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Before You Buy A House - Top 10 Tips


There are serveral things you need to think about and check on before you buy a house. Even looking at so many houses can be confusing. Below is a list of the top ten things to help you before you buy.

1. Pre-qualify for a mortgage. Now you know how much house you can afford before you start looking. This will narrow your search and keep you "real" and not disappointed on houses you can't afford.

2. Find a good neighborhood. Know the school district and is it a good one if you have kids attending. Is shopping convenient? Is the area growing and can you look forward to appreciation on your house? What's the area like? Are you next to vacant land that could be a freeway or a new mall in your backyard?

3. Log. Log your visits to potential houses. Sounds silly, but after you look at several, it can get confusing later on. Write down advantages and disadvantages of each house. Even draw a simple layout sketch to refresh your memory.

4. Money. How much more is your house going to cost than just your house payment? Taxes and Insurance. And if you are new home buyer and don't have a huge down payment (20%) then add in mortgage insurance. Required by the government. Check with your mortgage company. They can give you the rate. Realtors sometimes forget to tell you these added costs. This will be your real payment. You also have to look at utilities. And certainly it would be hard to move into a house without repainting or wallpapering or something.

5. Shop till you drop. Don't stop at the 3rd house and say that's it and pick one. You should look at a bunch of homes to get a good comparison. And you'll remember number 3 above. You should look at 15 homes at least as an average guideline.

6. Inspect. Found the house you want? Ready to make an offer? Not yet. Hire a professional inspection service. Once they make their inspection, you are better armed with any potential problems and can adjust your price accordingly.

7. Let the negotiations begin! Now you are armed with your inspection information, you are ready to negotiate carefully. Put it ALL in writing. No exceptions.

8. Moving. Allow extra time to move. Something always happens. Make sure you have plenty of overlap and plenty of time to get out of your old house. One word. Rain.

9. A word on insurance. Shop around. Consider a high deductible. $250 deductible seems a little low these days. And you pay for it. Also, consider your car insurance while shopping. Most offer discounts when they get all of your business.

10. Real Estate Agents. Yes, you can find a house on your own, but agents are helpful to assess your needs and show you houses that may match what you are looking for. They also get on your side for the negotiating. Get a referral from a friend or family.

Buying a house is a big deal. No need to rush. They make them everyday. Shopping for financing can be as big a step as actually finding the house. Don't give up. It's work. Then you have to move everything.

Stuart Simpson has a neat mortgage calculator you can try.


MORE RESOURCES:

Press-Enterprise

REAL ESTATE: California receives up to $18 billion in multistate settlement
Press-Enterprise
“It is a good first step but only a step toward the solutions we need,” said Kevin Stein, associate director of the California Reinvestment Coalition, a real estate consumer advocacy group. In California, the banks have guaranteed more than $12 billion ...
$25B settlement reached over foreclosure abusesSacramento Bee
States, banks reach foreclosure-abuse settlementAlbany Times Union
Drawn-Out Foreclosures Leave Homeowners in LimboLoanSafe
KTAR.com
all 2,791 news articles »


Fort Worth Star Telegram

Evangelical real estate developer brought Santorum to North Texas
Fort Worth Star Telegram
If Rick Santorum eventually wins Texas Republicans over, one of Texas' leading real estate developers should share credit. Last month, Jeff Blackard of the McKinney-based Blackard Group went undercover in South Carolina as a walk-in Santorum volunteer.
Donald Trump: Rick Santorum 'Wants To Be President? Give Me A Break' (VIDEO)Huffington Post

all 538 news articles »


Chicago Tribune

Shrinking the foreclosed real estate glut
Boston Globe
But it isn't going to fix the nation's residential real estate mess. That mess - millions of homeowners underwater on their mortgages, a stagnant residential sales market that lacks buyers and a clog of foreclosed property - can't be cleaned up with ...
REAL ESTATE: Refinancing program expands for Fannie/Freddie borrowersPress-Enterprise
Online Offers for HomePath Properties Expanded by Fannie MaeLoanSafe

all 146 news articles »


The Free Lance-Star

Vakos Real Estate opened this week in the Southpoint II shopping center.
The Free Lance-Star
BY BILL FREEHLING BY BILL FREEHLING One of the Fredericksburg area's oldest and most prominent development firms has started a full-service real estate brokerage arm. Vakos Real Estate opened this week in a 5200-square-foot space next to a Tropical ...
Who's who at new Vakos Real Estate firmFredericksburg.com (blog)

all 4 news articles »


Real Estate Agent Highlights New Technologies by Bicycling 700 Miles to Mid ...
MarketWatch (press release)
His route takes him across the breadth of four states and through 12 overnight stops, ending on stage before an expected 4000 attendees of the Coldwell Banker Real Estate's International Business Conference. Dyer aims to use a 150-year-old ...

and more »


DOJ: Three NorCal Real Estate Investors Agree to Plead Guilty to Bid Rigging ...
San Francisco Chronicle (blog)
Three Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty today for their roles in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California, the Department of Justice (DOJ) ...
Three to plead guilty in foreclosure auction fraudSan Jose Mercury News

all 6 news articles »


Real-Estate Crash Aids the Green Movement
Wall Street Journal
By LAURA KUSISTO The real-estate crash left pockets of the region's rural areas littered with the remnants of would-be golf courses, shopping centers and luxury subdivisions that never got off the ground. But the market swoon has yielded an unexpected ...



South Bay commercial real estate market heats up
San Jose Mercury News
Silicon Valley developers are racing to erect office and R&D buildings to meet a fresh surge of expansions by tech companies that's turning the region into a commercial real estate boomtown. Last year, the South Bay added about 26000 employees, ...

and more »


CBRE Clarion Global Real Estate Income Fund (NYSE: IGR) Declares Monthly ...
EON: Enhanced Online News (press release)
PHILADELPHIA--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--The Board of Trustees of the CBRE Clarion Global Real Estate Income Fund (NYSE: IGR) (the “Fund”) declared a monthly distribution of $0.045 per share for the month of February 2012. The following dates apply: ...

and more »


The Real Deal New York (blog)

Jets Stadium Chief Sheely Leaves NFL Team for Real Estate
BusinessWeek
Sheely, 40, the Jets' vice president for stadium development and finance, said he'll start a real-estate development company based in New York. The Jets and Super Bowl- champion New York Giants each borrowed $650 million to build what's now called ...
Jets exec starts real estate development companyThe Real Deal New York (blog)

all 4 news articles »

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