Buyer's Guide
With the swelling number of available homes in the market, you would think that buying one is a walk in the park. On the contrary, home-buying can be complicated, especially for first-time buyers who know next to nothing about the process. Fortunately, here is a simple enough and straightforward guide to help you sail through the home-buying process swimmingly.
1. Learn the search process
Of course, how do you expect to find the home you want if you have no clue where to start looking? If you are like millions of other buyers, you will use the internet to use for your search. The web is filled with real-estate information, including vast MLS listings that can help you zero-in on the property you need in a specific city.
2. Hire an agent or assemble a team
You can buy the house on your own, that’s a fact. However, if it’s your first time buying a house, you will certainly benefit from the experience and expertise of a reliable and competent real estate agent. But if you want to up the ante and improve the success of your home-buying mission, assemble a team of professionals. Aside from an agent, hire a mortgage broker to help you with the financing. A home inspector and appraiser will also prove their worth later in the process. Lastly, you will find a real-estate lawyer tremendously useful when dealing with the title company and other legalities of the home-buying process.
3. Visit properties
Choices are important when it comes to buying a home. You need to have a list of candidates that you can consider. In fact, homebuyers visit at least an average of three homes per week. You need to realize that certain events can impede your chances of getting the home you want. And in order to anticipate such circumstances, you have to have a backup plan in the form of reserved real-estate considerations.
Most importantly, however, visit the property yourself – in person. Even if listings provide you with enough visual information, nothing beats the experience of visiting your potential purchase physically. But aside from the experience, visiting the homes yourself can give you a lot of insight regarding the home as well as the neighborhood.
4. Set your contingencies
Before you make an offer, work closely with your agent to draw up contingencies. Three of the most important things to always include are home inspection, deed or title and appraisal. You may also set contingency on financing, which can give you plenty of time to come up with the money to finish the purchase. And in a buyer’s market, there is no harm in requesting extras from the seller.
5. Find financing and close
Many would tell you to get preapproved before looking at available home. While getting a preapproved mortgage can indeed help you buy a home post-haste, not everyone can get it. As such, you need to give yourself plenty of time to shop for the right financing. Get quotes from different lenders and always keep your eyes peeled for excellent rates and loan terms. Most importantly, leverage your credit score and ability to pay for a substantial down payment to help you land the best deal.
And once you are about to close on your dream home, try to relax because all that is left for you to do is to work closely with the title company and start packing your things because soon you'll have the keys to your new home. Enjoy!
