Buying a home is an exciting time in your life, and buying your very first home is definitely something worth celebrating. However, the home buying process is often as exciting as it is terrifying.
Most new homeowners are new to the real estate scene, and therefore, they do not know what to expect during the process. This is why it becomes incredibly important to educate yourself about the processes and intricacies of the market. Hiring the services of a good house agent will also help to take the edge off the entire process.
To help you identify the common pitfalls that new homeowners often fall into and give you the tools you need to avoid falling into such pitfalls yourself, we have compiled a list of the 5 most common mistakes most new homeowners make when purchasing a house for the first time.
- Viewing housing options before putting your finances in order:
This is one common mistake new homeowners make. They often begin viewing properties long before they put their financing options into consideration or try to negotiate a favorable loan to enable them to purchase the property.
Why is this so important? Because you do not actually know how much you can afford to put down on a house until you have your financing options sorted out. Failure to do this may also lead to long delays in processing payment after you have found a desirable home which often leads to you losing the home of your dreams to a more prepared buyer.
We must stress the fact that it is extremely important to get financial qualification sorted out before proceeding to view housing options if you wish to avoid unwanted delays and complications.
- Searching for the house of your dreams:
New homeowners often fall into the never-ending trap of searching for the perfect home of their dreams. The one that has every fixture, and every structure, and every architectural detail that they fantasize about; but let’s face it, the perfect house does not exist!
You will find houses that meet your taste, but none of them can be the exact image of what you pictured your dream house to be. The sooner you accept that fact, the sooner you save yourself from missing out on other great opportunities because you were too busy searching for the “perfect” house.
- Utilizing the listing agent:
You may think that it saves you time and effort to simply utilize the listing agent to represent your interests but this is hardly the case. The listing agent was first hired by the seller and thus is more inclined to have their interests at heart. They, therefore, may be unable to fairly represent both sides.
It is advisable to have someone on your side as well to look out for your interests, negotiate effectively on your behalf, and give you honest advice. This is made possible only by hiring your own agent.
- Relying heavily on online appraisals:
No website or online real estate appraisal platform is actually visiting the properties whose value they estimate on their pages. This fact alone makes relying on price estimates derived from online real estate platforms a bad idea.
If you want to have an idea of the price of your property, conduct price surveys of similar properties sold in the area within the last 6 months, consider important factors like the interior, the exterior, square feet, and location. This should help you arrive at a more accurate estimate.
- Underestimating your expenses:
Most new homeowners underestimate the amount of money they will have to spend on expenses like utilities, redecoration, renovation, and unexpected repairs. However, these unforeseen expenses do take up a significant percentage of the housing budget, thus it is important to anticipate them and budget accordingly.
Finally, the most important tip to remember when buying a home for the first time is to educate yourself. By educating yourself properly, you will be better equipped to navigate the maze of the home buying process.