This week I closed escrow on 1004A Los Gamos, a co-op in Terra Linda called San Rafael Manor. It was quite the journey. I’ve represented buyers in San Rafael Manor before, but this was the first time I worked with a seller and it was much more complex than a typical sale. Let me start by saying, I think San Rafael Manor is a great place to live. There is lots to love about it, but getting in/out can be a challenge.
While preparing for the sale, I did the normal stuff I like to do with homes. I had it it painted, put in some new carpet and flooring, and I had it staged to sell. Because there was damage, we also replaced the tub and surround, which was more of a hassle than it needed to be. First of all, a neighbor called the City to make sure we had applied for a permit. Not only had I submitted a permit application with the City, I had also sent the plans to the Co-op in advance. I thought I had the bureaucracy covered. However, the contractor went ahead and did the replacement while I was out of town and before we got the formal okay from the Co-op. The contractor wasn’t going to wait however many weeks until the board got around to reviewing the plans, and it was a basic replacement job anyway. So, I smoothed it over with the Co-op and we kept moving towards the close of escrow.
When the City Resale Inspector came through, I found myself in more hot water. Although my seller had purchased the home with a remodeled kitchen, the City hadn’t call it out on the previous resale inspection. Ten years later they were calling it out on us, and I had to get a permit for the previous owner’s remodel. I’ve gotten lots of retroactive permits before, but I needed to get a drawing for the kitchen and that took a little doing. Then I was sweating out whether they were going to ask for any retrofits, which would have been another project and more expense, but fortunately they okayed it as it was built. What really got me about that situation was that the Co-op had allowed the previous owners to do the kitchen remodel without a permit. Why had they gotten on my case about the bathroom when I got a permit and I submitted the plans to them, but they let the previous owner slide with the kitchen remodel? Where were the nosy neighbors calling the City back when we needed them!
There was another level of complexity to this transaction. The previous owner had passed away with a will and not a trust. We had to get the property, which technically was a stock certificate because it’s a Co-op, put into a trust. Then we had to get court approval to sell it without going through probate. There were delays with the court, and we accepted the buyer’s offer on June 21st , but couldn’t close until the end of August. I don’t usually do the two-month escrows. The timing worked out in the buyer’s favor though, as interest rates came down significantly while waiting.
When it was all said and done, I was grateful to be of service. Challenges are one of the many things that make my job interesting and rewarding. I also really enjoy helping people, and people needed a lot of help on this one.
*** Thank you for reading my blog! If you or any of your friends and family ever have any real estate questions, please feel free to contact me at andyfalk2112@yahoo.com or 415-250-8025. I’m always happy to help!