Buyers Introduction from The Potter Partners Real Estate
We are your real estate company and we always strive to give the best service to our clients and customers. As we proceed through your real estate purchase, you will be using experts in other fields, we will be helping you with all parts of the real estate process of buying a home. Use the link below to download our Buyer's Introduction Letter with referrals to other experts.
The Road to Buying a Home: 7 STEPS TO BECOMING A HOMEOWNER:
Mortgage Pre-approval or Many times called a Pre-qualification - This will tell you everything you need to know: down payment, your credit score and just what price range you should be looking for a home. You will need a lender letter to make an offer. For a rough idea of your monthly payment, check out our Mortgage Calculator.
Money you will need to SAVE - for a down payment, closing costs and other fees
Housing Hunting - A real estate agent or licensed realtor can help you navigate the housing market.
Offer and Negotiation – Here is where your real estate agent will go to bat for you. Accepted Offer.
Home Inspection - An Inspection protects you from buying a money pit and finds any hidden problems. This is the buyers cost.
Homeowners Insurance - Insurance is required when financing your home.
The Closing Table – Pay the seller, pay the fees and close the deal. Welcome Home!
Before You Buy: The Necessary Criteria
The top 10 things you need to know when buying a home.
1. What’s Your Credit?
Seriously, what’s your credit? Most people have no idea! Unless you’re going to pay all cash for your new home, you need to get a credit report and make sure that everything is in order. If it isn’t, you need to fix any problems you encounter before you can even think about qualifying for a loan.
2. Can You Really Afford It?
The general rule for home purchases is that you should aim for something that is about 2 to 3 times your annual salary. If you want something a little more accurate, try the mortgage calculator on our website.
3. Buy Only If You Can Stay Still
When buying a new home, you really need to make sure that you can commit to remaining there for some time- we recommend 3-5 years. If you end up selling sooner than this, even if the market is strong, you may still end up losing money when you add up all of the transaction costs associated with the purchase and sale.
4.You Don’t Need a 20% Down Payment
Although it’s hard to get a loan if you haven’t saved much money, there are both public and private lenders who, given the right credit and qualifications, may offer low interest mortgages that require less than 20%. A VA mortgage requires 0% down. We can help you find a lender to help you know.
5.Points and Rate on a Mortgage
When choosing a mortgage, working with your trusted lender, you’re usually given the option to pay additional “points”. Essentially, you’re buying a lower interest rate. The interest rate is a big factor in your monthly payment, so a lower interest rate means a lower monthly payment. However be careful, because when you buy down an interest rate, that money that you use to buy is down is gone for good. If you’re going to be living there for a while, it usually makes sense to buy the rate down.
6.Location, Location, Location
You don’t like to swim and you don’t have any kids; does that mean you shouldn’t buy a beautiful beachfront home in a great school district if you can find a great deal on it? These may not be required criteria when you’re looking to buy, but when the time comes to sell, it can make a difference! Above all, if you want to ensure good resale value, make sure that the home you want to buy is in a good school district and is not located on a main road or intersection (or other noisy area). Good luck selling a home that has a major highway running behind it!
7.Get Pre-Approved, First!
A lot of buyers decide to go searching for homes before obtaining preapproval. This is not the same thing as “pre-qualification”, (which most people won’t take seriously since it’s based on what YOU SAY you finances are), a pre-approval is based on ACTUAL income, credit, and debt history, and will let you and your agent know exactly what you can afford. When you work with someone like us, we genuinely have your best interests at heart. Not only can we guide you through the process and help you negotiate for your home, but we can also assist you with the closing process. Real estate commission is paid by the seller anyway, so you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by working with professional agents.
8.Before House Hunting, Get Pre-Approved!
Getting pre-approved will save you the grief of looking at houses you can’t afford and will put you in a better position to make a serious offer when you do find the right house. Not to be confused with Pre-qualification, which is based on a cursory review of your finances, pre-approval from a lender is based on your actual income, debt and credit history. In today’s hot real estate market, many sellers will not even consider an offer that is not accompanied by a pre-approval letter.
9.Get a Home Inspection
A home inspector will come in and identify potential problems that you may encounter down the road. This is crucial, as it may affect whether you even to buy the property at all. We have a list of home inspectors that we recommend.
10.Who Pays a Buyers Agent?
The buyer’s agent is paid by the SELLER. When the actual time comes to make an offer on a home, a buyer’s agent can point out ways to structure the deal to save you money, and when it comes to negotiation on the purchase of the property, there’s no substitute for a professional. The best part, you don’t pay the broker anything. The payment comes from the seller!
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