I love working with first-time home buyers. Helping you find your first home, learn the home buying process, and guiding you from house-hunting to move-in day is the best part of my job. Here are three things you should know before you start looking.
Work with one real estate agent. It’s best to have one agent who is helping you with your search. Your agent will be dedicated to finding you the right property, and then negotiating on all the terms of your transaction on your behalf. You want that person to get to know you and your family’s needs and preferences, rather than starting over with someone new each time you go look at a house.
Keep in mind that the agent who shows you a house is, ethically, the one who should continue the transaction. Also, when you call an agent from a yard sign or advertisement, you are dealing with the seller’s agent. While most real estate professionals are adept at handling both sides of a transaction professionally, it makes more sense to work with someone who only has your best interests at heart as the buyer.
Both the buyer’s and seller’s agent are paid by the seller from the proceeds of the sale at closing. It’s a good idea to interview multiple agents and pick the one that you feel fits you best.
You need to be pre-approved for financing. Unless you are paying cash for your home, you need to talk to a lender before you start looking at houses. One reason is that it helps you set a realistic price range for house hunting. Looking at homes that you can’t afford or make an offer on just leads to frustration.
A mortgage lender will not only tell you what amount you can borrow, but also your projected monthly payment, your closing costs, and what you should or shouldn’t do with your finances to maintain your eligibility throughout the lending process. Another reason for having an up-to-date pre-approval in hand is so you don’t lose out to another buyer.
If you find the perfect house, you’ll want to make an offer immediately, and that pre-approval letter must accompany your offer. I would be happy to provide you with names of mortgage lenders in the Massachusetts area who have provided excellent service to my clients.
There are some up-front costs. When you find the right house, and you and the seller have agreed on the price and terms and have signed the contract, you will first need to make your escrow or “good faith” deposit. This is money you are risking if you back out of the deal for reasons not protected in the contract.
In Massachusetts, it is usually $1,000 but sometimes your agent might recommend increasing the amount to strengthen your offer. The escrow deposit is applied towards your downpayment if you go forward with the sale. If you back out for reasons protected in your offer it will be returned to you.
Next, you should have an inspection of the property done by a certified home inspector. This cost varies depending on the size, condition, age, and features of the home, but is usually $500-$1,000. You will need to pay this at the time of service. You may elect to pay for other inspections based on the results of the initial inspection. For example, if the inspector notes an issue with the HVAC system, you may need to pay a service fee for an HVAC contractor to look at the system. You want to get as much information during your inspection period as you need to confidently move forward with the purchase.
An appraisal and a survey of the property will be ordered by your lender and you’ll need to pay for it upfront. They usually run around $450.I will guide you through all of these steps throughout your home buying journey. Ready to get started? Give me a call!
hello@ericapezentehomes.com
508-494-7817
