A Helpful Guide for First-Time Home Buyers

Buying your first home can be an exciting, yet jarring process. There’s a lot the goes into the home buying process that most first-time home buyers aren’t prepared for. Learning about the home buying process can help you save plenty of time and avoid making costly mistakes. In our home buyer’s guide below, we cover some of the most important things to consider before deciding on a home.

Are you sure you’re ready?

Buying a home shouldn’t be a hasty or spur-of-the-moment decision. If you enter into a contract and are unable to pay your mortgage, you could end up losing a lot of money. It will also have a major negative impact on your credit score, meaning you’ll have a much harder time buying a home in the future.

Purchasing a home is a major commitment, as you’ll likely be making monthly mortgage payments for the next few decades. That said, if you have a stable income, good credit score and the desire to own a home, now’s a good time to start saving.

Create a budget

One of the first steps every home buyer should take is creating a budget they will stick to. This means getting all your finances in order and figuring out a good price range. Consider your income and debt to best determine how high of a mortgage payment you can afford each month. Be sure to also think about how much you want to put down for a down payment. Once you have a good budget, you can start looking for homes within that price range.

It’s important to consider all the expenses and extra fees that go along with purchasing a home. This can include closing costs, renovation expenses and much more. You don’t want to end up emptying your savings to purchase the home itself and have nothing left for other expenses.

Get pre-approved

One thing that will help speed up the process is getting a pre-approval letter from your lender. This will show sellers and real estate agents that you’re serious about purchasing a home. Pre-approval letters also show what you can afford and allow you to start figuring out closing costs.

The first step in getting a pre-approval letter is finding the right lender. There are likely plenty of lender options in your area, so it’s important to do your research. Find a lender that’s willing to work with your needs and wants.

Work with a good real estate agent

While it’s possible to find and purchase a home on your own, the process is daunting without a good real estate agent. Real estate agents have plenty of experience in finding homes and negotiating prices. They can usually get you a better price and save you a lot of time. One of the best things about working with a real estate agent is that they can take care of all the paperwork. Buying a home requires a lot of paperwork that most people find confusing and time-consuming. If you’re a first-time home buyer in the Mesa, AZ area, contact the experts at Valley Executives Real Estate & Property Management. This home buyer’s guide barely scratches the surface of what we can tell you about the process!