Due to the high demand for homes, being a buyer in today's market is very difficult. Most homes on the market usually sell very quickly, leaving the buyers to make quick decisions on one of the biggest purchases in their lives. With homes lasting only a few days, buyers have to comprehend the financial side, location, the disclosures, and the terms of the contract. As a realtor, my goal is to help buyers understand the process from the start of the transaction to the finish. We love to educate our buyers and help them be more confident in their decisions, compete with other aggressive buyers, and ultimately win their dream home.
To start, we have an Introductory Call and The Numbers Class. This is where we figure out what you are looking for in a home and understand your finances. Once we figure out what you are looking for, we then dive into The Numbers Class and see what your buying power is. In The Numbers Class, we share with you a spreadsheet on how lenders will look at your finances. Here you will get a better idea of what your maximum purchase price will be and how much leeway you will have to give you the confidence when making an offer.
The next step would be to set you up for email alerts. With our access to MLS, we can input your house search criteria that we established in the Introductory Call, and email you alerts daily. With MLS, you will be able to see any Coming Soon, New Properties, or Price Changes that meet your criteria. We will also be CC'd on the email as well, that way every time a listing comes up, we can give you our professional opinion on each home. Some of the things we like to consider are Location, Lighting, and Layout. Since each home will have a personal preference for different buyers, during our initial diagnosis of the home, we like to focus on things that will be difficult or impossible to change. With Location, we look for neighborhoods and schools. Also, if it is close to major roads/freeways and T intersections. Homes also may not get much natural lighting. We comment on whether or not there are enough lighting and changes we can make to enhance it. Lastly, the layout provides the feel of the home. We look at how it flows and how we can improve it.
Once everything checks out, we request disclosures on the property and schedule a time to go take a look at the home. With the disclosures, this is where you will find out about the condition of the home and much more. We take a look at the inspection reports and see if there are any red flags or things that need to be aware of. If there aren't any red flags, we then visit the property and check out the other items that were called out. One thing buyers will realize is that unless the home is New Construction, the majority of the homes will have some work needed. Besides looking at the called-out items, we also look at the quality of work done to the home, the perimeter grading/drainage, and any other questions you may have during our walkthrough.
These are only the first few steps that we do with our clients to find a home. Once we find a home, there is still a process of figuring out the interest level so we can strategize on how to make the offer. We run market comparables and do a Comparative Market Analysis spreadsheet to see what will be a good purchase value and if there are any appraisal variances. Once into contract, we also guide our clients on what to expect during escrow and what to do after closing.
Check out our client's satisfied reviews in the link below. We still keep in touch and help answer any questions they may have on remodeling, property taxes, or anything related to their home.
This blog post barely scratches the surface of the home-buying process. As you can see it barely scratches the surface and this is what most first-time buyers are going through. Once a home hits the market during the middle of the week, sellers look at offers immediately after the open house weekend. With only a few days to feel confident and understand all this new information, it is best to have a realtor fighting by your side. With over 20+ years of experience on the buy and sell side, feel free to contact us for a free consultation and see why we are voted Top 5 Realtors in Alameda County and Top Realtor in Fremont.
Comments
Post a Comment