First time home buyers are a vital part of the real estate market. Every year first time home buyers enter the market, and every year the same mistakes are made. I agree and believe the first time home buyer is a vital part of the Real Estate market. So let's stop this cycle and assist the first time home buyer in a smooth and exciting transaction!
1. Shopping for a house before a mortgage
Let’s be honest. What is more exciting, searching for a home or searching for a mortgage? Searching for a home, of course. This leads to the #1 mistake for first-time home buyers. They start looking online, visiting properties before finding out what they can afford or what their qualifications are regarding a loan. Is this horrible? No. Will it frustrate you? Yes.
This will likely lead you to disappointment. If you find something you love, then you may find out you cannot qualify for a mortgage to purchase it…. Then moving forward you will constantly compare everything you see to the house you couldn’t afford, developing frustration.
Proper Step:
Talk to a mortgage professional, get pre-qualified. Determine your price range before you start seriously looking for a home.
2. Not checking credit reports and correcting errors
Your mortgage lender will pull your credit report and go through it in detail. These days it is easy to obtain your credit report for your review and make any corrections so it’s as accurate as possible.
Proper Step:
You can request a copy of your credit report through any of the three main credit bureaus. You can dispute any items you feel are inaccurate.
3. Searching without a Realtor.
Do you know how much money a buyer pays for the service of a buyer’s agent?... Zero dollars! That’s right, zero dollars. So, explain to me why any buyer wouldn’t use the services of a Real Estate professional?
Proper Step:
Find a trustworthy Realtor. Most of the time referral is the best path; family or friends may have a good referral for you. If not, schedule appointments with a few agents who you see active in your area. Meet them, get comfortable, and establish a relationship to then work as a team. Remember, once you find the property you love, you will want strong representation to negotiate the contract (price and terms), and facilitate the deal all the way to closing. It’s one thing to sell a property, it’s another thing to close it!
4. Search aimlessly
Sometimes people make the mistake of searching for the product first (house) and settle for the area. Real Estate is all about location, and there is a reason for it. When you buy a home you buy the feel of the street, the neighborhood, the schools, the conveniences that matter to you, etc… The house is a piece of the puzzle.
Proper Step:
Drive areas & locations, determine towns that work for you. Every town/area will have different price ranges, so to put an umbrella on an area that will work for you will help you tremendously. Once your area is determined, you can now search for the product that works for you in that area.
5. Knows everything and wants to fly solo
Some buyers like to search on their own, make offers on their own, negotiate on their own, and make an attempt to go through the process “on their own”. The savviest Realtors, Investors, Real Estate Pioneers, have a team they put together. Not only they put together this team, but they will ONLY work with this team. Real Estate has many moving variables, from legal to structural to financing to managing, etc…. Protect yourself.
Proper Step:
Put a team together to work in your best interest. It creates a tremendous benefit to the buyer. Right out of the gate, your team should include…
· Realtor (a strong agent can assist you in building a quality team through referrals)
· Mortgage Lender
· Attorney
Stay Healthy and Safe!
_________________
Louis Ventre
New Jersey Broker/Realtor
Comments