Home Buyers
The home buyers process has many parts to it! Let’s take a look at what you can expect.
1. Find A Lender
Most people need to take out a loan when buying a home. If you do not, then that will reduce the number of steps in the home buying process. It’s important to be sure that you’re approved for a loan before you start looking at homes so you don’t miss out on any opportunities. The market is very competitive in Evergreen and the surrounding areas for a really nice home. If you need help finding a lender, we can recommend trusted lenders near you. Please contact us.
2. Calculate Your Price Range
Calculate what’s realistic for you to afford so that you can stay within your budget when considering different areas in which you would like to buy a home. This mortgage calculator will help you do this calculation, click here. Once you know your range, we can help you make the most out of your money, contact us.
3. Research
Finding the right home can be time consuming, but it’s important to consider everything before you decide. What’s the commute like to work? If you have kids, what are the schools like in the area? How many bed and bathrooms will you need? Do you prefer a newer or older styled home? All of these are important factors to take into account during the home finding process.
We are dedicated to helping you through the entire home buying process. Once we help you find that perfect home, we will prepare a written offer for you. With our market knowledge, we can help you arrive at an offer that both fits your budget and has the best chance of being accepted.
4. Once Your Offer is Accepted
After your offer is accepted, you’ll have a grace period to have the house professionally inspected and request repairs or counter offer if the situation arises. This period of time is typically 14 days, but depends on what was agreed upon in the offer. Once this step is complete, we will verify the terms and conditions of your loan and assist you with any questions you may have during the process.
5. The Appraisal Process and What to Expect
The first thing you need to understand is that you do not hire the appraiser as the buyer. Don’t get me wrong you will pay for the appraisal but you do not get to choose who does the appraisal. What happens is the bank calls the “middle man” who in turn calls the next appraiser in the pool. The appraiser then comes out to look at the property. He does his own measurements and takes pictures of the subject property, makes notes and heads back to the office with the data he collects. He then finds comparable (comps), properties similar to the subject property. Most banks like to go back up to six months and not go too far away from subject property’s neighborhood to find similar homes.
Like mentioned earlier, it is sometimes difficult to find comparables in some areas of the country. Another good example are mountain properties. There are very few “cookie cutter” lot and block properties in the mountains, so what makes them appealing to most is the uniqueness of every property. Unfortunately that makes it difficult to find value since you are usually comparing apples to oranges. Then what happens after the appraiser does his magic and adjusts his data? He sends his best guess of what a home is worth. Keep in mind an appraisal is the opinion of one persons estimate of value, of a specific property, in a snapshot of time. In other words, that value could go up, down or stay the same 24 hours later.
Reasons Why Your Home May Not Appraise
This has always been strange to me when a home doesn’t appraise. The definition of an appraisal is basically the market price of a property in a specific area in a snapshot of time. Basically what the market believes a property is worth. So by definition if a Buyer offers X amount for a property, isn’t the market telling you the value is X? So shouldn’t the property appraise at the Buyer’s offer? Also if a property has multiple offers at over or near X, shouldn’t that trump past sales? Unfortunately not and that could be a problem in a fast moving market? The fact is that at times comparable properties don’t keep up with the market. Sometimes comps lag for 30, 45 or even 60 days.
People also don’t understand a basic real estate principal of location as well. Just because you live in a specific city or town doesn’t mean that home will be the same value as another in a different neighborhood. It is almost always better to own a home in a nice neighborhood. So even if you have the biggest and nicest home in a specific neighborhood, it may have a lower value than a smaller not so nice home in a good neighborhood in the same town. In other words, it is better to have the worst in a nice neighborhood than the nicest house in a lower value neighborhood.
Another reason homes don’t appraise for what you think they are worth is because people put too much value in improvements made on their property. It is rare that you get 100% ROI on any home improvement. Some home improvements yield higher ROI than others. This is something you need to discuss with your real estate agent before picking up a hammer.
If Your Home Does Not Hit the Sales Price and Appraise
If the home doesn’t meet the sale price, options are limited. Changing the appraised value is tough. Another appraisal is rare unless you can prove negligence or massive wrong doing on the first appraisal. The best solution is for the seller to lower the price to match the appraisal. Buyers can cover the gap at closing, but beware of negative equity risks.
6. Moving Time
Now that you’ve found your perfect home, it’s time to make moving arrangements. If you plan on utilizing a professional moving company, we can recommend reputable, local movers. Don’t forget to fill out your change of address forms and inform the utility company of your move!
To search for homes for sale, please contact us.
