Planning on Buying a Home Anytime Soon? Here’s Your Checklist

Whether you’re buying your first house, or your second or third, the whole process can be a huge ordeal. Of course, it’s truly exciting to go on the adventure of finding the new place you’ll call home for the next little while, but it’s also a lot of responsibility. Now, whether you’re thinking of looking on Richard Pattisall – Hilton Head Real Estate or somewhere else for finding that perfect home, we’re going to help you with the checklist that will make this process as smooth as possible.

Find Your Real Estate Agent:

You shouldn’t find just any real estate agent, but a really good one, who will be able to answer all the questions you have, and steer you in the right direction. You shouldn’t start looking for a place before you get prequalified, nor before you understand perfectly well how much money you can invest. These are just a few of the aspects a real estate agent can help you with.

Find a Mortgage Lender:

There are lots of different lenders out there, each offering a different type of mortgage. Some have a restricting range of loans they can give out, while others are able to offer a broader one. With that in mind, you should spend some time looking at different lenders before you decide which one’s best for you. Don’t just go to the bank you have your checking account with since while they may be great for that, it doesn’t automatically make them a great lender.

Finances:

After figuring out the amount you can pay as down payment, be sure to set funds aside and to not do anything to change your finances. The reason for this is that lenders will look at what is going in and coming out of both your savings and checking accounts. It’s a good idea to have a preapproval letter before setting out for looking at houses (being preapproved is better than being pre-qualified). In addition, it’s important to not make any big purchases, as this may make matters more difficult for you.

Find Your New Home:

This is actually where all the fun and part of the stress is going to come from. However, if you are preapproved or prequalified, a great amount of your stress is bound to head out the door, since you’ll know for sure that the needed funds for making this purchase are available. Plus, you have the right help in this whole process, in the form of your real estate agent, which means that eventually, you will find that perfect house. For this, it’s a great idea to start by finding the neighborhood you’d like to live in and then look at homes.

Make an Offer:

After finding the house, it’s time to finally make an offer. Of course, it’s crucial to listen to what your agent is telling you. After all, they are the expert, and their job is giving you the best advice. More likely than not, they will tell you to make the offer immediately, since many other buyers may be looking at the same place.

Close on the House:

After your offer is accepted, the next step in the process is closing. You will need to be very careful in this step, particularly because it’s when inspections will have to be made. You may need to have some funds set aside for the closing process.

With these steps, you’ll be more than ready to find that beautiful new place you’ll call home. As long as you’re organized when it comes to finances, and you have a great real estate agent whose advice you listen to, you can rest assured that you will eventually find the right house.

Read Also:

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• 6 Things That First-Time Property Buyers Need to Know When Buying Homes
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