Buying a home is the single biggest investment most people ever make. The home buying process is a multi-staged maze with countless dead ends and traps. The good news is that an experienced Real Estate agent has ran the maze before and knows which way to turn and when. After all, it's their business.
Finding the right home is a balancing act. The three major factors are financial, space, and location.
Factor One: How much home can you afford?
Trust. No better word should describe your relationship between you and your real estate agent. The Buyer shares a great deal of personal information with their agent, including financial information. Having the correct information early is the best way to navigate the home buying process.
Factor Two: How much home do you want?
How many bedrooms are needed? How many bathrooms? How much living area? How much storage area? How long do you intend to live in that home? Do you want a gated community? A pool? Backyard space? Will your family grow during your ownership?
There are dozens of questions that you need to have answers for beyond the listed. There are good buys at every level of price.
Factor Three: Location
Close to schools? Close to shopping? Close to work?
A common phrase in the Real Estate circles is "Location, Location, Location." The same size home will have a different price depending on where it is located. Your needs and wants dictate what matters most. Living close to work might cost more but be subsidized by commuting costs being lower.
Once the type(s) of home have been determined your Agent will scour the both the internal listings and those on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). After that is done a good agent will keep an eye on the MLS and an ear around the office looking for the right home if one is not on the market yet.
There are two important things that your agent should tell you about when presenting a home. First is the appraised value. Appraisers are human and do have a natural bias so no two appraisals are going to be alike but they should be close. A large variance in value is a sign that somebody saw something differently and closer investigation is a necessity.
The second is the comparable values, often referred to as "comps" which are the actual amount homes similar to that one went for. Again, if the comparables are off then more investigation is a necessity.
Once a home passes those two eyeball tests it is time for a professional home inspection. You should always have a home inspection done. Home inspectors know what to look for and can save thousands in repair work after you buy a home. No home is ever perfect. No roof lasts forever. Knowing exactly what condition a house is before you buy it is always money well spent.
Offer and acceptance
Once you decide on a house it's time for you and your agent to come up with an offer that you like. The very worst thing that will happen is that they will refuse the offer. More often than not your agent comes back with a counter offer. This is where having a good agent pays off. An experienced agent knows where they can make the most ground and lose the least. Once a compromise is reached it's off to escrow.
Buying A Home
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