Buying a home is a learning experience. The real estate market can be a volatile environment, presenting both opportunities and uncertainties that demand knowledge and expert guidance from a variety of professionals in the industry.
When buying a home, you must first take ownership of the buying process before taking ownership of a property. Having enough money for a down payment AND the closing costs are essential.
- An experienced real estate professional may also negotiate to have the seller contribute to the buyer’s closing costs. (Happy dance!)
- Some specific government loans, for example, often require the seller to assist you with closing costs. When this arrangement becomes a part of the contract, you will typically pay a slightly higher sales price for the seller to agree to an upfront contribution to their closing costs. In essence, some or all of the closing costs are being “rolled into” the purchase price
Your first buying trip
Matching the inventory of homes with your expectations can go in one of two ways.
- Either the home will overwhelm you (a good experience)
- or underwhelm you (a disappointment) in regards to what you are looking for
This is where the fantasy of the dream home collides with the reality of what is actually for sale.
It’s entirely possible that you working with a skilled Realtor® will identify your ideal home within the first few showings
- At the end of the day, expect to spend some time with your Realtor® to review the homes you have seen
- It’s a good idea to establish a benchmark by which all other homes are compared, as well as a second or third choice
- When there are subsequent days of viewing homes, it’s always a good plan to go back and see one or two of the favorites from the first excursion. This will keep them fresh in your mind as a good basis of comparison
Weeding Out the Chaff
By now you should have a good feel for what you are looking for:
- The size
- Condition
- And extra features of a home in your price range
Shopping by comparison is a process of elimination – weeding out the chaff. You know what you want. Eliminating the homes that do not fit most (if not all) your criteria is important. Many potential buyers miss out on a home due to inaction. This stems from having too many homes to choose from.
Once you find the home of your dreams, it’s time to make the offer. Next month, we’ll go over the do’s and don’ts of offers.
