WE'RE LOOKING TO BUY OUR FIRST HOUSE,....ANY TIPS & ADVICE???

[skip68]

Well, we are finally at the point to buy our first home. (We really wanted to wait.) Started looking, and have spoken to a few realtors. I am looking for any and all advice going into this. (Things we may overlook!) I have a fear that we buy something that seems fantastic, only to find out it is a money pit! (Yes, like the movie!) It's a bit overwhelming to me. I found one I like on a few acres, but no garage!!!  Guess we could alway's build one. Hagerty insurance requires this for the Charger. Anyhoo, any tips, advice, and suggestions would be most helpful. I don't know the first thing about real estate. Thanks guys, and gals!!!

Mrs.Skip68

P.S. Yesterday we found a few mopars in the area we're looking at!!! 

[69bronzeT5]

Check out everything and get a good inspector in to view it and inspect it. That's a major thing. My mom is a realtor and there's been so many houses she's seen that look good to begin with and then turn out to be disasters when the inspector comes in.

[skip68]

Cody: Yeah, we're going to do that for sure!!  (Actually it's required) I just don't want to get "Blinded" by the WOW factor. We looked at a fantastic PROPERTY, but the house was crap. But,  still in the back of my mind, I was thinking,.....well we could fix this or that, or tear this down,.............that kind of thinking. I gotta get over thinking like that for sure!!! That's why I have Chuck, he's rational! (Most of the time!  ) BTW Cody: The area we're looking in is still close enough for you to stay with us for MATS next year!!! 

Mrs.Skip68

[Tilar]

Only things I can think of right off hand is to have someone inspect it for termites or any other type of infestation. Also ask to see a couple months worth of utility (gas and electric) bills. This will give you an idea what it's going to cost you on a month to month basis to live there. This will also give you clues to something like a heater element out of a hot water heater. They tend to suck up a lot of electricity.

That's all that comes to mind right off hand.

[69bronzeT5]

Yeah, I've gotten blinded by the wow factor before. There was this one place we looked at and I loved it but then I realized it was really small (it was a duplex).

[mopar_nut_440_6]

Congratulations you guys. You must be very excited.

I would avoid wood foundations.

Good luck with the hunt.

[nh_mopar_fan]

Decide what YOU can afford and not what the realtor says you can afford. It's in their best interest to put you in the biggest house possible.

Definitely get it inspected but be aware that inspectors are not liable for anything they miss.

Get the heatring system inspected by somone who is qualified. Inspectors generally don't know anything when it comes to boiler/furnace etc.

What I always did was put in a clause that gave me an easy out like pending approval of my father. It was an out clause for me. Some sellers would balk at it but in this market, if you want an "out" of the contract, just in case, it works.

Good luck!

[Dans 68]

Good for you guys! So, will Cody get a real bed or a semi-inflated air mattress?    Seriously, give me a call/email with your questions. My Dad was a Real Estate Broker for decades, and I've built my share of houses. I guess what I'm saying is I have a lot of experience with those man-made artifacts. Acreage is always good (a 4-car garage/shop comes to mind...   ) but as others have said, don't get in over your head. Really know what you can afford and stick to it. Insurance, taxes, flood plains (even in Vegas, Baby!), liens, termites, cracked foundations, heating/cooling costs, association fees and restrictions (If you are so unfortunate), future expansion limits, building codes, gas or electric, next to train tracks, under a flight path, next to a drag strip (hmm, maybe not so bad....).... Well, you get the idea. Get in a house, young man! 

Dan

[Todd Wilson]

Look around the area of the house. What do the other houses look like. Are they all rentals. I moved to my house and my block is a good block. Behind me in the alley is a bunch of smaller crappy houses that are rentals. We constantly get losers moving in to the rentals and all the problems that go with that.


As for the house the others have  put up some pretty good things to look for. Foundation problems and sags in the roof line.    I looked at a house years ago. Was nice outside. Completely remodeled and looked great. Went to the basement and one wall was leaning in a tad with a crack.

Get a house you can afford!  Dont get all excited and let the realtor and banker talk you into something high priced. That will only make you house poor or you wont live in it very long.



Todd

[NHCharger]

Decide what YOU can afford and not what the realtor says you can afford. It's in their best interest to put you in the biggest house possible.

Bingo. I built houses for years, dealing with realtors was a necessary evil. They only care about the amount of their commission. Have you checked with the local banks about bank owned property, some good deals right now on fairly new houses.
Buying an older house means dealing with replacing things sooner than in a new house. Appliances, well pumps, leach fields, heating/cooling systems, shingles, siding, windows, flooring all have a life expectancy and will eventually fail/wear out.

 

[mikepmcs]

The Realtor has the sellers interest in mind not yours.

Most everything has been said except that you said the inspector is required.  Don't confuse this with a banks appraiser to verify the property's worth. Ask me how I know this. You need to shell out the $350 or higher and hire someone not of the realtors choosing to do an unbiased inspection of the potential property.  I also agree with the surrounding area comments.  See what sort of scum lives near by.......big nasty dogs, unruly dirty kids, unkempt lawns, etc.....wait, i'm describing myself

Also, when you start to settle on a potential, make sure you ask for everything you can(conveyance I believe is the word???  not sure)  Take it all, washer fridge, everything, and don't assume it's included.  Make the seller pay half the closing costs or all.  Don't be afraid to lowball the crap out of an offer.  Like I said the realtor has the seller's interest(read that as their own pockets getting lined as well)) So the house is way overpriced to begin with.

Good luck and keep us posted.

v/r
Mike

[Old Moparz]

What to look for as far as problems with the building, or what to avoid, can be difficult to summarize on a forum, but others have listed some good points. As mentioned, a home inspector might be a very good idea if you don't have any experience with home improvements & major repairs. Just make sure they aren't associated with the realtor if you want an unbiased inspection. Having said that, the best thing to do when it comes to the realtor is to automatically assume that they are lying to you no matter what they tell you. It doesn't matter if it's about the house, the property, the land around it, or what coffee is best to drink.

That may sound cynical, but I've heard so much crap spew from a house salesperson that's how I see it unless they prove differently. Yes, I know they all aren't like that, but a lot are when it comes to a commission. Take your time looking at as many houses in one price range & talk to different agents, not just one. They'll tell you that as a multiple listing agent they can show you any house & save you time. That's true, but variety will allow you to find someone that you can work with better & not someone with their own agenda.

The next thing, is to stay on top of EVERYTHING once you sign papers. That goes for the deposit, the mortgage application, the title insurance company, & whatever inspections you need or decide to have done. Once you sign a contract you're obligated, & the people who sounded like your friend before you signed will not care if you get the house or not. Your dream home that you've found is just paper work to them & they could be having a bad day when they get to yours. Make a pest of yourself & call often to verify that things are taken care of, don't wait for anyone to call you.

I was fortunate that I had worked in the past doing home improvements & was familiar with what might be wrong with whatever house I looked at. I had also worked for a civil engineering firm, & familiar with the land surveying needed for the mortgage, the title search, & the zoning to see what was possible to build around me. True, the realtor may be well aware of these things, but you'll get unbiased info from the local building department or tax office of the town that the potential house is in. Spend time driving around the neighborhood & make note of large tracts of vacant land, & consider asking the building department or tax office what it is & what is permitted to be built there.

Here's a few things that have happened to me first hand.

When we finally chose a house after a 6 month search, we were out of state in NJ & the lawyer we planned on using wasn't licensed in NY where the house was. (Didn't know that at the time) Make sure you have a lawyer lined up for the closing.

The Bank we were using gave us 90 days to lock in our rate. If we didn't close after 90 days we would have to reapply & pay another application fee. No big deal, most closings go fast, but the crappy bank we picked sold the mortgage before the closing & delayed us until just about the 90 days. We sweat that one out because rates went up over that 90 days.

The title insurance company doesn't do anything until they know it's definite & waits until the very end to do a title search & inspect the property. Two days before the closing our lawyer calls & said the title company will not issue title insurance because there is some kind of access road that probably has an easement on the property. The guy at the title company said he's too busy to meet me there, but our lawyer happened to also be a local judge & persuaded him to. Turns out that the moron in the 3 piece suit driving the new BMW from the title company was at the wrong house & the road he saw was our own driveway.

Incompetence runs rampant, like a coworker of mine who's bank's building inspector initially rejected the approval for his house. He told the bank that the house had been flooded & there was a water line clearly visible in the basement halfway up the wall. My coworker argued & convinced the bank to send the inspector there to meet him. A different inspector showed up & determined that the water line from the flood was actually two-tone paint on the wall.

It's probably next to impossible to be an expert at every part of buying & inspecting a house, but if you have an idea of what can go wrong ahead of time, it'll help you be prepared. Good luck with the house hunt. 

[68charger383]

I say don't lock your rate until you have to or get a new mortgage under 5%. It's usually worth paying a point for a lower rate since you'll make it back within the first year/two, but try and avoid paying an origination point. If you pay any points, you should be able to deduct them from your taxes next year.

Be careful of the RE hooking you up with the mortgage broker, they usually aren't doing you any favors. Stick with the main players like B of A, Wells Fargo etc. and shop from bank rate.

The best inspector will be a builder who can most likely find any major issues with the foundation/slab or structure. Another trick is to find the local city building inspecter and see if he moonlights 

Just like a car, your better off buying one that has already been upgraded then one that hasn't. New low E windows, appliances, kitchen bathroom remodels, heating/cooling (new stuff really lowers the electric bill), roof. Your buying a new house, money will be tight to do stuff.

They say buy a little bigger than you currently need for your family. You don't want to have to buy another house in 5 years. Ex small kids turn into teens and now an extra bathroom/shower would be worth its wait in gold etc.

Best of luck

[moparguy01]

they're all money pits.  LIke said above dont let a realtor talk you into something you can't afford. Dont forget about house insurance, utilities, etc. Try to get some prior bills so you have an idea about what the utilities will cost. Also look for any water lines on any of the ceilings, or any signs for past repairs hastily done on the sheetrock around bathrooms especially. If it has an unfinished basement, figure what you think it will cost and how long it will take, then double the cost and triple the time it will take. thats about the way it goes.

Other than that dont rush into anything. You've got all the time you need.

[69bronzeT5]

So, will Cody get a real bed or a semi-inflated air mattress? 

We'll see....Chuck gave me tons of choices including the tree in the backyard and in the Charger

[CB]

Nice to hear you guys are doing much better now!!!
I liked your last house BTW. 

One major factor is the right neighborhood. A nice, cheap, big, fantastic, '4 car garage' property in a crappy neighborhood will stay in a crappy neighborhood.

Or you gotta shoot those drug dealers dead, hire Steven Segal for personal protection, ware a bullet proof vests etc 

Good luck with the hunt!
CB

[no318]

STAY within your pre-planned limits.  Don't blow your budget.

[69*F5*SE]

All of the above plus a nice garage for the Charger.

[PocketThunder]

Nice to hear you guys are doing much better now!!!
I liked your last house BTW. 

One major factor is the right neighborhood. A nice, cheap, big, fantastic, '4 car garage' property in a crappy neighborhood will stay in a crappy neighborhood.

The age old secret to real estate is LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION..  I've bought 4 houeses and sold 3 and the first thing that matters is "When it comes time to sell, are you going to be able to sell the place?"

[0X01B8]

Don't get emotional or attached to a property, especially in this buyer's market.  If any part of the deal bugs you - walk away and look for something else.  I'm on my 3rd house, and prior to each one I've made offers on others which didn't pan out.  In every case it worked out better for me.  The first offer I ever made was on a real POS house on a fantastic lot.  It had a beautiful, over one acre sized backyard.  My offer was contingent on a satisfactory inspection, at my expense, so that was my "out."  Even if the inspection came back fine, I could have still said "No."  I paid for the inspection so it's nobody's business but mine.  Having that "out" saved me a world of misery.  My next offer was on a decent little place, then suddenly they had another offer just like mine, so my agent wanted me to write a counter offer.  I said "No, thanks, let's find something else."  He was a little pissed, but who cares, find another agent if you don't like yours.

In this crummy market sellers will be surprisingly open to do things like pay points, or your closing costs, or what not.  My current place the seller paid my closing costs.  He was smart and just accepted my offer because he knew he was damn lucky to get any offer, and mine was pretty reasonable.  This was one year ago when the housing market had farther to drop, and everybody was in almost full blown panic mode.

On my 2nd house, I wrote an offer, it was countered, but I learned from my agent that they were concerned about having to move out to soon - they hoped their son could finish out the school year.  So, we tore up that one, we wrote a new offer a little higher than my first, and said they could live there a month after close - rent free.  They accepted.

Oh, and if you're looking at a place and the windows are inexplicably in the open position, it means the place smells like cat piss or something.

good luck,   

-john

[mopar0166]

take your time and get something that fits your needs.   i knew i had to have a basement and detached 2 car garage. the wife wanted a ig kitchen and a laundry room  hahaaa 

[JoeyGowdy]

Congratz!!  Just be sure to advoid places ruled by the HoA (homeowner associations).

[jaak]

I don't know what its called, but I know the State of Alabama has a program for first time home buyers , That gives you like a 10,000 grant to help pay your down payment, then you get $2000 credit every year you live there...(for example, if you live there 5 years you owe nothing, 4 years you gotta pay 2000 back, 3 years, 4000,ect.) I know in Alabama these are limited and are granted on a first come first serve basis. Im sure other States may have similar programs or some kind of program to help out first time buyers.

Good Luck finding your home,
Jason

[Forza]

Be sure to inflate all the tires on it Chuck

[Todd Wilson]

Something else I forgot to say about buying.    Dont buy a house by a school or community center. I live right across the street from a grade school. The school gives traffic problems a few times a day which isnt a big deal but the crap that goes on after school is out is unbelievable. Theres always people jacking around. Playing basketball until 2am. Yelling and just general trouble causing all the time. Punks riding skateboards all over everything and vandalizing stuff.


Todd