Go House Hunting

By this time you should have already established a working relationship with a real estate agent. You should already know your budget and how much you can afford to spend on your new home. You'll need to summarize all this information for your agent to use to suggest certain homes to visit. The more information that you give to your agent, the more time can be saved by everyone. Also, the more homes that you visit, the more knowledge you'll develop regarding property values in your area, and which homes you like and which homes you don't in your price range. However, you need to understand that your agent gets paid on commission (usually paid for by the seller). Therefore, your agent will not want to spend the next 3 years showing you 500 different properties without you actually making a purchase. Likewise, you would not want the agent simply showing you one home in your price range then pressuring you to make an offer. Using the internet as a part of your search saves both you and your agent time.

An ideal world for the agent would be one sale for each time she shows a home. On the other side of that same coin, an ideal world for the first time home buyer would be the opportunity to look at several hundred homes or more before ever making an offer. The ideal world doesn't exist for either the agent or the first time home buyer. Reality will be somewhere in between

Start with the price range.

Other factors in your search are:

    ◊ How many bedrooms, what style of home (ranch, colonial, split-level, condo) and other necessary features (basement, garage …..) what type of area (development, planned community, urban, suburban, Over 55 Community….)

   ◊ Location – is it convenient to work, to family and friends, and a place where you would like to live?

   ◊ Is it in the type of school system you would want your children to attend (if this is a factor). School reports are available online.

As with most people, your search for a new home will start online. Once you've narrowed your search down, let your REALTOR® do the legwork for you. In most cases the REALTOR® is paid by the seller. Make use of your REALTOR®’s experience and area knowledge.

Once you’ve found a home that you like, it’s time to do more research. What condition is the home in – are there any obvious repairs that need to be made? Request the Sellers Disclosure from your REALTOR®. This is a document filled out by the seller stating the condition of the home and appliances. It covers the major mechanical systems, structural, roof, etc. Is it priced comparably to other similar homes in the area? Again - let your  REALTOR® do the legwork for you. Is it in a good neighborhood? Invest the time – visit the neighborhood early in the morning. See how much traffic there is. Are the school bus stops crowded? Drive to work and see how long it will actually take at the time you normally go to work - then do it again on the way home. Visit the neighborhood on weekends. What are the taxes? Talk to the neighbors – are they the type of people you wish to associate with?

Once your satisfied that this is the house for you, let's move on to the next step - let's make an offer and write a contract.

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