First Time Home Buyer Tips


First Time Home Buyer Tips
The First time home buyer experience can be a pleasant one despite what you may have heard. Of course, this will all depend on how prepared you are in terms of knowledge in the subject matter.


Buying a home is probably the biggest purchase you will ever make so it makes sense to educate yourself before diving in to it. Here are some tips that can help you.


Be Ready and Expect to Act Quickly
Today’s market is a strong seller’s market. If your agent is telling you that you need to act now quickly, its not because he wants to hurry and make his commission. It’s because it couldn’t be any truer. It is very common now for there to be bidding wars where the home sells for more than the original listing price. If you can get an offer in at a sweet spot, like before an open house weekend, then do it quickly with your offer expiring before the open house. This way, the seller needs to decide on your offer beforehand. If your offer is fair, the seller will usually accept it in my experience.


Most people do not know this but, all commissions on the sale of a house are paid by the seller. There is not benefit in not having a real estate agent on your side. When a home is listed for sale, the seller agrees to a percentage of the sales price for the commission. Usually 6%. The seller’s agent would get the full 6% if there were no buyer agent with you. If you did have an agent, the 6% is split in half, 3% to the seller’s agent and 3% to your agent. So either way whether you have an agent or not, the seller is still paying the same amount on commission. Having a real estate agent protecting your interests is a must when buying a home.


Get Pre-Approved for a Loan Before Starting a Home Search
This is a common mistake made by first time home buyers. Before you do anything, you have to know how much house you can afford right? How much home you can afford will be determined by your credit, your income, your debts, and your down payment. A mortgage broker will be able to analyze all your information and give you options on your approval. Mortgage brokers also have access to government and private first time home buyer programs that can assist you with down payment and/or closing costs. Once you have your pre-approval, you can begin searching for homes in that price range. Offers made to sellers will likely have to be accompanied with your pre-approval so make sure you have a copy.


Be Prepared to Lose a Home or Two in the process
From my experience, it is common for a buyer to really like a home and even begin the steps in making an offer just to find out the seller accepted another offer that same day. If you find a home you really like, it can be tempting to keep looking at more homes just in case there is something better, and if not, come back to that one. In my experience, buyers that have taken this risk have almost always lost the opportunity to make an offer on that home. Your agent should be able to look at certain information to have a better idea, like how long the home has been on the market for example.


Factor in all Expenses in Your Monthly Payment
Remember that you have to include in your desired monthly payment, property taxes, mortgage insurance (if applicable), and home insurance. All these items will total in your monthly payment. Make sure to ask your mortgage broker if the quoted monthly payment includes these items.

Resources:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yQs_dUjTWle8L2W7NQ-scTXi7YVHHnjuMgUS8deN3uQ/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/11ug8bOL7WUE-F6_pLSA_w2nBaVr6Qp0foOYA-JQM3UU/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KJN5HgDfJE5MTaxsDaX39ftbzqdNvyZBz276Ax4Qa8c/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wLZM05Il_VfUbG7PIIguS3p-D1CI0vhr0u8S4kZbI8Y/edit
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eZbStXfzvHuY0NSdBnvkbQEylX6dbz6Fcf825lIUmTM/edit
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/profile/2566e976-b228-43f9-9b20-0b978dfa2b0d
https://www.google.com/search?q=Florida+Bond+Program&ludocid=749962838832070843#lpstate=pid:9118638653329799003,av
http://yoomark.com/content/first-time-home-buyer-experience-can-be-pleasant-one-despite-what-you-may-have-heard-course
http://www.pearltrees.com/byronjames777
http://tealuck.com/bjames777/p/first-time-home-buyer-florida/
https://angel.co/byron-james-2?public_profile=1
http://sco.lt/5JQNwv
http://sco.lt/8qz73p
https://www.scoop.it/u/ric-69

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