Photo by KML
Buying a home for the first time is a whirlwind. Especially now, we’re in the tightest market ever experienced and the demand for homes is higher than ever. In fact, many put off buying a home because they’re afraid they do not have the knowledge or capability to do so. That’s not true at all! Buying a home can be scary at first especially in this current market, but if you keep these 5 tips for first time home buyers in mind, it should be an easy, rewarding process!
1. Make a List of Must-Haves for Your New Home
There are a number of things to try to balance when buying a new home, but one thing should not budge: your must-haves. Hopefully, they are realistic, and not full of wishes for infinity pools or waterfalls. That being said, things like a basement or deck are not ridiculous if that’s important to you and your family. Make sure you know what you want so you don’t cave and regret it later.
2. Keep a Budget and 3. Stick to It
There’s one thing that’s worse to abandon than your must-haves in the home, and that’s a budget. Never, for any reason, is a budget worth going over. Even if there are a lot of fun things to enjoy in a home, it’s never worth the stress of trying to make necessary payments. A good way to go about this is to come up with two budgets.
The first budget works as a comfortable budget, meaning that you can easily afford this amount, and are willing to go above it. This allows you to have a base point to start negotiations, and if things need to go up a bit in price, you can have your second budget ready. The second budget is the final price you can afford. That means never moving above that budget, no matter what. This saves you the trouble of wondering what to do when an offer comes in.
4. Look into Different Neighborhoods
If a certain school seems best for the kids, or better yet, a certain neighborhood is near a park or work, keep these in mind when looking for your first home.
5. Hire the Best
Hire a team of professionals to help as realtors. The best of the best know the area you want to move into, the best places to find a good deal, and which houses are hot on the market. This helps a ton as you start to look to buy your first house!