Shop for a home
Once you have been prequalified for a loan, it’s time to begin your search for the perfect home. One of the most important keys, to making the home buying process easier and more understandable, is planning.
BUY CONSULTATION
Once you’ve found the Coast Realty Group REALTOR® that you’ve chosen to work with, you may wish to arrange a consultation with them, in order to describe your dream home, and ask any questions that you might have. The more you can inform your REALTOR® about your family’s lifestyles, areas of interest, and preferred locations will help them understand your specific objectives and priorities to build a strategy for locating your ideal home in the perfect location.
Now you are ready to visit properties and your real estate professional can show you the homes that may be of interest. It’s best to provide at least 24 hours’ notice, to selling homeowners to ensure your REALTOR® can gain access to the homes.
Your advisor will research the properties of interest to you and, as you tour homes, they will help you analyze the benefits and drawbacks of each potential home. After a period of time, you may start to discover certain aspects of homes that appeal to you more than others. You’ll learn that, as you look at homes, your priorities will probably adjust along the way. Once you have tailored some likes and dislikes for you in a home, you should make a list of home attributes, categorized into three areas:
Deal-‐Breakers -‐ This category should be filled with a list of home attributes that make a house an absolute no-‐go.
Wish List -‐ This category should be filled with attributes in a home that you would like to see, but are not necessary.
Must-‐Haves -‐ This category should be filled with those things that a home must have in order for you to be interested. This list should be the most carefully complied, as you do not want to purchase a house that does not have all of your “must-‐haves.”
Subsequent to visiting every house, take down notes so you can compare later. If time provides, make at least two visits to the home.
As soon as you have identified your dream home, the financial and legal aspect of home buying comes into play. Since the objectives of the home buyer and home seller are not the same, take the help of your Coast Realty Group representative for arriving at a positive outcome.
Deciding how much to offer
A REALTOR® can help you find your perfect home, but only you can decide how much you are willing to offer for it.
Making an offer on a house is difficult. If you bid too low, others will outbid you; if you bid too high, you may be spending money you don’t need to. Here are some things to keep in mind when making an offer on a house…
How much house can you afford? This should be the #1 factor when house-‐hunting. You can’t offer more money than you can borrow, so secure a loan before seriously shopping around. Also, don’t forget to include the closing costs when deciding how much money to borrow.
The Seller’s price -‐ Your offer will of course be highly dependent on what the seller asks for in the first place. Sellers typically follow one of three paths. Some sellers may overprice the home to give them substantial room to negotiate. Some sellers price according to what they think they should receive and don’t really want to haggle. Finally, some sellers may marginally under-‐price the home in the hopes that it will attract many buyers and create a bidding war.
The seller’s position -‐ Always consider the seller’s position when making an offer on a house. If you were a seller, would you be willing to take a little bit less if someone agreed to close the deal quickly and came with a loan preapproved? Some sellers need to close quickly, so having everything ready to go can make the difference between a winning offer and a losing one. Be flexible and try to play to the seller’s needs when making an offer.
Prices of comparable houses -‐ To really get a good idea for how much you should offer, find out how many comparable houses sold for in the area. To ensure that it’s really comparable, a similar house should have sold within the past six months, be in the same neighborhood, and be similar in terms of age, size, and number of rooms. Your REALTOR® can provide you with information about the selling prices and marketing time of other houses in the area.
The real estate market -‐ This can make a huge difference in terms of what you should offer. During busy markets, expect irrational bidders who drive up house prices considerably. Similarly, in down times, you can safely offer on the conservative side.
Once you have determined the amount you are willing to spend, your REALTOR® will help you prepare a written offer. In most transactions you will offer to deposit earnest money held in trust by Coast Realty Group, as a stakeholder, showing your sincerity in making a reasonable offer and abiding by the terms of the written contract.