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 Roan On The Range
Posts: 7889
    
Location: Stephenville, TX | I'd like to hear about your home buying experience, particularly from first time home buyers. Any tips for rookies you'd like to share?
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Expert
Posts: 1488
| Completely, 1000% remove emotion form the process.
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 Cute Little Imp
Posts: 2747
Location: N Texas | DD2012 - 2014-01-03 11:51 AM
Completely, 1000% remove emotion form the process.
This. Don't get so caught up in being in love with your dream house that you overlook things that should be deal breakers. Get a qualified, licensed person to inspect the entire home and be prepared to walk away if everything's not right.
Make sure you have a lot of money saved up for closings costs and all that fun stuff. |
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Expert
Posts: 1543
Location: MI | Don't buy a house that another agent in the office is listing, if you can help it. And check into home inspectors, make sure that they have a decent history, recommendations, etc. Also, bring family/any knowledgeable friends through the house if you can, they can offer other opinions that you might not have thought of. Go to the township/local office to make sure that the property and title area all in order, and that there are no association fees, restrictions, or easements that haven't been disclosed.
Don't assume that the seller has done all of this!!!
Good luck and have fun!! |
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Roan On The Range
Posts: 7889
Location: Stephenville, TX | What about mobile homes? In my price range I can get more land with a mobile, but I'm not 100% convinced that's the way to go. I'm thinking I'd get more value out of a stick-built house. This will be a starter place, so I need to consider resale potential. Thoughts?
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 Uh....never mind
Posts: 2696
Location: Midwest Farmer's Daughter: Central Illinois | Go through & do all of the painting & floor changes you want done before you set a piece of furniture in the house.
Infinity times the inspection. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 582
| I have nothing against mobile homes, but if you are looking for appreciation, they will not appreciate much if at all unless you have a great location and other structures on the property.
As for buying a house, inspect, inspect, inspect for everything! There are lots of things that can be hidden and are incredibly expensive to fix. Like everyone else said, take the emotion out of it and look at what's really in front of you. Don't think about what "can be" (I am bad about that) I see the potential and while that's not bad if you focus too much on that and don't focus on what's really in front of you it can bite you in the rear.
Try to find out if there are any plans for development in the area you are looking, depending on what they are it could affect the resale value in the future. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1028
| Gunner11 - 2014-01-03 11:57 AM DD2012 - 2014-01-03 11:51 AM Completely, 1000% remove emotion form the process. This. Don't get so caught up in being in love with your dream house that you overlook things that should be deal breakers. Get a qualified, licensed person to inspect the entire home and be prepared to walk away if everything's not right. Make sure you have a lot of money saved up for closings costs and all that fun stuff.
This. I bought my first house in Dec. '12. I made sure to bring along my mom and best friend to help keep me grounded while looking at different properties. Inspections are definitely worth the $$! |
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  Ms. Potato Head
Posts: 9162
Location: BFE, Idaho | Have a fantastic relationship with your realtor.
Also find an inspector that has tons of references, and go with them on the inspection. There is so much they say to themselves that they just do not think to write down on the form.
I bought a manufactured due to land, price, and it just happened. Was not looking one way nor the other. It has already appreciated double, and will go up just a bit when all the outside and inside upgrades are done. I will not get hurt on this.
Make sure that even though you say you are not selling in the next so many years that you can if you have to.
And as already stated know ahead of time all the little fees, closing, realtor, title search, titile insurance, etc.
Never buy with emotion just necessisties.
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 Expert
Posts: 1295
Location: Chehalis, Washington | We just purchased our first home November 1st!!
It was a long two year process of building credit, and LOOKING. So many homes sold out form under us before we FINALLY got our home.
Im in washington. So not sure if it willbe same for you, but here is how ours went.
We started with one realtor. She tried to talk us out of land!!! I was feeling discouraged. We couldnt find anything in our price range with land with her. Her lender friend we were going through gave us a really high interest rate, and didnt tell us about any of the programs available out there for us.
We were finally recommeneded to our realtor who helped us greatly. He is into 4h with his kids and told us yes we would find land :). His lender gave us a GREAT interest rate. Told us all about the process. What programs we could take advantage of etc.
1st step. Get a pre approval, and find a realtor you LOVE.
- You will need to have a TON of papers, information etc before you can close. So make sure you know what you need before you start looking so there are no hitches int eh steps.
2nd step. Start shopping/looking.
3rd step. Get an inspection. Make an offer. Go through that headache of a process.
4th step. Appraisal (then have to re negotiate again if appraisal low)
5th step. Ether start looking all over again, or start closing on your loan!!
In washington we have a program where your down payment can be paid for. We took a 3 hour class on a saturday and we never paid a dime for our down payment. Only have to pay back if we refinance or sell. IF we never sale then its free money.
We asked our sellers to pay all closing costs. Which they did. :D.
We only paid out of pocket. Earnest money, and Inspection. So about 600$ Which most was given back to us at closing.
Make sure you have at least a couple thousand in savings.. or up to 10000 depending on your area and what your closing costs could be. But look to see if there are programs and try to get seller to pay closing costs. Each area is so different though!
We got 6 acres and a 3 bedroom home for only 157000. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 581
Location: Fort Collins, CO | i travel a lot for work, so buying a place with land for my horses right now was out of the question. I purchased my first home in a subdivision.
Get your own realtor--the seller's realtor has the sellers best interest in mind, your realtor will fight for you.
Remove emotion is a good one!
I was very particular on the areas I wanted, and last spring houses would pop up and have a contract on it in 2 days, so if i was traveling i didn't even get to look at a house i liked online.
Everything is different in person--the pictures might look awesome and big online and you see it in person and it's like HOW did they get that??!
I took my time, and ended up looking at a house that was a foreclosure against railroad tracks because I finally saw a picture of the kitchen, and it was in great shape (not your normal foreclosure on the inside). I put an offer in and because my realtor had done business with the listing agent before, he was able to relay that my offer was an easy deal. No house to sell and 20% down. The listing agent put my offer in first because of this. This is where your own realtor fights for you!
Granted I spent more than i wanted ($10,000) but in the grand scheme of things i have a much better house and a lot of space, the biggest lot in the subdivision (huge backyard) and mountain views!
Be patient, you will know it's the house for you when you walk in. That really is a true statement! |
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 Dr. Ruth
Posts: 9891
Location: Blissfully happy Giants fan!!! | For resale I would not go with a mobile home. Go with stick built. Don't cheap out on a realtor. Go with one that has a great reputation and has been around for a while. They are worth their weight in gold. Our realtor listened to what we wanted and knew our situation, what was important to us, what we needed versus liked, what areas we would not look at, etc. She also knew EVERYONE and could tell us who to go to for an inspection, repairs, etc. She still does. I can call her and she can give me an immediate recommendation for anything. And she was super thorough in looking through the house with us. I love her!! Also, we bought a foreclosure through Fannie Mae-she knew how to haggle with them and get us a good price and negotation.
Know that you will sink money into the house after you close. Be prepared. It is part of home buying.
On the mortgage side, you need to know that you will have to provide proof of EVERYTHING. Even if you don't think it is material, it probably is. Have 3 years of tax returns, bank statements, etc on hand. Be able to paper trace back exactly where and how you are coming up with your down payment. If you can provide a record of ANY money you make, have been given, etc and employment over the last three years, HAVE IT READY!!! The more information you can have ready and provide the smoother your process will be.
And also, once you have entered into a contract and the mortgage process is started DO NOT BUY ANYTHING!!!! One of the worst ways to screw up the process is to buy furniture, buy a car, whatever. Don't use your credit cards, don't do anything outside of normal everyday bills. It can and will screw up the process.
Last on the mortgage side-your acreage WILL affect who can do a mortgage for you. If you are between 5-10 acres there are only so many lenders that can do it. Less than 5 and any traditional mortgage company can do it. Over 10 and you are likely going to need to talk to Farm Credit. Be very upfront about your acreage. It is important.
Those are my tips-good luck!!!! |
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 Ima Fickle Fan
Posts: 3547
Location: Texas | For resale and finance reasons, I would avoid mobile homes if possible. I know they are cheaper, but they won't appreciate in value with improvements like a stick built house would. Also, depending on the age of the mobile home, financing may be higher to get or the interest rate may not be as good.
In addition to removing emotion, I would recommend making a list of things you have to have, things you want, and things you don't want. That helps me stay on track.
Look at a home more than once. It's amazing the things you will miss on your first visit. If you go back a second time, try to take someone who is familiar with maintenance and repair stuff. I always miss that type of stuff. I like to take my mom because she has built and remodeled several homes. She sees way more than I do about things that I would have to fix, replace, change, etc. All of that adds up and is not included in the purchase price.
Make sure you get a good inspection. Stephenville has had some serious hail storms in the last five years. You want someone who will really inspect the roof as well as the foundation. It is not uncommon to have foundation problems down here, so look for any cracks in the walls or floors.
If it has a tile floor, really inspect the grout. Also ask when the tile was done or if it's been regrouted. We had to regrout the tile twice in our last house. Major pain and another added expense.
Do a lot of your own legwork. I would find properties to look at before we ever had a realtor show them to us. The second house we bought, which was a little more than a year ago, we had narrowed it down to two houses.
Barbara Hampton and Hayden Real Estate have the largest listings of horse property in Erath County, but also check out Century 21 Home and Ranch. All of their websites let you browse MLS properties. Also check out craigslist and Erath County Buy, Sell, or Trade on Facebook. Often you can get a better deal with a FSBO. That was what our first house was. However, I would still recommend a lawyer for contracts, etc.
Finally, the Chamber of Commerce's website has a listing of all the real estate offices in town and links to their websites.
Good luck! Oh and pack your patience. Cause holy crap is buying a house exhausting from the searching to the hoops you have to jump through to get financed. |
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 Firecracker Dog Lover
Posts: 3175
| If you go with a mobile home be sure it's considered "real property" in that it is on a foundation. Mobile homes are easier to sell in the future if they have this designation as most banks won't finance a mobile home that is not on a foundation. |
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Married to a Louie Lover
Posts: 3303
| A lot of what I have to say has already been said.
Don't be afraid to find a new realtor, wish I had done so on house #1.
Don't be afraid to shop around for a lender either, you do not have to use your realtors preferred lender.
Trust your gut. Be realistic about what you want and what you can take on. Renovation sucks.
Never thought I'd be 26 and on my 2nd home - but buying the second one was a way better experience than the first one. |
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 Expert
Posts: 1718
Location: Southeast Louisiana | jackismacki - 2014-01-03 12:41 PM
We just purchased our first home November 1st!!
It was a long two year process of building credit, and LOOKING. So many homes sold out form under us before we FINALLY got our home.
Im in washington. So not sure if it willbe same for you, but here is how ours went.
We started with one realtor. She tried to talk us out of land!!! I was feeling discouraged. We couldnt find anything in our price range with land with her. Her lender friend we were going through gave us a really high interest rate, and didnt tell us about any of the programs available out there for us.
We were finally recommeneded to our realtor who helped us greatly. He is into 4h with his kids and told us yes we would find land :). His lender gave us a GREAT interest rate. Told us all about the process. What programs we could take advantage of etc.
1st step. Get a pre approval, and find a realtor you LOVE.
- You will need to have a TON of papers, information etc before you can close. So make sure you know what you need before you start looking so there are no hitches int eh steps.
2nd step. Start shopping/looking.
3rd step. Get an inspection. Make an offer. Go through that headache of a process.
4th step. Appraisal (then have to re negotiate again if appraisal low)
5th step. Ether start looking all over again, or start closing on your loan!!
In washington we have a program where your down payment can be paid for. We took a 3 hour class on a saturday and we never paid a dime for our down payment. Only have to pay back if we refinance or sell. IF we never sale then its free money.
We asked our sellers to pay all closing costs. Which they did. :D.
We only paid out of pocket. Earnest money, and Inspection. So about 600$ Which most was given back to us at closing.
Make sure you have at least a couple thousand in savings.. or up to 10000 depending on your area and what your closing costs could be. But look to see if there are programs and try to get seller to pay closing costs. Each area is so different though!
We got 6 acres and a 3 bedroom home for only 157000.
That is awesome you were able to get that deal! I am soooooo jealous, lol !
I tried to buy land recently and the 20% down payment, along with the high interest rates on land only loans made it impossible. ...well, not impossible, but too costly for me.
I got a much better deal with smaller acreage and a house. :(
Not my dream home. Maybe I can retire and move to Washington! |
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Expert
Posts: 1295
Location: Chehalis, Washington | I forgot to add too.. That we went through FHA so 3.5 % would be the down payment only. But we eneded up using the program for the down payment. But still WAY better then the average 20% down! |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 788
| I am a real estate agent and I can tell you find a good agent, that has your needs in mind. A lot of them just want u to buy the most expensive house and do not care what you actually want. First thing you need to do is find your lender and figure out what you can afford because it depends on the type of loan u get as to how much in closing costs you will have, but your agent can explain all that to u. Then dont settle. Find the house that feels right. On the mobile home thing. They are cheaper but if you buy a new one you have to foot the getting everything in place thing and this does not come with a real estate agent. If you buy a used one be prepared to put down about 15-20% because they depreciate so rapidly no one will finance the full amount. good luck! |
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 Damn Yankee
Posts: 12390
Location: Somewhere between raising hell and Amazing Grace | Get approved for financing before you even start looking, many sellers will require it before even considering an offer, and you will know before you shop what you can even buy.
shop around for rates. Be proactive and be competitive. Don't be afraid to tell a lender that another lender has offered a better rate. They are going to compete with each other to get your business, to an extent. As lenders about different rates and how they affect monthly payments and money due at closing.
Use your our own home inspector and not one recommended by the seller or realtor. We were lied to and misled with our house but it turned out not to be a huge deal as we were capable of fixing the issues |
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 Forever Young
Posts: 6768
Location: relocated to Texas | Running Roan - 2014-01-04 11:13 AM What about mobile homes? In my price range I can get more land with a mobile, but I'm not 100% convinced that's the way to go. I'm thinking I'd get more value out of a stick-built house. This will be a starter place, so I need to consider resale potential. Thoughts?
Much more resale value in a stick built home. Easier to get qualified for a mortgage on a stick built house as well. |
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Folks on-line