You can read every article we have ever posted, and you have still only have scratched the surface of just how nuanced real estate can be. You’ve probably even wondered why real estate agents make so much money when either you think it’s not very hard, or the agents you have met don’t strike you as the type of people who chose real estate (e.g., it’s their second or third career, after failing at the previous ones). This might be true of your run-of-the-mill agent, but it is certainly not true about the top-tier agents – the Chernov Team is not run-of-the-mill, and only accepts the best. With that said, there will always be a hiccup in the home buying process – it’s a fact of life. A superior agent will help you navigate those hiccups in a way that makes it feel painless, but it’s best to walk into the process prepared. Prior to buying a home, ask yourself these questions.
Have you reviewed your credit report? On the off chance you don’t already know this, lenders are going to check your credit to see if you qualify; why not familiarize yourself with what they’re going to see beforehand? Credit scores can run from 300 to 850, with 750 -850 being “excellent”; 700 – 749 being “good”; 650 – 699 being “fair”; and less than 650 being “poor.” You can review your credit report for free once every year. Another good reason to check your credit report is that creditors don’t always get it right; catching an error can literally save you thousands of dollars over the lifetime of your loan.
Will you have to relocate soon? We’ve all heard the romantic stories of our parents and grandparents where they started at a company as a mail clerk, and 50 years later they were on the board of directors. That was then, and this is now; most people don’t stay at the same jobs for their entire lives. Thus, it is very important to take stock of where you are in your professional growth when you decide to purchase a home. If you know you will need to relocate when you get promoted, and the relocation is nowhere near where you are looking, that’s going to need to be addressed. If you don’t think you can stay put for at least 5 years, it might not be the right time to purchase a home.
Do you have enough money stashed away to pay closing costs? While both parties typically pay the cost of closing, closing costs are generally a percentage of the home’s selling price; this means on a $500,000 condo, closing costs could come out to as high as $25k (split between the seller and purchaser in most cases). That’s nothing to laugh at.
At the Chernov Team we understand that knowledge is power, and knowledge of what questions to ask before looking at homes is powerful knowledge indeed. At the Chernov Team we know that whoever comes to the table most prepared leaves with the most, and the Chernov Team never leaves the table with the most.