Tip of the Day 

If a problem shows up during a "walk through" prior to settlement such as an appliance that doesn't work properly, an air conditioning system that won't cool the house thoroughly, or an area of loose tiles under the place where the washer used to be, and you agree to escrow funds to cover the repairs (or pay an allowance to the seller with which to take care of it himself), how do you decide how much money is needed for escrow or the allowance? Call a couple of people who do that kind of work, explain what's needed, and ask for a ballpark figure. The seller will probably want to use the lowest figure. The buyer will want to slightly pad the highest number. Not settling on time is so disruptive that it is usually best to go with what the buyer wants. Even if his number is on the high side, it is probably a very small percentage of the whole price. And the seller (however inadvertently) did fail to deliver the home in the condition agreed.