If you are looking to buy, now is certainly the time. Rates and home prices are very low, a perfect combination! Now is the time to put together your strategy of how to get your dream house and call it your home. The process can be overwhelming at times, but if you have the right team in place and your checklist is ready, it will be a snap for you.
- Get preapproved. This is the absolute first thing you must do. Talk to a mortgage broker or your banker and have them tell you the exact sales price you can afford. This process only takes about 10 minutes and is free. You need to know exactly what to
expect to make sure you are comfortable with your future mortgage payments and that a bank is willing to lend you the cash for your new place! What’s the point in driving all over town looking at houses that you can’t afford because the bank won’t lend you the money? - Check the fees. If you are buying in a gated community you will be paying fees to live there. Make sure you factor this in along with the above item #1. These fees can quickly kill a deal for you, so don’t forget about them!
- Hire the right Realtor to find you the best house matching your criteria. Make sure you get someone who is a fulltime professional, not a part-timer who does it on the side. The market is constantly changing and laws are always changing. Get someone who knows the ins and outs and who will navigate it all for you.
- Get the house inspected! Your Realtor can most likely recommend a good home inspector for you. Once you go to contract get it inspected for any defects, termites, etc. You’d be surprised what you would miss, but the trained eye of a home inspector would find.
- Stay calm throughout the process. It’s possible that a lot of “problems” will creep up on you during your sales process. This is normal and they usually are not major and can be worked through. The biggest headaches you will face will be with your mortgage, if you choose to get one. Banks are extremely strict now and want everything documented, so it will require a lot of participation on your part. Just go with it and it will all be over soon! And in the end you’ll have a new house!
Gabe Mellein was voted a Top Real Estate Agent – Exceptional in Service and Overall Satisfaction by Gulfshore Life Magazine in 2012. He is the broker of Gulf Pointe Properties, Inc and has over 8 years experience in the SW Florida Real Estate Market. He is a member of The Naples Area Board of Realtors, Bonita Springs – Estero Association of Realtors, Realtor Association of Greater Fort Myers and the Beach, The Florida Association of Realtors, The National Association of Realtors, and is nationally certified in Feng Shui for Real Estate. Need real estate help? Please contact Gabe at: 239.825.2234, Gabe@GulfPointeProperties.com or www.GulfPointeProperties.com
