Buying Real Estate For The First Time
September 26, 2009
Buying a home for the very first time is both exciting and terrifying in spite of its numerous advantages such as value appreciation, tax breaks, and deductible depreciation costs etcetera.
(there is a free ebook: 101 Tips For Selling Your House,for you to download, from a link at the bottom of this page).
Despite the advantages there are also vulnerabilities and risks that you have to contend with during the acquisition process. You can manage these risks and lessen the stressful process by observing the following guidelines.
Seek the help of a mortgage broker or mortgage specialist to help you determine your budget, secure a pre-approval for your mortgage and to have him assist you in the home acquisition process.
As soon as you have done the above, most especially getting a pre-approval for your mortgage loan, you can then start the process of searching for your dream home. As soon as you have a short list of homes that interest you, get in touch with a real estate agent. Having a buyer’s agent costs you nothing since it is the seller who pays all the fees. But if the owner is selling on his own, then the situation becomes better for you as the price of the home would be lesser than if there was a real estate broker involved.
Make sure that the location of the property meets your needs and specifications.
Make sure you get a disclosure statement from the buyer or the real estate broker.
Do not allow yourself to be pressured by the real estate broker or seller.
Before you ask to view the short-listed properties, conduct your own research to identify any problems or issues that might impact the acquisition and the amount of your offer.
As soon as you have decided on one particular property, visit the neighborhood during night time as well.
Interview the neighbors regarding schools in the district, playgrounds, and other amenities.
Find out the property value taxes in the neighborhood and inquire about neighborhood association fees if any.
With the assistance of a lawyer, make a formal offer, give a deposit and outline all of the conditions and terms of your offer.
Provide the owner a copy of your pre-approval to signify the seriousness of your intent in buying the property.
Request all necessary documentation from the owner including title clearance within a specified number of days so as not to prolong the buying process.
It normally takes 30 to 90 days from the date of offer to complete a home acquisition deal but it is very important that all terms and conditions and guidelines between you and the seller are taken cared of as early as possible.
It is always best to educate yourself when buying real estate and not simply rely on the real estate broker, the owner or somebody else to provide you with the necessary information. This makes the home buying process much more exciting!
Gerald Mason
http://www.articlesbase.com/real-estate-articles/buying-real-estate-for-the-first-time-103218.html
Comments
8 Responses to “Buying Real Estate For The First Time”
Got something to say?
me and my friend want to start our own business buying real estate and flipping houses is now a good time?
my friend is a contractor and has built houses from the ground up so we wouldnt need to bring in outside help, im getting my real estate license so ill be selling the house and have an inside to other properties. please give me your thoughts about this and im welcome to all comments. thanks
You do realize how long some houses are sitting on the market?
I would say if you are going to focus on lower end, inexpensive homes for first timers you may get some business because of the tax credit. But, my initial reaction is, I don’t think it’s a good time. Flipping is not the gold mine it was during the times when anyone with a pulse could get a loan.
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"In the real world of investing there are WINNERS and LOSERS. Losers are always hoping the markets will keep going up – winners don’t care!" rich dad poor dad
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If you don’t know, you don’t have the experience to "flip" houses. The housing market is depressed right now. You better start reading the newspaper so you know what is going on. Buying and selling houses isn’t easy or everyone would be doing it. I did what you did at one point in my life and got my real estate license so I could have access to information on houses and I could snatch up some good deals. I found that to keep my license most companies wanted me to put in a lot of office time and I had a full time job. I finally found a broker that wanted to look like he had more employees and bigger than he was so he kept my license and I didn’t have to put in all those hours and I could go on with my plans. So you have the inside track and your friend has the know how, where are you going to get the cash? Have you read anything lately about mortgages?
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This is the worst time in history to get into this.
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On one side its great because you’ll never find better deals out there…but the problem is you might not be able to sell it. Here in Minneapolis, 60% of home sales last month were foreclosures so what that tells you is that yes homes are selling but only the really good deals. You might not make the kind of profit you are hoping for in the current market.
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I think overall the other answers were about right. However, it depends on several factors. If you are able to hold onto the homes for a while and have the income to pay the mortgage if they don’t sell, this might be the perfect time to get into this business. There are so many good deals out there right now. It also depends on if you are willing to rent the home out or sell it rent-to-own. There are many people looking for these right now since they are having a harder time getting financing to purchase. Now, with those in mind, do you mind the hard work you put into the house possibly being destroyed by renters? Would it be a hardship for you if you had a delinquent renter?
Hope you make the right decisions for you!
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Nice post! good information.