How Do I Starting Looking for My Next Home?

I’m often asked for guidance and advice on how to go about buying a home.  To begin with, buying a home is the largest investment most people will make in their lifetime.  There are many details associated with it, as you might imagine.  It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of buying a home and not pay attention to some of the important details.  Let’s explore three essential elements to buying a home, and I’ll offer some helpful suggestions for you to follow.

1.      Before you open your web browser to look at available homes for sale, contact a reputable mortgage lender.  They’ll give you a clear sense of the price range to search for a home.  The loan counselor will explore all methods of mortgage financing with you.  They will take the time to explain the differences between a conventional, USDA, FHA, VA or any other mortgage loan that you might be interested in learning about.  The loan counselor will make a recommendation as to which program might best suit you and will provide you with an estimate of closing costs and how much a monthly payment might be in a hypothetical scenario.  This will provide you with peace of mind and reassurance knowing that you are looking for a home in a price range that will be comfortable for you to afford. 

Ask the loan counselor to explain the difference between “Pre-qualified” compared with “Pre-approved”.  Ideally, you’ll want to engage with a lender that will provide you with a pre-approval letter or certificate.  This is an important detail you’ll want to insist on.  “Pre-approved” should mean that the lender has verified your employment, your credit score and bank deposits and will provide you with a certificate which states your purchase of a home is contingent only upon satisfactory bank appraisal of the home you are purchasing.  This pre-approval letter or certificate should accompany the offer your real estate professional writes for the edification and consideration of the seller.   This strengthens your position in the eyes of the seller, particularly if you are found to be in a circumstance in which there are multiple offers on the home you are considering purchasing.

If you aren’t sure who should call, contact me and I’ll be happy to recommend three reputable mortgage lenders to you. 

2.     The second step is to contact a reputable, qualified and experienced real estate sales professional who works full time in the real estate business.  Meet with them so they may ask what is important to you in your home search.  This also provides a great opportunity for the real estate sales professional to get to know you and, you them. 

Ideally, the real estate professional you engage should be a buyer agent.  A buyer agent has strict fiduciary duties to you, the home buyer.  This is an important point for many reasons. 

A buyer agent also can offer advice, guidance, counsel and will advocate for you without limitation.  A real estate professional working on the seller’s behalf is simply unable to provide such representation and advocacy.   

3.     Hire a qualified real estate attorney to represent you.  While any attorney can handle a real estate transaction, a qualified real estate attorney offers you the finest representation in your purchase.  Real estate attorneys are adept at the nuance of a real estate transaction and will navigate you through the process from a legal point of view.  If you don’t know a real estate attorney, I’m happy to recommend three to you.

There are many other topics to be considered within the process of buying a home.  I explore some of those areas in other "FAQ" topics.

If you would like additional information, please feel welcome to contact me.