Dear Edith: Back in the late '70s, I was searching for a home in New England. In one ad, the house was listed with 1 and a quarter baths. When I asked the real estate agent what that meant, I was told the property included an outhouse (one quarter). I guess at that time it was a fairly common practice. -- C."
I answered: "And that, I should think, is a great finish to the number-of-baths discussion." And you see, it did end the discussion for more than a year till I received your e-mail.
Paying The Insurance
Dear Edith: My wife and I refinanced a four-unit property. Taxes and insurance were included in our mortgage payment. Each year our insurance carrier sends a fire insurance invoice to be paid by the insured (us) for three of the units. The entire property tax is paid by the mortgage company. Our impound escrow account has a balance each year. Are my wife and I obligated to continue to pay fire insurance for this property? Can we ask our lender to use impound account funds to pay premiums? Are we able to recover funds that have been collected and not disbursed to our fire insurance carrier? -- J.
Answer: First of all, talk with your insurance agent or directly with the company, to find out if the whole building is covered by insurance. That "insured for three units" makes me nervous. And while you're talking with them, say that you want bills sent directly to the mortgage company from now on.
That won't save you anything, though. The money in that escrow account belongs to you. It's being held to pay your bills. If it runs short once it starts paying insurance premiums, you'll have to make bigger monthly payments to fill the account again.