You want to buy your first home and need to know what to do and how to get started. Well the first thing to do is talk with a lender to find out what price range you can be approved for. This will save time and heart break.
Once you find out how much home you can afford you can start focusing on a city and area your want to live. Grab a pen and paper and write all your needs and wants in a home. For instance, if you need 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, with a 2 car garage write it down. If you want a pool and fire place write it down with all your wants and needs.
After deciding what your needs are it’s time to call Jerry Wingo, your local real estate agent. Jerry will take your list and input that information into the local MLS software to see what homes are available that meet your criteria. When you receive the homes that Jerry sends you, look them over and choose the ones that you like so that Jerry can check the status and make sure the homes are available, and to see if there are any offers on the home
Working with Jerry will give you the ability to see everything that is on the market that fits your needs. Information is updated throughout the day on the MLS system and most real estate sites are only updated once a day or less. When searching for homes it’s vital that you see all the homes that are available at all times.
Now that you have Jerry working hard for you and you are actively looking at homes- you should get all your banking information and documentation ready in case you want to make an offer. The documents that are needed for an offer are:
- Bank statements -This will show proof of funds for your down payment.
- Credit report – With all 3 fico scores, you can get this from your lender.
- Bank approval letter – This letter will be from the bank and an underwriter showing you qualify for this home.
- Letter from you – Telling the home owner why you want to buy his/her home. A personal touch is always nice.
Remember that you are buying a home and not a house so the investment aspect should be secondary on your mind. I see home buyers thinking of the home as an investment and they talk themselves out of buying or they lose the home because they try to play hardball on the price. Before you make an offer, make sure to crunch the numbers with your agent to make sure your offer is strong.
You never want to come in with a low ball offer in this market unless its a short sale, or a bank owned home. Even so, most of these homes are selling at market values or close to market prices. Many buyers are losing their dreams homes because of a matter of a few thousand dollars in price. If you find something you like and there is nothing structurally wrong with the home, make an aggressive offer to gain the home, and to start your journey to home ownership.
Contact me at 949-903-3883 or jerry.wingo@century21com for details and more information on Home Buyers.