Each experience is different! Here are a few tips to start you on your path to success.
The process of looking to buy a home can start months or even years before you actually buy the home. You don’t cut the wood before you measure and in most cases, you need to measure twice before you cut once. You will need to meet with your financing expert. This will determine what sort of numbers you will need to work with. Go over this with different mortgage professionals. It gives you opportunities to have them pitch you their business. Sometimes the interest rate isn’t the thing! Just because the rate is low doesn’t mean it’s the best product for you! You need to find a broker that has YOUR best interests at heart. To find a product that suits your needs. There are MANY different products out there and you need to know your options. The safety and security of a bank can be comfortable. The flexibility of a broker might be better on your wallet! From there, choosing an agent is another very important step.
When choosing an agent you’re looking for two things. 1. The opposite of a “set it and forget it” realtor. Most realtors will throw you on a search and let that search do the work for them. I call the “set it and forget it” search!! Now YOU are the one searching through the listings. As realtors, our whole job, our existence is to find your homes! A good real estate salesperson will be following your search daily. Sending you updates on a weekly basis. Finding homes that are OFF MARKET to help get you what you want. 2. You’re looking for a realtor that can negotiate HARD. Someone who will work any deal to the end and not be afraid to tell you when the end has come! Too many times I’ve seen agents walk away from deals that could have come together with a little more work. Look through testimonials on social media. Find out what people are actually saying about this person!
You’ll need to pin down your home criteria. Even if you worked with the best agent on the planet. They would have problems if there was a 300 square mile area to search. Many different types of homes with wide-open criteria to go through! Work with your agent to start pinning down the criteria and working towards the end goal. Start pro/con lists so you can further determine the best-case scenario. Understand that you might want it all.
In the end, you’ll likely have to sacrifice a little to get what suits you!
JL Realty Group