For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

[23]

Were you guys scared to approach the process?

Did you feel as though you weren't sure you could do it?

What made you go through with the process if those were some of your feelings?

[ScoobySnax]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

My wife and I will be buying our first home here in the next 6-12 months. I'm a little apprehensive about the buying process. There's so much you have to know.

[snepp]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Having a quality realtor, especially for your first time through, is essential.

You can never ask enough questions.


The process itself is more boring than anything.

[Gotmadskillzson]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Like anything unknown, I was nervous because I thought it would cost more. I was actually surprised it didn't cost as nearly as much as I thought it would.

FYI.......

Don't trust realtors......They will tell you what you want to hear. It is best to scope out the area yourself on different days at different times.

I remember the house I bought out in Indiana, lady told me it was a quiet area, don't flood. First rain of the spring, basement had 3 feet of water in it.

And the neighborhood was loud due to the amount of kids and grandkids that lived over there.

My house in Vermont........quiet......

But yeah ask questions, but more importantly, hit the local bank and local stores around there and ask people who work there how that area is. More often then not, people who work there in the stores will tell you the REAL truth about that neighborhood.

Far as what made go through the process despite my nervousness.......I grew up in a 1 bedroom apartment most of my childhood in one of the dangerous neighborhoods in Chicago, the Austin neighborhood.

So as a child I vowed to never raise a family in an apartment or ever live in an apartment ever again. So yeah I have never lived in an apartment since I was a child.

Every place I lived as an adult was in a house.

[ScoobySnax]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Is it true that if you don't have a realtor, the builder maybe inclined to add in more upgrades since they don't have to pay the realtor a fee? We don't know where life will take us, but we plan on this being our one and only home.

@23 Didn't mean to hi-jack your thread.

[fistofrage]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Is it true that if you don't have a realtor, the builder maybe inclined to add in more upgrades since they don't have to pay the realtor a fee? We don't know where life will take us, but we plan on this being our one and only home.

Yes....I would highly advise against getting a realtor and cutting some side deal for yourself. Once a realtor gets involved, they are going to get their hands on 7% of the transaction. Do the math.

[cardsfan2222]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Is it true that if you don't have a realtor, the builder maybe inclined to add in more upgrades since they don't have to pay the realtor a fee? We don't know where life will take us, but we plan on this being our one and only home.

Some real estate agencies, like Assist 2 sell, will handle the paperwork for a fee that is alot less than the usual 6 or 7 percent commission. I wouldn't want to handle the paperwork without some help, because there is so much that has to be done properly to avoid problems now and in the future.

[mjb2124]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Is it true that if you don't have a realtor, the builder maybe inclined to add in more upgrades since they don't have to pay the realtor a fee? We don't know where life will take us, but we plan on this being our one and only home.

@23 Didn't mean to hi-jack your thread.

Not at all from my experience. We built our first house 1.5 years ago and didn't use a realtor during the build process. I didn't see any upgrade add-ins that we didn't pay for...


Regarding buying...I wasn't too concerned with the process. I spent a lot of time doing research about what I wanted, how much I could afford, how to deal with home builders and the process of building a house etc...I knew exactly what I wanted to spend (even though home buying calculators online said I could afford 100K more than what I spent) and what I wanted when I walked into any of the meetings. It made it easier on my wife and I and the builder. Also, those calculators were probably accruate if I wanted most of my income to go towards mortgage with limited savings. Don't spend what they list or you'll likely be near your limit.

With all that said, you'll learn a lot and there are things with my house that I wish I would have done different (in terms of a few design aspects and that I should have finished the basement when the house was built). This was simply a starter house for us so we'll know better next time in 10-15 years when we build our final home. Try to learn as much as possible and don't let it stress you out too much. I will say that dealing with mortgage companies is a pain in the butt now compared to a number of years ago. I spent many frustrating days on the phone with the mortgage rep because he was inadequate at his job (eventually had to tell his manager to move my mortgage to a different rep or I was taking my mortgage elsewhere).

[bigeastbumrush]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Were you guys scared to approach the process?

Did you feel as though you weren't sure you could do it?

What made you go through with the process if those were some of your feelings?

Although I bought a few years back, yes, buying for the first time is scary. Scary in the sense that I never wrote a check for that much before in my life. I was really hesitant to hand it over.

I felt I could do it because the people who I was working with (seller, lawyer and mortgage lender) made it really easy for me. A ton of paperwork involved. My advice to you would be to PDF every single document for future reference.

Obviously you want to go through with the process because in the end, you want to be an owner.

Times are different nowadays since lenders are so much more strict and everyone will want proof of your ability to make payments on time. Do your homework. Get preapproved first. Make sure everything is clean on your credit report. And make sure this is something that you want to do right now. I say this because the housing market hasn't bottomed out as yet.

Be cautious and best of luck.

[Happy29]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Having a quality realtor, especially for your first time through, is essential.

You can never ask enough questions.


The process itself is more boring than anything.

This and don't be scared to seek advice and ask questions, better to ask a lot of questions and get it right the first time then end up in a money pit.

[ChipperJoanRivers]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Were you guys scared to approach the process?

Did you feel as though you weren't sure you could do it?

What made you go through with the process if those were some of your feelings?

Having bought/sold a few homes I can say that the only one that I was ever scared about was the first one. I wasn't sure about making the payments, and with good reason. I ended up selling that sucker long before the housing market, downsizing to a newer cheaper home and stayed there for several years. You need to listen to your gut if you're afraid of going through it. You can always get a house later, just store up cash, and let your monthly housing/rental payments be 25% of your take home pay (after taxes). Some say 25- 33 % is safe, but stick with the cheapest threshold, and that is 25%. I hope this makes sense.

[23]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Yeah it makes sense, its just that 30% in California is different than most places

I went through it when I first got married but I was so broke, I didnt and should have anyway... I was making like 800 take home every 2 weeks and my wife was not working at the time...the mortgage on the condo would've been $1001.00 a month. I wish I had done it at the time but still its a whole new ballgame now...they dont even 100% finance anymore like back then

Anyway I dont know what to think yet. I mean we're at the point where we'll definitely get pegged by taxes because we make too much, but we dont make too much in the sense of buying...its like a middle road..crazy huh

Anyway, amidst the over valued over priced homes in California... I feel like there is something out there for us either way. At this point, renting, getting hit with taxes unnecessarily from now on, and not being an owner is kinda for the birds.

I dont know what to expect in this process

[bigeastbumrush]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Do your homework man.

The housing market is so unstable right now. Being an owner means nothing if you buy right now and the home ends up losing value right off the bat.

[cjonesfan921]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

Do your homework man.

The housing market is so unstable right now. Being an owner means nothing if you buy right now and the home ends up losing value right off the bat.

Exactly. I rent right now, pay 1200 a month. Current landlord lives in the first floor and bought the house for 450-500 back in 05/06. Well, house would currently sell for 330. HUUUUUUGE loss right there.

[23]

Re: For all of you guys who are homeowners or newly owned

I saw a place in a culdesack in a pretty quiet neighborhood.. the yard could use some work but the lot is about 110000 sf 3 bd rm

They're trying to sell the place for about 330,000

I say for the payments that would come out too, that offer is too high

How do you bring people down on something like that?