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first home - need help

talktoheather

talktoheather

The 102nd Dalmatian.
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Dec 3, 2009
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Wes and I are going to be buying a home when we get to Austin.

We have a realtor.
Are planning a visit in early July with my Dad and Cousin (who lives in the area).
and are pre approved for a mortgage.

What else am I missing?

Any tips you ladies have for a first time home buyer??

:flirty
 
Don't settle. The PERFECT ONE is out there, but it might be hard to find.
 
Make a list of what you need vs. want vs. AWESOMENESS. It really helped us when we'd see a house that was really great, but then be able to say, for example, "Ya know it doesn't have good closets . . . " It helped keep our emotions about a house in check too.
 
Angie4b1g said:
Don't settle. The PERFECT ONE is out there, but it might be hard to find.
Click to expand...

I totally agree. Don't settle on your non-negotiables. But, be able to see potential as well. Don't get too caught up on the cosmetic things. It's pretty amazing what a fresh coat of paint and other small changes can do for a place. Oh, and my Dad's first rule of house hunting: location, location, location. :)
 
Don't buy more house than you need... but find out what sells in the area you look at too. We don't need more than a 3 bedroom (not even that really)... but 4 bedrooms sell faster here... so that's what we are looking at.

I'm eager to hear all the tips too! We are probably building our house in the next 6 months or so. We are near Dallas.

Oh and we are checking out school districts even though we have no kids... it's a selling point later.
 
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Yes, research the school district even if you don't have kids now.

Also, find the name of a home inspector that you can use when you narrow down your choices to actually making bids.
 
school district is important even if no kids on the near horizon. big for resale and property value.

check the distances (actually drive them) from the places you normally go (or could go as life changes) - like grocery, target/walmart, work, playgrounds, gym, malls, etc. watch/drive traffic patterns, too - rush hour and not.

if you can get a little more house than you need right now, that is not a bad thing... we have had MANY empty rooms in the past and that is actually ok! better to have a little more floor space than not enough, if it works in the budget.

check on HOA - dues, regulations, etc. some places will fine you $25 if you leave your trash can out too long! just so you know the rules, if there are any, going in.

don't be afraid to talk to the people who live on the block and around the block if you find a prospective home - ask about things like street traffic, teenagers on the block, crime, associations, noise (= barky dogs), etc.

remember everything is negotiable... everything.
 
I would just second everything that everyone else said.

We bought our first home almost five years ago now (yikes, where did the time fly?) and while I am still thankful for the general layout of the house, there are things that I never thought of that will definitely be things that I think of for the future.

For us, our house is in a pretty good neighborhood, not too brand spankin' new, so there are mature trees, etc. and super easy access to many of life's amenities. The downside is that we are on the main 'thoroughfare' through the neighborhood where I think people go way too fast and because of the this, the boys are totally unallowed to play in the front yard without supervision (which is where they obviously always want to play). We have a small patio out back, but no awning/covering--it brings in a lot of morning sun--next house will definitely be looking for things like that.

Also, I think it is good to start out with things that you are looking for, but also spend some time just looking for the sake of looking--you can really get ideas of 'perks' that you would like to have or things that you would NOT like to have.

I totally second Amy on talking to the neighbors...

This may now be the most overwhelmed you have been with all the inundation of information. Take your time, enjoy the process, dream as big as you can...yes, buying a house can be stressful, but it can also be a LOT of fun!

Good luck!
 
Those are all great tips. One thing I would add - start looking now via the internet. We used the Zillow app in our search the last time and it was great. Shows you the houses on a map, recent price changes, what it thinks the house should sell for, pictures, etc...Most of the time we were choosing the houses we wanted to look at instead of the realtor. And it can also be a great way to show your realtor what type of house you are after so they have an easier time narrowing down your search.

Good luck and have fun! I love house hunting!!
 
I completely agree with everyone so all I can offer is to stay calm and enjoy the time looking at homes. I like going to open houses just to see what's happening in the home market and try to drive my ol' man crazy with home improvement projects. :)
 
Everything here is great advice!

I also second Lisa's idea of looking around online. This will help you get an idea of what the market is like in the area and you can get some of the legwork done ahead of time, especially if you have a limited amount of time to look for something. I've heard of zillow, but I bet there are other sites as well. I'm in Utah, and there's a site called utahhomes.com that basically has everything on the market aside from for sale by owner homes. Obviously that's not going to help you, but I wonder if Texas or Austin area has something similar?

Also, definitely talk to the neighbors! Not just to hear what they say, but also just seeing who lives in the area and what kind of a vibe you get from them will help you decide if it's a good spot for you.

One helpful thing KC (my DH) and I did was make a list of our "needs" and our "wants" and try to fill both of our needs while staying the in budget. This was helpful because our needs lists tended to have some differing items between the two of us, and this way we were both able to (pretty much) get what we wanted out of it.

Best of luck!!
 
Location, location, location.

When we were looking for the first time our realtor emphasized this to me and she was right. You can change a lot about a house but you can't change its location. So look for a great neighborhood. It can be tempting to go for a beautiful house in a not so great location over something that is not as nice but in a better place.
 
What every one else has said...

Also, Zillow is a great online resource to shop ahead. When you meet your Realtor, ask him/her to give you an MLS printout of each house you're going to look at. Put them in order from first to last. Take notes on each sheet as you walk through. After you see about 3 houses, you'll forget what you liked/didn't like about each one and they'll all run together. Also, bring your camera! There's nothing wrong with taking pictures to look back at the end of each day. And, be sure to ask to see a copy of any HOA docs or restrictive covenants. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. Good luck and happy hunting!! :)
 
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mommy2boyz said:
What every one else has said...

Also, Zillow is a great online resource to shop ahead. When you meet your Realtor, ask him/her to give you an MLS printout of each house you're going to look at. Put them in order from first to last. Take notes on each sheet as you walk through. After you see about 3 houses, you'll forget what you liked/didn't like about each one and they'll all run together. Also, bring your camera! There's nothing wrong with taking pictures to look back at the end of each day. And, be sure to ask to see a copy of any HOA docs or restrictive covenants. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. Good luck and happy hunting!! :)
Click to expand...

The photo tip is a good one, I took a ton of photos, but try to take a picture of the listing sheet first, so it gives you a marker of which house is which.... I used my iPhone for the pics and they were perfect. Do a video of something you may need a little more detail on.

Also, I use zillow a lot, but never contact someone through zillow, I learned the hard way about a rental. We got lucky we caught the scam before we paid anything. And use the realtor's website too, some websites have better photos to get a better view upfront before spending a lot of time seeing things in person. I also felt like if the photos were not "with effort"... then the house usually looked worse in person. The houses I liked the best when we were looking had photos that looked like someone took some time to take them right vs just a low res random shot of the fireplace.
 
I know they say not to settle..but I have always been told not to settle on location and the things that you can't change. Cosmetic things can easily be fixed so like don't get hung up on that stuff. Location is the the most important thing!

we have a brand new house so there aren't mature trees like becky has and the next house that is soooo high on my list. We like to be outside but have no shade! lol sounds kinda not as important but for us it's pretty high on the list!
 
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