Mistakes Commonly Seen When Purchasing Your First Home
August 13, 2010 by Guest Author
Filed under Debt
It’s exciting to take that first step to purchasing a home and no longer paying rent. This experience is new and scary as often most people don’t know what they are getting themselves into, let alone know what they are doing when planning for their dream home.
Mistakes happen when people rush into making decision especially with high-priced purchases. First time homebuyers often make common mistakes when they decide to buy a home and make a commitment.
It’s nice to have an image of your dream home in your mind, but you also need to be practical when out looking for a home. The first mistake home buyers make is having an unclear idea of what you are searching for. Make sure you have an idea of what you want before you start looking for a home and especially before you make a commitment to buy.
The next mistake excited first time home buyers make is not doing the necessary number crunching to determine how much one can really afford to buy. This mistake is actually quite grave in the sense that it can lead you to making other mistakes.
Being able to own a home doesn’t end with having the ability to buy the home’s face value. Thinking this way makes you underestimate the true costs of owning a home wherein your monthly budget after buying will have to make room for mortgage payments, insurance, property taxes, maintenance and repairs, utility costs, and other expenses.
The third slip up is that many people going looking for places without having their mortgage pre-approved, which can mean that you end up wasting everyone’s time if you get denied. Another problem, if your are pre-approved, is going out on a spending spree and damaging your credit rating, meaning your mortgage gets denied.
Buying a home for the first time without the help of an agent is also another mistake. Letting the agent do the negotiations for you will help in hiding your excitement, as letting your feelings show will lead to a high price.
Lastly, scrimping on the costs by foregoing a professional home inspection is a mistake you should never make. A professional home inspection will save you money in the long run by exposing defects in the property.
This writer has been contributing articles pertaining to buying homes for the past seven years. Additionally, the author loves providing knowledge on New York neighborhood topics, such as East Village rentals along with Lincoln Center apartments.
