Oct. 19, 2022
Answers to common questions for Buyer
Buying a house is a big step when you are in any phase of life. Especially with the current Real Estate market uncertainty, we are here to help you navigate and successfully locate the perfect property for the best pricing. In this post, we will help buyers answer some of the questions they have regarding purchasing a house. Many people fear the home buying process, but hopefully, we can answer some of those questions and take away some of the whole process's anxiety. The questions will include talking about budgets, property risks, and conditions, and neighborhood.
When buying a home, there are always questions about the budget. One of the best questions is, "what your total cost?" This question will include what you will pay for before or at closing. Typically, these fees include, but are not limited to, appraisal, the property itself, inspection, mortgage interest, mortgage insurance, homeowner's insurance, taxes, and sometimes HOA fees. HOA fees do not include every house, but you will likely end up having some HOA fees if you are looking for something in a distinguished neighborhood. It would be best if you also were asking about time.
You want to ask your realtor, "how long has the house been on the market?" because knowing this will give you some room for negotiating. The longer the duration on the market, the more it signals a problem or issue with the property. Legally, your agent must inform you about certain things they know are wrong with the property. There will be certain things that your agent doesn't know about the property that will appear in the inspection. Often, homes will end up staying on the market because the price is too high for the property. With this knowledge, your agent should help you negotiate an affordable price because the seller would be more inclined to get the property sold.
Another essential question is, "why is the seller leaving?" This question can also help with your negotiating. There are several reasons that a person is choosing to leave their current home- need more space for growing family, downsizing for retirement, job relocation, or a significant family event. Time on the market and the seller's reasons for leaving give the seller motivation to work out a deal and provides the buyer with room for some negotiating. Before working out an agreement with the seller, ask your agent questions about the property risk and condition.
A risk that a buyer tends to take is the appliances and whether they come with the home or not. If they do, you want to ask, "how old are the major appliances?" This question will help determine if you will need to replace these components sooner than you want. This unfortunate e/Pvent is only one significant expense that you may have to come up with after purchasing your new home. Another liability that you are going to want to ask about is the roof.
When thinking of the property, one question that you should ask is, "how old is the roof?" The agent should be able to give you that information. This question is important because if the roof is near the end of its life cycle, the lender can ask that it be changed to get your loan approved. You also want to find this information out because you don't want to be paying for a new roof shortly after moving in. When thinking about the roof, you also need to think about weather conditions.
Buying a home means thinking of everything, and that includes the weather. So, the question you should be asking is, "Is this home in a flood zone?" or "does it risk damage from other natural disasters?".Buyers can search every home on FEMA's flood map. If it does pose a risk to flooding, you will need to investigate purchasing flood insurance separately. A tip for purchasing insurance is to make sure that it covers the cost to rebuild your home if it becomes wrecked. Before purchasing your dream home, you may want to find out about the neighborhood and if that feels like the best fit.
It would be best if you asked, "how is the neighborhood?" to get an idea of who or what you could be living next door. You can get an idea of what a community is like by researching crime statistics, school districts, and community amenities. An excellent way to understand the neighborhood is to ask someone that has lived there. Besides the area, you may want to also ask about the neighbors directly beside and sometimes behind your property.
Buying a house is sometimes considered a stressful and lengthy process. We hope to help answer some of your questions with this blog and give you some guidance on your homebuying process. If you have any other questions about the process or what you might need to qualify, comment down below, and we can help!