Tips for First Time Home Buyers

Posted August 18, 2008

Get to know a Realtor® you feel you can trust.  Ask a Professional Realtor, experienced in both new construction and resale homes, to act as your Buyer's Agent. He or she can provide you with advice on:

• the merits of buying a new versus an existing home
• various Sarasota area builder's strengths and weaknesses
• how certain upgrades and features affect future home value
• the best way to finance your home so you can truly "afford" it

Your Buyers Agent willguide you through the many Sarasota home buying steps from offer to closing without undue stress. Its rezlly is true .... An experienced Realtor can and will save you time, money and grief.

Learn about the market before you start shopping for a home. Before you purchase a home you need to feel comfortable about its locale and the price range you are dealing with. You can get an idea of the real estate market by researching properties for sale on the local MLS on Realtor.com. But clearly the most effective way to learn about the market is with the assistance of a licensed Sarasota Florida Realtor ®.

If you'll need a mortgage, shop for a lender before you shop for your home. Get pre-qualified (and preferably pre-approved). Pre-approval is powerful leverage during price negotiation.

If you need a mortgage, don't assume your credit is spotless. Ask your preferred lender to pull your credit report. It may contain errors or old unpaid balances that need to be addressed before you formally apply for a loan.

Some parts of Florida are more in demand than others. Property prices in the most in-demand areas continued to go up until just recently. Although they may have come down a bit recently, properties in the most desirable areas of Sarasota and Manatee Counties have not gone down by much.

Know how much to offer. Knowing how much to offer is one of the most difficult parts of buying a home. Your Buyers Agent can provide you with a list of recently sold properties of comparable size, location and amenities so you can compare selling prices. Then you'll know whether this property is realistically priced.

If a property has been on the market a while, the owner may accept a lower offer, but if the property is very desirable, the seller may just reject your low-ball offer wasting everyone's time. Your Buyer's Agent Realtor can give you good advice on the right price to offer for the home you want.

Officially cancel your inactive credit cards. If you have an credit card you're not using with a $5,000 limit, even though you owe nothing on it, some mortgage lenders consider that a potential future debt. Too many inactive credit cards with significant credit limits could keep you from obtaining a mortgage loan. Don't just cut up your extra cards; officially cLL and cancel them.

Between pre-qualification and closing, consult your mortgage lender before any major purchases. Credit purchases affect your qualification for a mortgage, even after you've been approved; right up to the day of closing on your home. For example, if you're going to buy furniture for your new home on credit, wait until after closing to avoid possibly impairing your mortgage approval

Be careful from whom you take advice. Don't count on Uncle Bob, a Realtor 20 years ago. Home builder's salesmen and Realtors representing the seller won't necessarily tell you all you need to know, either. Your Buyer's Agent, on the other hand, is required by law to tell you everything he or she knows that could affect the value of the home.

Seller's and Realtors representing sellers of resale homes don't always tell the whole truth about the condition of the property. After you've gotten a purchase contract agreed to, get a professional home inspection so the Seller, not you, pays to correct any problems.

Buy a home you can really afford. There are tax advantages to owning a home, but, there are also on-going expenses (maintenance costs, decorating, lawn care, trash pickup, etc.) that you may forget in the excitement. "Buy a bit less home, rather than a bit more home than you think you can afford," is good advice.

On a new construction home, decide which features you want and stick with it. Some new home sales people will try to sell you upgrades which add little, if any, value to your home when you evenutally sell it. Your Buyer's Agent Realtor can help you know which upgrades do and don't add resale value.

For more information on buying a Sarasota area home for sale, I invite you to review other parts of this Sarasota & Bradenton Real Estate website. You'll find it packed with useful information.

      For a permanent home, vacation getaway or an investment property, the Sarasota real estate market, with its recent price correction, is hard to beat.  I invite you to request my free Sarasota Real Estate Package or call me directly on my cell phone at 941-228-2321 for more immediate service.