Advice please?

Question

What is the one piece of advice you would give to a person about to buy their first home?

By the way I posted my question here because I have found that advice from another parent differs greatly than that of someone who has no children.

Answer 1

How exciting!

I know you said one, but house buying is a process, and there are things you should know all along the way.

Find a mortgage company you want to work with. I would recommend one that's been in business for a number of years.-The longer the better. There are scammers in this industry, so watch it. Get pre-approved for how much of a loan you can afford. This will, let you know how much you can really afford and will put you into a primo negotiating position for house buying. Sellers like to sell with a clean, no contingencies contract. Once you have been pre-qualified, absolutely NO major purchases until after you have closed on a loan on the house.

For your first house, buy through a reputable realtor. Their commission comes from the sellers end of the deal, but can affect the asking price of the house. Which is OK because they usually earn it with a first-time buyer. The realtor will need to know the amount of the loan you are pre-quailified for. this will guide them to what group of houses they will show you. You will need to hang tough with the realtor with absolutely no showing of houses you can't afford.

Schools will be a major consideration for you. How good are they, how close are they. When you find the neighborhood you're interested in, talk to other parents in the neighborhood and get their take on the school situation.

How close are the playgrounds and are they in good repair? Are there any gangs hanging around the park/playground?

Home inspections are borderline helpful. The real-estate appraisal is the one that the lenders look at and that's what will tell you if there's any external evidence of dry rot, foundation problems, etc. A home inspector will tell you if the appliances are working and the toilets flush, etc. Neither are fool-proof, but you can use your own eyes to look for:

*Cracks in the ceiling, especially around light fixtures.

*Water marks on the ceiling, like ther may have been a puddle on the other side of it.

*Look under the sinks in the bathroom and kitchen for evidence of leaks--watermarks, saggy chipboard, lime deposits on the outside of a pipe on or near a connection.

*Look around the edge of the toilet at the bottom to make certain the toilet isn't leaking around the bottom where it joins the floor. Easy to fix but can have caused dry rot on the flooring under it.

*Look at the roof for loose roofing. If it's composition type roofing, you don't want curled up edges on the shingles. That means it's an older roof that will need to be replaced soon and/or already leaks. Depending on the size of the house, it can cost $5000 bucks or more to have a roofer do the job. $2000 to DIY.

*Bushes and dirt close to the foundation are problematic. Bushes can hide things like cracks, etc. Dirt right up to where the wood or siding starts can be an invitation to termites or carpenter ants. If you see that, you may have to get a termite inspection (separate from an appraisal or home inspection).

*Kitchen: How old are the appliances (if they come with the house)? If the countertops are tile, check out the grout, make sure it's intact and not chippped and the tiles aren't cracked. (Not anything crucial like something that will make your house unliveable, but a negotiating point).

*Any smells you smell may be there to stay, so don't count on being able to remove urine smells, mold smells, cigarette smoke smells. They come with the house and may not ever clear out even with replacing carpeting and drapes.

Once you find a house you like in your price range, go to the house or the neighborhood at different times of the day, on weekdays, on weekends. You may want to know if the neighbor always mows their lawn at 8am Saturday, or if another neighbor always parties on weekends. Check the sexual predator list to make sure you're not moving next door to one.

If the house doesn't pass your criteria, you can opt to 1) not buy it, 2) fix the things that are wrong yourself after you move in or 3) negotiate a lower price with the seller.

Once the house has passed all your criteria,get the realtor to make an offer. It's considered cusomary to make an offer for less than asking price, in an average market, by about 10%. If you are in a competitive market, you may not get the house you want, if you play that game, so ask you realtor about the options. They should be able to tell you what your chances are of getting the home you want, if you come in with a low offer.

Once your offer is in, again I stress do NOT charge up the charge card with a lot of purchases. Wait until you've signed all the papers on closing the loan for your new house before you get new drapes, new appliances, new carpet, etc. It could throw off your numbers and make it so you can't qualify for the house you've chosen.

Best wishes!

Answer 2

Check out the area schools. Go on the counties web site and check on registered sex affenders and make sure none are in the area you are looking at. Make sure it has a nice size yard that can be easily fenced and if in a subdivision check and see if there are any restrictions on what you can do ( building a shed, putting up a fence, swimming pools etc). Have the house inspected by a reputable inspector and make sure to check out all the little things inside the house. Closet space is a must as well as having enough room to move around and not be crowded. Most important check around and see what the resale on houses in the area is like so if later you decide to upgrade you will have an idea if it is a hard sale area or not. It isn't only the payment on the house but ask about what the utility bills usually run and what the taxes and insurance are for a year. Make sure it is a kid friendly neighborhood as well.

Answer 3

we just bought our first place in march... I'd say check the paint (our mysteriously started to peel now ) and make sure you have enough money: you need money for your closing cost and your down and any upgrades you want like your paint colors and new locks. Start small and then move up, If you have kids make sure the area is safe and they have things for them to do near by, i,e, parks, pools, beach, day care, YMCA....... Make sure to get everything in writing, and keep alll your receipts. If you can live closer to where you work and get a pay a little more it could be smarter than living far and paying less... Gas prices these days ... sit in the area you want to buy in at rush hour and at night to see if things aren;t to crazy. If you buy a condo make sure you sit in on a home owners meeting to see if they handle things fast and what things they are strict about. Always get a home inspection it's not that expensive. and ask your realtor to do a estimated print out of what you;ll be paying with your morgage and taxes and hoa or mella roos ..... Good Luck

Answer 4

Everything always costs way more than you think it's going to. Overestimate everything!

Every time you splurge and buy new furniture or call in sick on a whim, that is the day your pipes will spring a leak or your furnace will die.

Since you have kids, take your tiniest most curious child on the walkthrough and let him run wild for as long as you can. He will find all the loose wiring and faulty plugs for you ahead of time, plus he'll make sure all the toilets flush and light switches work (things you may miss, lol) If you need my two year old, you can borrow him. If there is danger or trouble nearby he will sniff it out.

Answer 5

may ı advice you not to buy a very very expensive house which at first seems very daring and luxurious. ı think if you have time you may buy a good normal house hold but start doing the inside of the house as you wish. and also buying a house near to a good school and shopping center is also a must. it may look very tempting to be away from the hassle but just for a week or two then you may get bored, and after some time transportation will become a big problem for both you and the kids.anyway good luck

Answer 6

Make sure you have a savings account for all the little things that can go wrong and some of the big things as well. Up keep is imprtant.

On the buying side, get a reputable realtor, get inspections and find something you can afford not something you have to have. In the end you can buy something to have to have once you get used to being on your own and affording a house.

Good luck.

Answer 7

I would say start small then gradually get bigger. And make sure you don't do a big fixure-up. Becasue the its more stress and if i was getting a loan to buy house i wouldn't want to go in debt. Also get somewhere with a good neighborhood becasue if you ever decide to sell it you could sell it for a decent price. And make sure you have a guest room and study :]

Answer 8

as a person living in a ground floor flat with a maisonette containg a young family above me. for the love of the neighbour under you please make sure the place is sufficiently sound proofed. or else your kids could upset your neighbour by constantly doing what kids do. or your neighbour could disturb you with tv or music coming through.
so if you are a family never get a flat/apartment unless it is a ground floor as you will only end up rowing with your neighbour.

however getting a home a house is different, a quiet road, with other kids for yours to interact with. a agarden with a good fance to keep the kids fanced in when you need them fenced in.

by the way i'm not a parent. just a single guy. being driven mad by the new family recently moved in above me.

Answer 9

Do not buy above your price range. Make sure there is enough room that you won't grow out of it too quickly. Check out the neighborhood and schools before you buy. Talk to the neighbors and drive around around the time the school bus lets out. This will give you a pretty good idea of the age groups of the kids in the neighborhood.

Answer 10

well i would say make sure there is enough rooms for your children if you have any if you don't you should get a house with an extra room or two depending on how may children you plan to have in the near future and also make sure you check on the neighborhood to make sure it is where you would want to have a family and check out how the schools are and check on the crime rate and criminals such as sex offenders and also make sure the house is of good quality and fairly priced i hop i helped good luck on getting your knew home!!