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Tips on Buying Your First Home

Tips on Buying Your First Home

Most of us desire to one day take the leap from renting into owning your own home. Like many things in life, there is always a first time. Buying a home involves a lot of research, paperwork, back and forth with agents, and many others. All of these are, of course, on top of the stress of logistics while still keeping up with your daily routine. Here are a few tips that can help give you a bird’s eye view on the whole process:

Hire a Diligent Real Estate Agent

Hiring an agent may not be mandatory. However, before deciding on not having one, here are a few most common real estate agent services that can save you a lot of time and headache.

  • They’ll do the research for you. You can get all the listings that fit your parameters for you to choose from. Especially if they specialized in a particular area, chances are that they have already come across and are familiar with some properties more than just an MLS listing.
  • Agents are usually fully aware of new listings even before they get on the market.
  • The agent will tour you around your prospect properties. That’s free gas!
  • Agents are more simply more experienced. This is what they do every day. They can determine the worth of a property and advise you accordingly. This ensures that you are getting the best prices possible.

Find Your Next Home

Finding a home is not as simple as it sounds as it can be a very daunting and exhausting process. Do not overwhelm yourself by checking out more than 7 homes at a time. Statistics show that going beyond this number will just convolute your list with houses that don’t meet your criteria.

Most times, buyers spend ample time researching on the internet before checking out the homes. According to the National Association of REALTORS, buyers spend 6 to 8 weeks, deciding where it is that they want to live. Once an area is chosen, buyers typically make their final decision after 2 to 3 more tours within the narrowed down list.

Get a Mortgage Approval (Ahead of Time)

Get a loan pre-approval ahead of time. This will help you decide your maximum budget. In addition, sellers would typically prioritize buyers who have already taken this step ahead of time. As sellers, they just want to unload their property as soon as possible to the best offer.

For first time home buyers, it is recommended you go for the FHA loan as it is more affordable to pay the minimum down payment when compared to that of conventional loans. But if you prefer foreclosures, REO banks will take you as a priority.

Compare Home Prices

At the end of the day, buyers dictate the price. When sellers price their property too high, it just simply won’t sell. There are always going to be comparables and a number of buyers that will eventually normalize the price down to what it should be. Alternatively, your real estate agent can examine any pending sales and provide you with comparable sales. Comparable properties are houses within the same location with similar conditions that were sold within the last three months. This is one of the major factors of determining the most accurate and appropriate price for a property.

If you want a property that happens to be sought after by a lot of potentials, you might have to increase your offer. However, with an experienced agent, you can still have a good chance of securing the property without necessarily being the highest bidder. The price of a property might be the most important factor to the seller. However, a seasoned real estate agent is able to pinpoint the other important factors in the overall transaction that can incentivize the seller to go with you.

Inspect the Home

Home inspection varies in different states. In some, it is done before the purchase order; in others, it is a contract contingency that arms the buyer with the right to back out of the contract if need be. Keep in mind that sellers are not bound by law to make fixes. A home inspection is mainly to show the buyer the condition of the house as accurately as possible. However, buyers always have the option to request the seller to cover all or some of the repair expenses. If the demands are reasonable, the sellers most likely cooperate to close the sale.

Feel free to contact any one of our local Remax Top Producer agents or call us directly at 909.569.8363 if you need assistance – we are here to help. We specialize in the following areas: Walnut, Diamond Bar, Rowland Heights, West Covina, Chino Hills, and Chino.