Buying a house in Chestermere

Buying a house in Chestermere.

Buying A House in Chestermere.  Mistakes to Avoid.

When buying a house, you may have to consider selling your current home. Unlike the experience of buying a first home, when you’re looking to move-up, and already own a home, most people will have to sell their current home before they can buy another so they can use the equity in their first home.

Get a Home Evaluation.

Before buying a house, you need to know how much equity you have in your current home.  The McKay Team can provide you with a Free Comparative Market Analysis, so that you know the estimated proceeds from your home.  Until your home is actually sold you do not know what your net proceeds will be.

Mortgages and Financing.

You should also check to see what your mortgage balance is, if there is a payout penalty and if you can take your mortgage with you.

Now is the time to get your real property report with compliance, so we can know if there are any problems with fences, sheds etc. before the buyer signs the contract.

Not only is there the issue of financing to consider, but you also have to sell your present home at exactly the right time in order to avoid either the financial burden of owning two homes or, just as bad, the dilemma of having no place to live during the gap between closings.

There is a lot to consider when moving from one property to another.  You have to know that there will be a home you want after your sell your home.  You want to have your home sold to coincide with the possession of your new home.

Mistake 1:  Not being realistic

Before you get your heart set on buying a house that is not in your budget, you should determine your budget.   You need to know what your home is worth, how much money you can afford to spend on housing per month.  Then we can send you homes that fit.  Need 4 bedrooms, we will only send you 4 bedroom  homes.  Need RV parking? We will only send you homes with RV parking.. Real estate is our full-time profession.  We have the tools to make your home hunt easier.

Mistake 2:  Not Making Repairs.

As a realtor one of my least favorite remarks is let the next guy do it!  That is fine if you want less for your home.  Buyers almost always discount the house more thn the actual cost to fix a problem.  We can help you with advice on how to prepare your home for sale.  We can even give you home-staging advice or recommend a professional home-stager.

Mistake 3: Not selling first

If your home is already sold when you make an offer on your next home you have a great advantage over someone who has a home to sell.  You know how much you will net from the sale of your home, and the possession date you want.

Mistake 4: Failing to get a pre-approved mortgage

Pre-approval is a step that many homeowners fail to take advantage of.   Pre-approval gives you a significant advantage when you put an offer on the home you want to purchase because you know exactly how much house you can afford, and you already have approval from your lending institution.  With a pre-approved mortgage, your offer will be viewed far more favorably by a seller – sometimes even if it’s a little lower than another offer that’s contingent on financing that has not bothered to get pre-approved.   We can arrange for a mortgage broker to visit your home and get your information to get pre-approved.  It doesn’t cost or obligate you to anything to have this done for you.  It will give you rate protection usually for 30 days, in case the interest rate goes up.

Mistake 5: Getting caught with two homes

Your biggest dilemma when buying and selling is deciding which to do first. Point number Three above advises you to sell first. However, there are ways to eliminate this dilemma.  Some sellers will accept a subject to my home selling clause.  This enables you to put your home on the market, and you are first in line to buy that home.  Most of these offers have a 24, 36 or 42 hour clause.  This will give you that time limit to remove all conditions on the home you wish to purchase.  So before you even think about buying a house, make sure yours is ready to go to market.  In the purchase contract in a subject to sale, you will have 24 hours to get your home on the market!

Mistake 6: Failing to coordinate closings

With two major transactions to coordinate together with all the people involved such as mortgage experts, appraisers, lawyers, loan officers, representatives, and home inspectors the chances of mix-ups and miscommunication go up dramatically. To avoid a logistical nightmare ensure you work closely with us, your lender and your lawyer.  You will need to get a real property report with compliance before the lawyer can close your home.  You will also have to make sure you have insurance on both homes to overlap in case something is delayed.  Your banker can give you an interim loan so that you can move out over several days after you have possession of your new home.

 

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