New Jersey Real Estate Agent

Be careful when preparing your Princeton home for sale, especially if you consider  working with contractors on home improvement projects. Princeton Real Estate blog provides tips, news and information on local real estate in Princeton, West Windsor, Montgomery, Lawrenceville (and other surrounding towns). Many Princeton home sellers ask me about whether and what kind of home improvements they should undertake before putting the house for sale.
Read: Why some Princeton homes sell fast
    One sure way kill your Princeton home sale

As a publisher and author of this blog I talk to colleagues across the country to bring the best available information to my readers. Today's article comes to us from Irena Netchaev, real estate agent in Pasadena, Ca. Being a Realtor Irena knew what needs to be done prior to putting her house for sale.  These are the same things you could consider when preparing your Princeton area home for sale. 

She was planning to "get it painted inside and out, change out some bathroom fixtures, update handles on kitchen drawers and cabinets, change out some light fixtures and do little things here and there to make the house perfect for the new buyers. "
 
Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan. The contractor was  unprofessional, or more crudely put, a crook.  Not only did he not do a good job, he did not pay his subcontractors. This action in many states including New Jersey makes homeowner vulnerable to a New Jersey Construction Lien, which in New Jersey replaced the old Mechanic's Lien.

Construction Lien is a lien a contractors could file against Princeton real estate (or any other New Jersey homes)  if their bill was not payed. The subcontractors could also file such a lien, if they were not payed by the homeowner or the general contractor.  

When you are preparing to sell your Princeton area home, or for that matter at any other time, you do not want any such liens against your home. New Jersey does not have a General Contractor licensing board, so you need to be extra careful when hiring a contractor.

Here are some of the ideas to help you:

• Get a minimum of three references.  Go out and take a look physically at thier past work.
• Get at least three bids.
• Get a written contract and don't sign anything until you completely understand the terms.
• Never pay more than 10% down or $1,000 whichever is less.
• Don't let your payments get ahead of their work.  Keep records of payments.
• Don't make a final payment until you're satisfied with the job.
• Don't pay cash.
• Keep a job file of all papers relating to your project.

California State License board recommends the following to avoid Construction Lien being filed against your property. NJ does not have such a board for general contractors, but recommendations seem applicable:

• Make sure your contractor hires only licensed subcontractors, and check their licenses, too
• Check up on your prime contractors reputation for payment and lawsuits at the local courthouse, suppliers, and subcontractors;
• Get a list of all subcontractors, laborers, and materials suppliers to be used by your prime contractor.
• The simplest way to prevent liens is to pay with joint checks.
• Compare the contractor's bill for materials or labor, compare it to the schedule of payments in your contract and the Preliminary 20-Day Notices
• Make sure that work was done as described
• Make out the check to both the contractor and the supplier, or subcontractor.
• Both parties will have to endorse the check, which will ensure that the subcontractors and suppliers get paid.

The final recommendation is to get a signed conditional release from all possible lien claimants, before making final payments. For each portion of the work you could request your contractor to provide unconditional release signed by all claimants.

Contractors in NJ are required to file all the appropriate documentation within 90 days from the last date of work, services, material or equipment was provided.

If you have problems that may result in Construction Liens consult an attorney about your legal rights. 

Get input from a Princeton real estate agent, if you would like to know what specific  home improvement projects  would make sense for your home.

If you want to find out more about selling your Princeton home read:

Princeton Homes For Sale -Real Estate Housing Report -Second Quarter 2008

Princeton NJ Homes For Sale - How To Find Information Real Estate Information You Can trust

Secrets to Selling Your Princeton Homes For Sale Like An Agent


Faina Sechzer does not guarantee or is in any way responsible for accuracy of the information on this site, and provides said information without warranties of any kind, either expressed or implied. Every consumer is urged to perform their own research and analysis.

Copyright ©2008 Faina Sechzer All rights reserved. This information cannot be copied, reproduced, transmitted, distributed, displayed or published.

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