Rising rents, low interest rates and bargain home prices have many local residents jumping into homeownership these days. But first-time home buyers in particular should be aware that purchasing real estate can be fraught with all sorts of potential problems.
As discussed in a recent issue of Realtor Magazine and on www.realestatechecklists.com, here are five of the more common first-time home buyer mistakes:
1. Failing to ask enough questions of their lender. The result: buyers fail to fully understand the commitment they’re making and often end up missing out on the best deals.
2. Not acting quickly enough to make a buying decision on a particular home. By dragging their feet on making an offer, buyers miss out on great properties when more prepared and motivated buyers buy those homes instead.
3. Choosing the wrong realtor. Obviously, not all agents are the same. Your agent should understand your needs, respond to your concerns, answer all your questions, and be available when needed. They should know your local housing market well, be comfortable with technology and be a committed ally to you.
4. Not doing enough to make their purchase offer appeal to the seller. Sellers must be convinced that a buyer’s offer is reasonable and that it is being made in good-faith.
5. Failing to think about resale before they buy. Someday, that first-time home buyer will have to sell the home to someone else. And “someday” may not be far away – statistics show that the average first-time buyer stays in a home for only four years.
Want to learn more about how the home buying process works? Attend a free home buyers seminar Sat. Oct. 20 at The Village at Waugh Chapel Community Center. A group of local real estate and industry experts will be on hand to discuss such topics as local market conditions, financing options, the settlement process and insuring your home and your future.
The seminar will be held 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm at the Village at Waugh Chapel Community Center, behind Robert Andrews & Fuji Steakhouse (1326 Main Chapel Way, Gambrills, MD 21054). Registration is requested; call (443) 924-7418. The seminar is free!
Jerry Kline is a Realtor with the Odenton, Md., office of Keller Williams Flagship Realty (1216 Annapolis Rd., Odenton.) For more information on the local real estate market, contact him at (443) 924-7418, or visit his blog (www.JerryKlineRealtor.wordpress.com) or website (www.JerryKline.kwrealty.com).
Advice varies but your mortgage payment should not exceed one week's take home pay. So if combined household income is $80,000 ends up in $1,200 per week take home - that should be your mortgage. But what we end up with is a lot of people who are house poor. They make their payments, never go into foreclosure but also can't enjoy life because too much of what they make goes to their mortgage payment.