Lydia Player's Q&A

Good luck with this. Their advice is to be 'active' on Zillow. I've been active for 4 years and contributed more than any agent in my zip code. A zillow sales rep calls me every couple of months to sell me a showcase ad. My response has always been, make me a 'local expert' and I'll consider it. Several nice ad reps have told me how to do it (contribute to the q&a) however the local experts in Dallas haven't contributed and I have. There are local experts with 1 listing and 0 contributions.No one seems to have the magic answer to this perplexing issue. If zillow wants us to take them seriously and spend our time contributing to their site, they need to take a look at this 'local expert' program.

Check out the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act and Debt Cancellation section of the IRS web page. It can be found here: http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=179414,00.htmlThe lender may issue the mortgagee a 1099 tax form for the shorted difference between what is owed on the property (balance plus penalties and legal fees) and what they sell it for in a foreclosure auction. This gives the IRS the amount of debt forgiveness and what they will owe taxes for. The IRS is pretty good at collecting tax debt.But often the lender will try to collect the loss (plus penalties and legal fees) from the defaulting party. And the negative impact on one's credit history is devastating.

Short answer  - no. I don't know of any bank or mortgage brokerage that would accept a 'zestimate' as an accurate value.

This property is not currently listed for sale in MLS. The owner does not occupy the property either.

The best investment really depends. Are you looking for raw land? Are you looking for an investment property to lease for a few years? How much do you have to invest and how long are you willing to hold it?Generallly, the Preston Hollow area is a better location and the land will hold its value and/or increase at a higher rate. That said, areas north of 635 (like Northwood Hills) offer some excellent buys right now with a lot of upside potential.You need to consider the location within the area as well. Investing in a new construction home on a busy corner (like Preston Road) would not be as good as a fixer-upper on a golf courses north of LBJ. Values in Preston Hollow vary a great deal and they always have. Many people routinely refer to areas of North Dallas as Preston Hollow when they are not. Lot sizes are a big determining factor in Preston Hollow pricing and you should work with a Realtor who really knows the area. Throw out a few street names and see if the agent knows where they are. This will tell you how well the agent knows the housing inventory in the area.www.PrestonHollowDirt.com

A licensed inspector or a structural engineer can give you an idea about the foundation. If the house is a pier & beam foundation, they will crawl under the space to inspect. Unless you are able to contact the builder (who has a warranty), you have no other way of knowing.

Do a google or yahoo search using your county name and followed by "country appraisal district". You can look up the information by address. Don't rely on tax appraisal information to give you an accurate market value.Good Luck.

There is a place on the property page that allows you to report or flag the property. You should do this immediately and report the agent to your local MLS. A Realtor could loose their license (and/or be fined) for representing that they have a listing to sell a property when they do not. Good Luck.

I'm not sure who has placed this value on your property. If it is zillow, don't worry about that. The 'zestimate' is typicallly inacurate. If it is the Dallas Central Appraisal District, then be thankful you are paying less tax that you could be.If you are trying to sell your home, then you need a competent Realtor to give you a comparative market analysis of your property or you should hire a professional appraiser.

Yes, the seller can consider other offers and negotiate and accept a back up contract. The sellers agent may not disclose anything in the other offer without the seller's permission. Perhaps the other offer is higher - or maybe they're just bluffing.Either way, you are the only party the position to make the purchasing decision at this point (while you are in the option period). If you don't like the terms, walk away. If you want the house, you may have to forget about the $2300 in repairs.