not like I use my yard for anything ) and their own parking area, since I 'didn't need the 2nd space' - except that there were times when I did have someone coming over and times where 2 different neighbors had that thought at the same time, so I'd arrive home from work in a rainstorm with no place to park. It would have been better for me to have bought either a single-family home with a driveway/garage (and a yard where I could have put up a fence if necessary) or a condo with garage/assigned parking.

My next purchase will be a condo, b/c I don't want to have to deal with a basement, roof, siding or yard maintenance. And I want garage parking. And after breaking my leg (skating) and staying at my parents' condo for 2 months while I was on crutches, I realize the value of not having steps if you live alone.

Also, when you do sign a contract and have an inspection, if you need any repairs that involve electrical or plumbing, get your own electrician/plumber to look over the work once it's done, before settlement. If they try to push back repairs to the morning of settlement, push back the settlement time until you look at them. So don't back yourself into a corner and settle on the last day of your lease, give yourself some time.

I'm sure your friend will tell you this, but to get your credit score up, lower your credit card debt to less than 10% of your spending limit. If you want to close any cards, close the most recent ones. Definitely keep credit cards you've had for years. And don't run a credit check/inquiry until you are really ready to buy. Multiple inquiries for the same type of loan within a short period of time (like a month) are treated as 1 inquiry, but if you do an inquiry now and then again next Aug/Sept, the previous inquiry can drop your score. If you want to see your credit score, you can purchase it online (I think the site is something like MyFico...) and sometimes your credit cards provide it on your online account.

 

[Spun Silver]

Also-- consider telling your lender friend up front that you'll be looking at other mortgage options. It's a major financial decision for you, and not going for the best deal you can get could cost you thousands. Same with a realtor. A realtor friend of mine could not forgive me for going with a different one, but it would have cost me about $3000 more to use her.

Another point, in figuring out what you can afford, try to find out not only about property tax and condo fees but other local taxes you might not be aware of, like fire and water taxes. Even the cost of food can vary dramatically, as I've found in my new home state.

 

[PrincessLeppard]

I know you don't want an HOA, but I'm glad my first place was a condo. Because I, too, am not handy and that allowed me to ease into ownership and figure some shit out before I was unleashed on an actual house.

And because I'm not handy, I went for a house that was move in ready. Yeah, I paid more, but I know myself and a couple of houses I also liked needed "some work," and let's just say, I'm pretty sure that work would never get done. I mean, I've been here since March, and I still have pictures sitting on the floor near where I want to hang them, so....

Know yourself, is what I'm saying. Which you do.

 

[rfisher]

Don't focus on cosmetic stuff and try to ignore how a property is decorated. You'll change all that anyway. Focus on how the traffic patterns in the house are laid out. How does it flow? Do you want sunlight? Or if the windows face the west, do you want to be able to drape them in the NOLA summertime. You have pets so consider if you want a fenced yard. If you and your Mom will be living together, will each of you have space where you can be apart? Will you have two bathrooms? Measure your furniture, especially large pieces, and take a tape measure with you when you look at property. Measure doorways and consider furniture placement. If it has stairs can you easily get furniture up the stairs. You really don't want to find out on moving day that a piece won't fit in the new space. If you love the property, then knowing in advance allows you to get rid of any piece that won't fit.

 

[once_upon]

I would ask the banker friend to suggest someone in her bank to do the loan. Of course it is different because of regulations but my nephew couldnt be the loan officer but could recommend someone else. Besides the regulation thing, it maintains the good relationship.

You'll be more successful in putting an offer in if you have a potential pre-approval letter from the bank. I know when we were looking at offers that helped. Of course the loan isn't approved until the actual application is made. You want to put in the offer that it is contingent on house/condo/townhouse is appraised at or above your offer.

We asked my nephew for real estate agents he would recommend and he provided us with at least three names of agents he had worked with. We did a search on the internet too and read reviews. We chose one that dealt with properties in the area we wanted to move too.

In our case the earnest deposit could be returned within a short window of time, or if home inspection revealed something structural like termites, the inspection needed to be done in a short window of time. Our agent helped facilitate it (actually one was done prior to us offering and we reviewed it with our agent).

If you aren't handy or have some help or are stretching want you can afford, make sure you can live with current paint and carpet. Closing costs, not typically able to be part of a loan and are above what down payment you need, will eat into your savings. You can ask the seller to pay some or all of closing costs, but we rejected two offers that asked for that.

If your mom is going to pay rent, plan for when she no longer can do that (death or change in income status). Having 2 bathrooms is important- not just now - but in the future if you need a new housemate.

Know what is staying - ask for things like appliances, window coverings, shelving (like under the sink or bathroom or kitchen). Ask about trash pickup. Is it contract with private company or part of utilities. Are you required to have flood insurance - what does it cover and how much is it?

What are properties taxes and what is the usual reassessment timeframes and is the area prone to huge increases/how often? What's the crime rate for the area? Where are grocery stores? What population (kids, few kids, older community- of course that can change over time).

That's all I have right now, but know I have other things I cant think of right now.

 

[once_upon]

Oh...Be prepared to justify or answer what recurring consistent payments are. The bank reviewed our checking and savings account for those. We were asked about my EBT to my church (tithe) and a couple of other things. I think it's part of research to determine you arent money laundering or something. We didn't need to provide documentation just to be able to identify what it was and for what.

They'll want to have tax returns (income documentation) and employment records. Because my husband does contract work and had several contracts over a 24 month period those were important in the bank's decision.

Once you have a loan and prior to closing, don't make major purchases (like furniture) until after you've signed loan/closed. That will ping on your credit score.

ETA: houses in the range you are probably looking at is a seller's market, as some FSU posters discovered. I recommend having a "walk away price" in mind, in a bidding situation. We had a price for our townhome when we purchased highest we would go and had a price for selling that we would accept.

Walkway if the price is more than you want to pay, another house will come on the market.

 

[Aceon6]

Everything upthread is great, but nothing will help more than a first time home buyer course. Again, you may miss out on special rates, lotteries for newly built affordable properties, down payment matching, or rebates without one.

 

[MacMadame]

If you want to see your credit score, you can purchase it online (I think the site is something like MyFico...) and sometimes your credit cards provide it on your online account.

There are lots of ways to get a free credit score these days. I belong to Credit Karma and they will show me my score every time I visit the website (and I have an alert to be notified when it changes). Mint also does this. As do most of my credit cards. It doesn't count as an "inquiry" either so you can visit the site 10x a day and not have it impact your credit score.

 

[tony]

Almost every single major bank/credit card supplier/finance website or app now gives you the option to see your credit score. Never pay for it and never let it take a hit on your report.

 

[Aceon6]

Almost every single major bank/credit card supplier/finance website or app now gives you the option to see your credit score. Never pay for it and never let it take a hit on your report.

If you’re website averse, call your bank. They will provide it for existing customers. Always free.

 

[clairecloutier]

Some great advice in this thread! Things I would add:

1. Take your time looking. Don't be hasty or emotional in your decision. You're making a big investment, and you may be living there for quite a while, so take your time choosing.

2. Try to avoid PMI insurance if possible (obviously it's not always possible, depends on finances).

3. Consider making a spreadsheet of the major cost centers of a house (the ones @Rob mentioned--roof, furnace, exterior paint/siding, interior paint, windows, etc., etc.) Find out when was the last time each major repair was done. Then look online to find out when you can reasonably expect to have to make that repair again, and how much it may cost. This will give you an idea of what expenses to expect after you move in.

4. If buying a condo, check how many condos there are, the percentage that are rented, and the makeup/authority of the condo board (and also of course the condo fees). Ask about the history of the condo board's decisions and how they worked out. I'd avoid condo associations that are too small--there may be interpersonal issues and other oddities.

5. Whatever you do, do NOT buy a fixer upper, unless you are very handy!

6. Walk around the neighborhood before buying, just to get a better sense of it.

7. Buy in a better neighborhood if you can, and if you don't have to make too many trade-offs to do so (space, etc.). It makes a big difference in your resale value. IME, if you make any updates to your home, you'll get more return on them if you're in a better neighborhood.

 

[rfisher]

And walk around the neighborhood in the late afternoon or evening. Most showings are during the day when the homeowners are at work along with the rest of the neighborhood. In the evenings, you'll see how many cars park on the street, how many kids are out and about. Are there sidewalks? Is it noisy?

 

[Rob]

Condos: find out about history of special assessments (to fix things like roof, HVAC, cracks, elevators, power lines, large items) and how much do they have in reserve, how long will that amount last for expenses.

 

[my little pony]

im not handy or domestic and I manage to outsource everything w/o going broke

I hated a lot about living in a townhouse, I cant be told what to do.

you dont have to have a lawn, ive been doing away with it bit by bit, give me 3 more years and it will be all gone

 

[Rob]

If there are sidewalks in front of your house, and a strip of grass between the side walk and the street, you have to maintain it and the county might prevent you from landscaping it due to water/sewer, run off, set back and other rules.

 

[acraven]

If someone else said this, I missed it: Unless you specifically hire a buyer's agent and pay his/her fee (percentage-based, I think), the agent you are working with is being paid by the seller. You should not expect the seller's agent to have your best interests at heart. It's best to assume the agent is thinking first about the size of the commission, which rises with the selling price of the property.

Watch out for potential drainage issues. You don't want to buy a house positioned in the lowest part of the neighborhood.

It doesn't sound like you're planning to buy a condominium apartment, but just in case: For condos it's critical to be sure the reserves (money set aside for repairs to roof, elevator, HVAC system, building plumbing, etc.) are being properly funded. That basically means that if a recent evaluation of the roof shows a probable 10-year remaining life, 1/10 of the cost of the roof replacement should be going in tothe reserve fund every year. There's great reluctance to increase condo fees, so many HOAs don't keep up with the reserve-fund requirements as they should, which leads to special assessments that can be in the thousands of dollars. Rented properties converted to condominiums are at particular risk, because the physical plant may be rather old, and you can be sure the former owners of the property walked away with any loose cash, so the HOA started with a reserve-fund balance of $0 despite the age of the various structural elements.

 

[smurfy]

Not related to loan...
but I found when I bought my first place (a townhouse) - lots of not big expenses came up that I had not planned.
Things like pots for plants and a few gardening tools. Moved in May and decided I wanted hanging plants and also planted some annuals by the front door and some pots on back deck.
Curtains/Window treatments (for privacy).
Painting - yes paint is cheap, but brushes/rollers etc and you do 4 rooms.
Broom (I had one - but that was for inside, but bought another one for the outside deck and front area).
And right after I moved in - a few things broke - had to buy a new faucet.
And bigger home, so utilities went up some - more space to heat/cool.
Dating myself - but had moved from a 1 bedroom to a multi level townhouse - bought some more land phones.
Individually not much, but $20 here, $50 here in many cases- and all of a sudden I have spent $500-1,000 more in a couple of months when I didn't budget properly.

 

[KCC]

@smurfy, I'd add buying buckets, a ladder, a few tools, one or two fix-it books and extra lights. Nothing huge, but I also spent about $100/month at the hardware store for the first year. You can probably cut that down a lot by buying things second hand or borrowing from neighbors.

 

[my little pony]

If there are sidewalks in front of your house, and a strip of grass between the side walk and the street, you have to maintain it and the county might prevent you from landscaping it due to water/sewer, run off, set back and other rules.

oh I just wear that down to the nub with an edger, though I have the advantage of it not growing for part of the year

you can get a lot of the random crap you need in a buy nothing group. I tell them I need x and someone always has extras and they are happy to get rid of them.

 

[Rogue]

I don't know if you'll qualify, but check into getting a Mortgage Credit Certificate. It can save you a ton in taxes. Basically, up to 20% of your mortgage interest can be used as a credit against your tax liability, with the remaining 80% deducted on Schedule A as an itemized deduction.

 

[Vash01]

Bumping up this thread because I have a question related to real estate.

I decided to sell my home and signed a contract with a realtor that I found through my Toastmaster friends. Prior to this, I had signed with another realtor but the house did not get sold in 2.5 months. The house is in one of the best locations, and it is quite good looking. This is a seller's market. I only got a couple of ridiculous offers from investors. I pulled the house off the market and hired another realtor.

Initially the second realtor sounded pretty good. He gave me advice on making some cosmetic changes (e.g. get some repairs done on the roof, remove broken tiles near my door, etc.) , but avoid big ones. As we went along, there were lots more repairs and/or other work to be done. I spent thousands of dollars on this. I even got the entire outside painted to make it more attractive, upon advice by realtor 2. Finally after the house went on the market, an offer came fairly quickly. It was not quite what I wanted, and I said that I did not like one part of the offer. So a revision was made to the offer.

Both realtors had done the comps before the house went on sale, so I knew what other simialr homes in my neighborhood were selling for. I had made no upgrades so I had to sell it for lower price than them.

The money in this case was less by about 6K below the appraised value (and 5K below the listed value) but it was not low enough to prompt outright rejection. I accepted it, after a lot of negotiations. Just when I thought we had a sale, things changed. After the inspection the buyer wanted the roof replaced before closing, for an estimated 9k (but it could be more after the work, since this was only an estimate). He wanted me to pay the entire cost. My realtor agreed with the buyer, and tried to convince me to accept it. I refused to accept unless I got xxx from the home. The buyer said he had no money, but he agreed to contribute 2K toward the roof replacement (when I said there would be no deal). I would have gotten 14K below the appraised value, if I had accepted the demand. Instead, I accepted 10K below appraised value, after extensive negotiations. It was very stressful for me. The stress was harder to deal with than getting less money.

A lot of the stress had to do with the realtor. The realtor had been condescending toward me, and he often agreed with the buyer. In retrospect I should have canceled the contract with him almost two months ago, but for some reason I continued with him. I feel that I agreed to the deal because I was totally stressed out and just wanted the whole process to end. My alternative would have been to say No, and stay in the house, but find another realtor who would be easier to work with (may be even get me a better deal). The thought of starting over for the 3rd time was not pleasant.

There is a good chance that I would deal with the same issues with the roof, with the next buyer. The condition of the roof is not so bad that someone cannot live under it for 3-5 years, based on my conversation with a roofer who had worked on it this year. Eventually it will need repairs. I am willing to live under it for a few years (before doing expensive repairs) as there is no immediate threat. The buyer wants it replaced before closing, with a 10-year warranty. I had the chance to just say no but I didn't because my realtor kept telling me that this was a good deal.

Although we have not yet agreed on the closing date, we are at a point where I wrote in an email to my realtor that the deal was acceptable to me. He communicated that to the buyer's agent. I was contacted by the title company to sign the escrow papers. I was never really happy with this deal, but I accepted it, because I was so fed up.

Earlier today I was talking to a friend. She said the realtor is not very good because he is not negotiating to get me more money. He just wants his commission (he refused my request to take less in commission). If I am not happy with the deal, I should consider backing out of it, but I should ask for advice to see if it is legally allowed to back out of it at this stage.

Another friend seemed to think that I have dealt with this stressful situation for a long time and even though the sale ($) is not entirely to my satisfaction, I should accept it and move on with my life.

I am evaluating both scenarios before making the final decision, but is it too late?

Would I get sued by the buyer and/or the realtors on both sides? If I said that I am not comfortable with this deal and I accepted it only because I was under duress, is that a good enough reason to back out of this deal? I need to consider not just what the norm is in real estate deals, but also the legal risk involved if I cancel this.

I do plan on talking to three realtors (and perhaps a lawyer friend if I can find his phone number) that I had met in the past (friends of friends), but as usual I want to see what fsuers think. I know that the collective brain power here is enormous.

Anyone has experience on similar situations, or just opinions?

 

[genevieve]

If you signed contracts with either RE agent, check the fine print. In my area most agents have a clause that say if you break your contract and sell your home within x amount of time (like 6 months), they still get a commission.

 

[Debbie S]

Talk to a lawyer, not a real estate agent. If you signed a contract with the new terms, you may be stuck. If you haven't signed anything, you could walk. In some states, you can even back out of a signed contract within a certain amount of days for any reason. But you need to talk to a lawyer to find out your options in your state.

 

[Spun Silver]

I'm not sure I understand. You are not replacing the roof yourself, are you? The numbers in your post are about the cost of replacing the roof, which the buyer will do?

It's complete normal for buyers to negotiate reductions after their inspections. A roof is a big-ticket item that buyers will tend to be anxious about. So your buyer's reaction is normal, if your roof is old.

I've been through this a lot. It's indeed very, very stressful. It's entirely possible that your realtor did not do well by you. But in the long run, $4000 (the difference between the initial price and the post-inspection price) is nothing compared to the overall price of the home or the stress of facing a lawsuit when you are in the midst of selling a house, buying a new one, and moving. And that house is in the past now. Focus on the future -- you will have similar issues and stresses when buying your next home (if you are buying again). Hopefully you can learn from this experience, use your inspection to your advantage, and negotiate a good, fair price for your new home.

 

[Vash01]

I'm not sure I understand. You are not replacing the roof yourself, are you? The numbers in your post are about the cost of replacing the roof, which the buyer will do?

It's complete normal for buyers to negotiate reductions after their inspections. A roof is a big-ticket item that buyers will tend to be anxious about. So your buyer's reaction is normal, if your roof is old.

I've been through this a lot. It's indeed very, very stressful. It's entirely possible that your realtor did not do well by you. But in the long run, $4000 (the difference between the initial price and the post-inspection price) is nothing compared to the overall price of the home or the stress of facing a lawsuit when you are in the midst of selling a house, buying a new one, and moving. And that house is in the past now. Focus on the future -- you will have similar issues and stresses when buying your next home (if you are buying again). Hopefully you can learn from this experience, use your inspection to your advantage, and negotiate a good, fair price for your new home.

Actually they were asking that I pay for the roof replacement myself (100 percent). My realtor didn’t try to negotiate with them until I told him that I would not sell the home under those terms. Then he managed to get a 2k discount on the roof replacement and 2k discount on the closing costs fir the buyer (they had wanted me to pay 5k toward their closing costs).

You may be right that I should avoid further stress about getting sued. I need to talk to an attorney for sure, as couple of posters suggested.

The difference between pre and post inspection is 5k Estimated 9k for roof minus the 4K they finally agreed to, but it is not a guarantee. If the roof work costs more, I will have to pay for it. In the larger scheme of things 5k is a small percentage of the cost of the house. It seems the buyer’s agent did a good job but mine did not. Couple months ago I had seriously considered terminating the contract with this agent because he was mean to me, and I should have done that. It could have spared me a lot of stress. Only when he saw that he may not get anything at all if I refused to sell the home, he made the effort to negotiate with the buyer.

BTW there is no minimum time limit in the contract I signed with Realtor 2. The first realtor had a six months contract but he released me from it as soon as I told him that I wanted to pull the house off the market.

I have decided that my next home would be a new construction (my current home was also a new construction home when I bought it long ago). So we won’t be talking about repairs. That’s one way to avoid the unpleasantness and stress.

 

[Vash01]

Talk to a lawyer, not a real estate agent. If you signed a contract with the new terms, you may be stuck. If you haven't signed anything, you could walk. In some states, you can even back out of a signed contract within a certain amount of days for any reason. But you need to talk to a lawyer to find out your options in your state.

In AZ that time limit is 72 hours, based on my experience with the time share purchase. I am sure I am long past that limit.