The 10 Steps of the Home Buying Process
Buying a home should be fun, not stressful. As you look for the right home for you, keep in mind these tips for making the process as smooth as possible.
Home Search Tips
Get pre-approved for a mortgage. This is the first thing to do before starting your home search. Talking with a lender and getting pre-approved will help you determine how much you qualify for (what the bank is willing to lend you) and how much home you can afford (how much you are comfortable paying each month), as well as how much you will need for your downpayment and closing costs. Getting pre-approved before you start looking at homes, will save you the heartache of falling in love with a house that you later find out you can't afford.
Research before you look. Decide what features you most want to have in a home, what neighborhoods you prefer, and how much you'd be willing to spend each month for housing.
Be realistic. It's OK to be picky, but don't be unrealistic with your expectations. There's no such thing as a perfect home. Use your list of priorities as a guide to evaluate each property.
Decide your moving timeline. When is your lease up? Do you have a home you need to sell prior to buying your next home? How tight is the rental market in your area? All of these factors will help you determine when you should move.
Think long term. Are you looking for a starter house with plans to move up in a few years, or do you hope to stay in this home for a longer period? This decision may dictate what type of home you'll buy as well as the type of mortgage terms that will best suit you.
Always have a home inspection. A home inspection is to find any significant issues that the seller may not have known about and which may save you from buying a home that has significant (and possibly expensive) issues. Additionally, it will give you the peace of mine that you know exactly what is going on with the home and the real condition it is in when you buy it.
Get help from a Real Estate Agent. Work with a real estate professional (like Christian Harris) who will represent you and your best interests. Unlike a listing agent, whose first duty is to the seller, a buyer's agent is working only for you and your best interest. Buyer's agents are paid out of the sellers commission payment and therefore it doesn't actually cost you anything as a home buyer to have an agent working for you.
The Significance of Interest Rates
As rates increase, the price of the home you can afford will decrease.
With every 1% interest rate increase, you loose approximately $40,000 in purchasing power.
Example: If a P&I mortgage payment of $2,000 bought you a $400,000 home, after a rate increase of 1%, that same payment will now only buy you a $360,000 home
Why You Want To Work With Us
Why should I work with you to help me find and purchase a home? I'm glad you asked.
Every Buyer wants to know 3 things of their agent:
Can I trust you?
How are you different than other agents?
How will you find & get me into my new home?
Click the button below to see exactly how we are different then most Brokers and Agents...
Click on the link below to send me a message and let's get to work
