Tips for new Homeowners & Buyers:
- Before settling on a contract, make sure the deal is contingent on a home inspection or your general contractor’s opinion. Finding out about potential issues can save you a lot of damage and future repairs, and you can either get the seller to lower the price to offset the cost of repairs, or require them to repair before the sale.
- Don’t spend your entire budget on the home itself— there are a lot more immediate expenses that come with owning a home: furniture, kitchen appliances, cleaning equipment, etc. — all these little expenses to complete your home add up!
- Go with a broker you trust! There is nothing more frustrating than a broker who won’t pick up your call on the first ring or take time to update you on the process. Trust is of utmost importance, especially on the most important purchase of your life!
- Only houses are bought, not homes. Create a post-purchase budget to make your house your home. Consider possible renovations and additions you might need to make.
- When looking to get work done, ALWAYS get multiple bids, and find honest people to work with. Be careful of contractors who underbid — they might have shoddy workmanship that leads to future repairs being needed or might have additional costs appear out of nowhere.
- Never get an adjustable-rate mortgage — always go with a fixed rate mortgage
- Consider the external purchases of owning a home: having a yard means purchasing a lawnmower, weed killer, and the other necessary costs; having a pool means dealing with all the maintenance costs. Depending on where you live you may also need to make sure you’re prepared for winter, snow blower etc.
- Consider the increase in travel costs (or decrease). If moving out of the city to a surrounding town doubles your commute time, then now your gas bill is doubled.
- Be careful of newly built homes — some of the shortcuts workers take to finish the job faster may compromise the longevity of the home. Although buyers may not be able to tell whether shortcuts were taken, hiring a home inspector may be the best way to obtain peace of mind and know that you did your due diligence to ensure your new home.
- Have your agent do a BPO to support and justify your offer, detailing 3 comps actively available and 3 comps recently sold, preferably within .25 miles for urban, .5 miles for suburban, and within 3 miles for rural areas.
- Sometimes the best deal for a house is to walk away. Don’t be afraid to kill a deal if it’s over budget!
