About Me
- Jennifer Walker
- Huntsville, AL, United States
- Jennifer Walker, Realtor, CSP, MCSP Serving the Northern Alabama area; providing real resoures and real solutions to all your real estate needs. Specializing in relocation and new construction.
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012
First time buyer's guide: To purchasing a new home
Here is the guide for the first time home buyer:
Find a Realtor. Even with all the research tools at your fingertips; hiring a Realtor can give you security and help guide you through the process of finding your dream home. (See Why Hire A Realtor for more information.)
Don't Rush. Loan documents and purchase contracts are legally binding. Do not fall under the pressure that you have to sign the papers right then and there. Take a minute to look over everything, and make sure you have a understanding of what the documents are holding you to.
Location, Location, Location. Find schools, hospitals, restaurants, and even calculate how far you have to travel to work in the morning. You can also look into property taxes, and crime statistics. All of these things come into play in how good an investment your home turns out to be.
Look for assistance programs. Investing in a home can be pretty expensive. You have down payments, your loan, and then closing costs as well. Look into loan programs that offer loans for down payments, and closing costs. Also, there are non profit and state/government programs that can help out with grants, or low interest loans so you won't have to pay the costs upfront.
Pre-Approval financing. Don't fall in love with a home before knowing what you can afford. Knowing how much you get approved for when financing a home helps you aim at houses in your budget.
Have home inspected. When making an offer to the seller try including a condition, or contingency that will indicate no major problems with the house.
Figure out housing expenses. The cost of just maintaining a home is shocking to most first time home buyers. Do research on the usual costs, and build a emergency fund for the first year of living expenses.
Don't settle. Even though it is important that you stick to your budget, do not settle on anything less than satisfactory to your needs. You want to still be proud of your purchase 5-10 years down the line.
Ask questions. It is confusing understanding everything in those documents when you are a first time buyer. Make sure you ask your Realtor questions about everything you aren't sure about.
Know your budget. Know how much you can afford monthly, and annually when purchasing a home. This is key to you comfortably being able to enjoy your new home.
Are you a first time home buyer with a few more questions? Contact Jennifer Walker at jwalk525@hotmail.com and get all the information you need.
Cierra M. Washington
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