5 Common Home Buying Mistakes Many First Time Buyers Make
As hard as it is to believe, you learn from your mistakes. How are you supposed to know what to do if you have never done it or experienced it before? There is so much to learn and so many tasks to complete when it comes to purchasing a home. Whether it be your first home or another property- the process is usually the same. Think about everything that comes with buying a piece of property.
The hours upon hours it takes to find a few houses that are potentials. Setting everything up with the real estate agents, booking appointments to go through the places, putting in the offer, getting it appraised, doing a home inspection, title insurance, listing contracts, mortgage payments and etc. There is so much to think of that it’s no wonder many first time buyers tend to make mistakes.
Let’s take a look at the five common mistakes first-time buyers tend to make.
1. Having Faith in Verbal Agreements It’s always good to have trust because with no trust there is no relationship. Everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt but sometimes for big situations, trust does not always cut it. Verbal agreements are good but the seller does not always keep their word if someone is willing to give them more money for their property. Money usually wins, so that verbal agreement you just made- is no longer valid if the seller will receive more funds. It’s always important to sign paperwork to ensure you have sealed the deal.
2. Skipping the Home Inspection altogether Some buyers decide not to get a home inspector to inspect their potential house because there are no apparent problems that they can see or be informed about. This is where problems happen because sometimes the sellers are not aware of all the problems. When you hire an inspector to inspect the property, they will go over all the foundation in the home and make sure everything is in the good standing order. If there are any problems, they should be able to find it and the owner will have to fix them before you take ownership. Catch the problems first before they are your problems.
3. Worry About The Little Things It’s natural to worry about every little thing, but when it’s time to buy a property, there are too many big things to focus on then all the small things. If you walk into a home that you love but you do not like the paint color or the microwave is out of date- these are minor fixes that do not cost very much. Focus on the bigger picture and the overall layout of the house. Once the home becomes yours, you can do whatever you like with it.
4. Neglecting Your Credit Score Often times your credit score is not accurate. It is important to make sure you have an accurate score before you send off the paper to your lenders. Many times people send off their credit score without looking at it and they are refused the loan. Go over everything and if there are any problems, try and fix them before you send the information to your lenders. This will save you time and money in the future.
5. Not Remembering to Budget One of or even maybe the biggest mistake many first time buyers make is forgetting to budget. It is very easy to get side tracked with items that are not necessities and realize that your money is almost gone. Budgeting is very important before you buy a house and even more important when you purchase a house and you have more bills to pay. Many people forget to factor in furniture costs, bills, moving costs, mortgage payments and so on. How are you going to be able to pay all these bills if you don’t set a side enough money? Make sure you come up with a budgeting strategy, so you do not run into problems. Budgeting before you purchase a home is beneficial because you will be on the right track and be able to manage all your expenses before you have even more expenses to manage.
The hours upon hours it takes to find a few houses that are potentials. Setting everything up with the real estate agents, booking appointments to go through the places, putting in the offer, getting it appraised, doing a home inspection, title insurance, listing contracts, mortgage payments and etc. There is so much to think of that it’s no wonder many first time buyers tend to make mistakes.
Let’s take a look at the five common mistakes first-time buyers tend to make.
1. Having Faith in Verbal Agreements It’s always good to have trust because with no trust there is no relationship. Everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt but sometimes for big situations, trust does not always cut it. Verbal agreements are good but the seller does not always keep their word if someone is willing to give them more money for their property. Money usually wins, so that verbal agreement you just made- is no longer valid if the seller will receive more funds. It’s always important to sign paperwork to ensure you have sealed the deal.
2. Skipping the Home Inspection altogether Some buyers decide not to get a home inspector to inspect their potential house because there are no apparent problems that they can see or be informed about. This is where problems happen because sometimes the sellers are not aware of all the problems. When you hire an inspector to inspect the property, they will go over all the foundation in the home and make sure everything is in the good standing order. If there are any problems, they should be able to find it and the owner will have to fix them before you take ownership. Catch the problems first before they are your problems.
3. Worry About The Little Things It’s natural to worry about every little thing, but when it’s time to buy a property, there are too many big things to focus on then all the small things. If you walk into a home that you love but you do not like the paint color or the microwave is out of date- these are minor fixes that do not cost very much. Focus on the bigger picture and the overall layout of the house. Once the home becomes yours, you can do whatever you like with it.
4. Neglecting Your Credit Score Often times your credit score is not accurate. It is important to make sure you have an accurate score before you send off the paper to your lenders. Many times people send off their credit score without looking at it and they are refused the loan. Go over everything and if there are any problems, try and fix them before you send the information to your lenders. This will save you time and money in the future.
5. Not Remembering to Budget One of or even maybe the biggest mistake many first time buyers make is forgetting to budget. It is very easy to get side tracked with items that are not necessities and realize that your money is almost gone. Budgeting is very important before you buy a house and even more important when you purchase a house and you have more bills to pay. Many people forget to factor in furniture costs, bills, moving costs, mortgage payments and so on. How are you going to be able to pay all these bills if you don’t set a side enough money? Make sure you come up with a budgeting strategy, so you do not run into problems. Budgeting before you purchase a home is beneficial because you will be on the right track and be able to manage all your expenses before you have even more expenses to manage.
