6 Things to Avoid When Buying a Home in 2018

To make your home purchase go smoothly and quickly in 2018, there are six things you must avoid doing.
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Here are the six things you must avoid doing if you’re planning on buying a home this year: 

1. Don’t shop for a home without an agent. Looking at homes online is a great way to start your home search, but once you’re ready to start the home buying process, I encourage you to use a professional agent. Their job is to help you move through the process smoothly, including writing and negotiating the winning contract and getting the right purchase price for you and your family. 

2. Don’t meet with just one lender. Many times, people starting the home buying process will meet with just one lender. Lenders require things like W-2s, tax returns, and pay stubs, and most don’t want to deal with the extra work of providing those things to multiple lenders. Make sure you reach out to a minimum of two to three lenders so you get the best rate and loan type when you purchase a home. 

3. Don’t understate your budget. If you’re looking to purchase a home for, say, $200,000, I would encourage you not to tell your agent you can afford a house for only $150,000. That agent will send you homes that can fit your budget, but there might be that perfect house out there for $200,000 that you might miss out on because you didn’t tell your agent what your actual budget is. 



I hope these six tips will help you with purchasing a home in 2018.


4. Don’t make lowball offers. In this market, there are a lot of great things happening. If you make a lowball offer, you could potentially upset the seller to the point where they don’t even want to make a counteroffer. Communicate with your agent about things like list-to-sale ratios so you understand the numbers. Also, make sure you pick an agent who understands the numbers so they can help you make the right offer on the house you’ve fallen in love with. 

5. Don’t forget to budget for closing costs. Anytime you purchase a home, there will be closing costs, so make sure you budget for those. The best person to ask about this kind of thing is your agent, your lender, or the title and escrow agent you’ve chosen for that transaction. 

6. Don’t make large purchases until your house closes. Your credit score and mortgage are both important, and I would avoid making any big purchases until your house closes. Any big purchase can affect your credit score and affect whether your mortgage gets accepted or denied. 

If you have any questions about this topic or you’re thinking of buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’d be happy to help you.

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