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Before Looking
Before you actively look at homes to buy, it's necessary to know
how much you can qualify for. Use mortgage calculators to determine
how much you can buy with your down payment and closing cost money
and what your monthly payments will be.
Know Your Credit Worthness
Look at your credit report before you go to a lender. It is not
uncommon to find problems with reports, especially if you have a
common last name.
To get copies of your credit report, start at My FICO Score.
Get Pre-Approved
After you see your credit report and any problems are cleared up,
get pre-approved with a lender. Take the steps necessary to get
a letter from the lender stating you are "pre-approved"
for a loan in a specific price range. It's important to have this
letter before you make a contract offer to buy real estate. Once
your pre-approved, you know what price range of homes you should
be looking at.
What Kind of House is Right?
Determine the specifics you want or need in a home.
- What are your day to day and future needs?
- Do you enjoy swinging a hammer?
- Older houses have great charm, but may need updating.
- New homes offer the latest energy efficiency and design features.
- Larger lots can give room for additions and swimming pools.
- A fixer upper can dramatically increase in worth.
- A PUD may have private recreational facilities such as a pool
and play parks.
- A condo or town-house will relieve you of yard work and exterior
maintenance.
Sit down with your real estate agent and make up a wants and needs
list. Knowing your price range, your agent can determine in what
neighborhoods or towns to start looking. You may find that you are
limited to where you look based on your situation.
There is no sense in wasting your or your agent's time in areas
out of your price range.
Wants and Needs
- Price range
- Building style/design
- New construction
- Remodeled
- Fixer upper
- Minimum # bedrooms
- Bathrooms
- Family room
- Fire place
- Office/den
- Hardwood floors
- Swimming pool / Spa
- In-law quarters
- Workshop
- Central air conditioning
- Parking facilities
- Yard size
- School district
- Work locations
- Special zoning or location
With a list of houses that you can afford to buy, drive-by them
and check out the surrounding neighborhood. Next make an appointment
with your real estate agent to view the interior of the ones you
are interested in.
After you have narrowed your selection to few houses it is important
to visit them at different times of the day. Visit them during the
morning commute time. If you visit only during the middle of the
day, you might not notice if the street in front of the home is
used as a minor thoroughfare or a shortcut. This is also a good
time to find out how you emerge from you residential area into traffic
on a thoroughfare or how long it takes for freeway access. Go back
after dark and walk around the block. You might notice that headlights
from approaching traffic shine into the home or hear sounds from
a nearby night club or park that you were not aware of.
After previewing a number of homes, you will want to preview some
a second time.
This is the time to make measurements, ask questions and make a
closer self-inspection.
When you want to make an offer, ask your agent for sales comps to
arrive at an offering price.
A "seller's market" or "buyer's market" can
have big effect on how much to offer. There is no sense in making
a low offer on a well priced home in a seller's market.
A properly written contract will allow a buyer a number of outs
if certain items are not met or approved. Get a copy of a typical
real estate contract prior to making an offer and have your agent
go over it with you.
To find out what prices homes are listed for in areas you are considering,
go to the different Internet listing sites and make searches for
properties.
After you are pre-approved for a loan and are ready to buy in the
South County area, get signed up with my Listing Alert System. Once
signed up, all new MLS listings (in the price range and your preferences)
will automatically be emailed to you as soon as they come on the
market.
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