REMERGE Transaction Coordinators is very pleased to announce its affiliation with and endorsement of American Home Shields, the premiere Home Warranty Company!

American Home Shield (AHS) founded the home warranty industry over 30 years ago and has continued to be the industry leader and innovator in terms of quality service and protection for homeowners. Including an AHS home warranty plan is one of the most constructive and economical methods of helping to strengthen a home's asking price. Home warranties are a valuable asset to Agents, Sellers and Buyers.

AHS home warranties offer valuable protection on major systems and appliances including, home heating, plumbing, electrical and central air conditioning systems coverage that gives Buyers security as well as reducing Agent and Seller liability. Coverage is for systems and appliances in good working order at the start of the contract. Preexisting conditions are not covered.

The price for AHS Basic Coverage is $225 for a condo and $255 for a single family residence. There is a $45 fee per service call. Options such as A/C, roof, pool spa, etc are additional. If you would like a copy of an AHS brochure, please submit your request by e-mail: shelly@remerge.com. Subject: AHS Brochure

AHS COVERAGE FOR BUYERS

The availability of a home warranty plan is a feature of the purchase agreement, RPA-CA. A home warranty is highly recommended. However, it is not mandatory. Either the Seller or Buyer or Agent can pay the premium.

Generally though, the Buyer requests that the Seller pays the premium for a 12-month home warranty service contract with a "not to exceed" amount. The cost varies according to the options that the Buyer selects. Generally, the Seller agrees to pay the 12-month premium. The Buyer, then, has a fixed $45 service fee for every call on items covered in the home warranty plan. It is important that the Agent names the specific options to be covered in the home warranty plan on the contract.

Buyer's Side: Designate American Home Shield as the Buyer's home warranty service provider on the purchase agreement.

Seller's Side: When you write "Seller's choice of services" on a counter offer, it allows the Seller (and Seller's Agent) to change some or all the vendor services named in the purchase agreement.

This includes but is not limited to: escrow, title, zone disclosure, home warranty, termite etc.

AHS COVERAGE FOR SELLERS

The Buyer's Agent has a duty to make the Buyer aware of the availability of a home warranty plan for his new resale home just by reviewing purchase agreement with the him. Did you know that the Seller's Agent also has a duty to make the Seller aware of the availability of a home warranty plan for his home while it is in the listing and escrow stage?

Property and appliances have an uncanny way of stressing, clogging and breaking the moment the FOR SALE sign goes up! Now, the Seller too can enjoy the protection of AHS coverage for specific repairs from the point of listing through the close of escrow, for less than 1/2 the cost of a cup of Starbuck's coffee a day. The policy is invoiced to escrow on a per day basis (The standard policy for property under 5000 sq. ft. = 70 cents for single family residence or 62 cents for condo) and there is no charge if the property cancels escrow.

REMERGE TC COVERAGE FOR AGENTS

REMERGE TC includes the AHS Seller's Coverage brochure in the Seller's Disclosure Package (SDP). The Seller will sign a waiver if he elects to not order AHS coverage for his listed home. Likewise, the Buyer will sign a waiver in the event that the purchase agreement does not include a home warranty plan.

Governor Schwarzenegger recently signed into law Assembly Bill 920, Legislation sponsored by C.A.R. which makes minor but beneficial changes to the Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement (NHD). Specifically, AB 920 benefits REALTORS® by changing the NHD to enable a Seller and his or her Agent to disclose that the information in the NHD was prepared by a third-party company as a "substituted disclosure," and not by the Seller or Agent.

AB 920 streamlines the NHD law without significantly impacting REALTOR® practices. Unfortunately, AB 920 has been incorrectly characterized by some disclosure providers and other private interests as including a higher standard in selection of disclosure companies by real estate professionals and increasing liability for real estate agents. This is not the case. If anything:
The AB 920 bill reinforces the responsibility of the disclosure companies making these substitute disclosures and requires them to sign their own work.

To assist REALTORS® in understanding how AB 920 changes the NHD law, C.A.R. offers a side-by-side comparison chart detailing disclosure laws as they currently exist and as they will exist after AB 920 takes effect on January 1, 2005. This chart is available on C.A.R. Online www.car.org .

REMERGE TC TIP OF THE MONTH - LOCAL DISCLOSURES

You can rely on REMERGE TC to keep your transaction files current with C.A.R. and D.R.E. mandatory and recommended disclosures. However, your area may also have recommended local disclosures that we need your help to get.

Over the years, REMERGE TC clients from many areas of California have submitted local disclosures to us. As a result, REMERGE TC has a growing library of local disclosures for many areas throughout California. Even though it is a formidable collection, it is by no means comprehensive. We depend on your input to provide you with the best disclosure protection available.

When you are aware of a disclosure(s) local to your area, please fax a blank copy to: 949-582-7885 or e-mail to: shelly@remerge.com. Designate to which geographical area(s) the disclosure should be applied. We will research as to whether it is still in effect or has been updated. We can then add it to the REMERGE TC Local Disclosure Library and include it in all transaction files that belong to that area.

DECEMBER 2004 ISSUE:

Meet the REMERGE TC Coordinators!! Photos and bios of the Top Coordinators in the industry!