I have been a realtor for almost 20 years. After transferring many times with my own family, I am personally familiar with the moving process. I have been involved with remodeling, building, and staging homes. The best part about my job is that I love that I get the opportunity to find the perfect home that excites my clients!

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Is your New Year's Resolution to Buy a Home?

If you want to buy a new home in 2013, here are 10 resolutions to accomplish in order to get you in a new home!

According to realtor.com you need to:

1.  Decide what you want:  
  • What kind of house? Where do you want it located? When do you want to buy? How much can you afford?
2.  Get your financial house in order:
  • How much do you have for a down payment?  How much monthly note can you afford?  Do you have money for closing and taxes? 
  •  Meet with a lender before you bid on a home and look at your loan options.
3.  Get your pre-approval before house hunting:
  • Meet with a loan officer, get your credit reviewed and get qualified for a loan amount.
4.  Find your realtor:
  • That's easy!  Call me:  337-849-4051!  :)
5.  Find your new home:
  • You've already decided what you want (go back to #1), but now your realtor can show you the houses.  Looking at as many as possible is smart so you know in the end you picked the best one for you!
6.  Understand your mortgage options:
  • Loans with less than 5% down are available.
  • Buyers with solid credit will have more options.
7.  Make an offer:
  • You can accept the list price and get a contract
  • Suggest different terms and make a counter offer
  • Or you can reject the counter and keep looking.
8.  Protect yourself with insurance:
  • Title insurance is purchased with a one time fee at closing.  Title insurance protects the owner in the event that the title of the property is found invalid.
  • Homeowner's insurance provides fire, theft, and liability coverage.  This is required by lenders.
  • Home warranties on new homes are often provided by the builder.  Warranties on existing homes usually only last for one year and are typically bought by the seller.
9.  Close on your new home:
  • After signing documents, the title is transferred from seller to buyer.
  • The buyer receives the keys and the seller receives payment for the home.
10.  Tie up loose ends.
  • Save the settlement papers you received at closing.  They are important.
  • Make sure the utilities were paid in full by the seller at closing and transfer all the services to your name.

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