STEPS TO OWNING A HOME

Step 1:Your Readiness

Knowledge and experience are the keys to successful real estate transactions.

One of the keys to making the home-buying process easier and more understandable is planning. In doing so, you'll be able to anticipate requests from lenders, lawyers and a host of other professionals. Furthermore, planning will help you discover valuable shortcuts in the home-buying process.

Do You Know What You Want? Whether you are a first-time home buyer or entering the marketplace as a repeat buyer, you need to ask why you want to buy. Are you planning to move to a new community due to a lifestyle change or is buying an option and not a requirement? What would you like in terms of real estate that you do not now have? Do you have a purchasing time-frame?

Whatever your answers, the more you know about the real estate marketplace, the more likely you are to effectively define your goals.

Step 2: Getting A Realtor/Agent

 In many cases buyers will interview several REALTORS/AGENTS before selecting one professional with whom to work. These interviews represent a good opportunity to consider such issues as training, experience, representation and professional certifications.

Step 3:  Looking At The Home

Millions of new and existing homes are sold each year. There's no shortage of housing options, but with so many choices the challenge becomes finding the property which best meets your needs.

The housing market is complicated because the stock of homes for sale is always in flux. If it were possible to have a complete list of every home for sale at this very moment in a given community, such a list would become obsolete within seconds as new homes become available and properties now for sale are put under contract.

In effect, buyers are looking at a moving target in a marketplace that is never static. Because of this, it is important to know as much as possible about the choices in preferred markets, and the way to do that is by working closely with a local realtor/agent who has a good lay of the land.

Step 4: Choosing A Home

There's no doubt that choosing a home is a big decision and you want to do it right.

As a buyer, here's what actually happens. A home has been placed on the market for which the seller has established an asking price as well as other terms. In effect, this is an offer. At this point, you have three choices: accept the seller's offer and create a contract; reject it and not make an offer; or suggest different terms and make a counter-offer. If you choose this last option, the seller may accept, reject or make a counter-offer.

Step 5: Funding

Where do you get a loan? Mortgage financing can be obtained from mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers, savings and loan associations, mutual savings banks, commercial banks, credit unions, and insurance companies. 

Step 6: Making An Offer

While much attention is spent on offering prices, a proposal to buy includes both the price and terms. In some cases, terms can represent a huge amount of money in additional value for buyers -- or additional costs. Terms are extremely important and should be carefully reviewed. 

Step 7: Getting Insurance

No one would drive a car without insurance, so it figures that no homeowner should be without insurance. The essential idea behind various forms of real estate insurance is to protect owners in the event of catastrophe. If something goes wrong, insurance can be the bargain of a lifetime.