Recently we have been seeing a pick up in market activity for Toledo and the surrounding areas. There are still plenty of choices for buyers meaning there are great values for those buying now. We are seeing the homes that are priced right are moving off the market faster than the past six months meaning that you must be ready to make a decision when you find a home that you like. This doesn't mean you have to buy the first nice home you see. What is does mean though is that you must be prepared to make a decision rather quickly of whether you want the home or not. This past fall and winter you could have taken your time to decide what to do about a particular home. We saw people debate for weeks at a time deciding whether or not to purchase a particular home or to get their pre-approval, and they got away with it. Now while people are going back and forth over a home, or procrastinating on getting pre-approved, someone else is coming in and buying it out from under their nose! How do you keep from having the perfect home for you swept out from under your feet? How do you make a timely decision about a home?
BE PREPARED!
Your first step is to contact your Buyers Agent. They will recommend quality local lenders to you so you can get pre-approved for a mortgage. Why is this so important? Sellers will not even look at your offer unless you are pre-approved with a quality local lender. If you are paying cash you will need to provide proof of funds. This is usually done in the form of a letter from your banker. This will also help you determine how much you would like to invest in your home so you are looking at the right homes.
The next thing to do is to go sit down with your Buyers Agent and determine what exactly you are looking for. Make two lists, your needs and your wants. Your needs are must haves and your wants are like a wish list.
Also, while with your Buyers Agent determine the area(s) you would like to purchase in. They will know the areas, and be able to determine pretty quickly if what you are looking for is available in those areas.
Your Buyers Agent will now search for homes that fit your criteria and present them to you. This can be done in multiple ways. Email is the most requested method by Buyers these days due to the speed and convienence for them. Alternative ways are via telephone or to print out information and exchange information.
The next step is for you to evaluate the homes your Buyers Agent finds for you. One great way to do this is to drive by the homes to prequalify them. This will give you a great chance to learn more about the neighborhood and home first hand.
After you have driven by the possible homes call your Buyers Agent with the homes you would like to see more of. They will then set appointments up to see the homes at the earliest possible time. Usually plan on 24 to 48 hours advanced notice when seeing a home.
You see one you like, what do you do?? Congratulations, you found the right home for you! You are already prepared to make your decision by doing your homework up front. You know what you need, want, how much you would like to invest, and have seen the other homes available that fit your criteria. You are all set. As you will experience, it is much easier and you will be much more confident about you decision since you did the necesarry preperation. Go ahead and make an offer. Your Buyers Agent will be there to guide you through the whole process, and make sure it is as smooth as possible for you.