Homeward Bound As I mentioned in my last post, my husband Nick and I purchased our first house on June 6th! We are so excited to start creating memories and making a home out of our new house. While it has been an exciting couple of weeks, it wasn't all fun and games. The home buying process is stressful. I knew that it wasn't going to be a walk in the park but after 2.5 months of waiting, waiting, and more waiting, we finally closed and were able to begin our next chapter. Out of the experience, I have come up with a couple of tips. Some may agree and others may not but these are things we learned or wish we would have known before, during, and after our home buying experience was over.
1. SAVE YOUR MONEY!! For those that know me, you know that I like to shop and purchase things. For those that know my husband, you might be surprised to find out that he likes those things too, but he is also a serious money saver. I have learned from him over the years that having a cushion can be beneficial in so many ways. A couple of years ago we opened a savings account that was to be used for our first house. We (probably more Nick) put as much money as we could in that account and before we knew it, we had a very comfortable nest egg to sit on. I can't say how thankful I was for that nest egg through this whole process. We encountered so many little charges and fees that we were able to pay for out of that savings account and if we hadn't had it, I'm not really sure what we would have done. Also, pay attention to your debt/income ratio and your credit score! It will make or break the amount you can spend on a home!
2. KNOW & TRUST YOUR REALTOR! Having a good relationship with your realtor is something that can completely change your outlook on the home buying experience. We went with a friend of the family and I am so happy that we did. I know this is not an option for everyone, but no matter who you chose, do your research. Ask around and get recommendations. You want someone who is going to be honest and tell you when those pesky red flags appear! Since we had never bought a house before, it was important to us to work with someone that had years of experience and knew the tricks of the trade.
3. ALWAYS GET AN INSPECTION! I will never understand why people buy homes without having them professionally inspected. Yes, it is a pain. Yes, it is expensive (this is where the nest egg comes in). But inspections can save you thousands in the long run. Both sets of our parents and our realtor insisted that we have an inspection done on any house that we put an offer in on. The first house we fell in love with, we put in an offer, and waited for the inspection report. Long story short, the septic system was bad, the roof was bad, and the septic and well were located too close together. None of these problems were listed on the seller's disclosure statement (of course they wouldn't be) and you couldn't tell that there were any issues just by looking. We got estimates for the work that needed to be done and the lowest one came in around $20,000!! We walked away from the house and began our search again but feel so lucky that we didn't just buy the house and find out later that we needed to come up with 20 grand because there was s*!t pooling in the yard...literally!
4. SHOP FOR A LENDER! Make sure you shop for a lender!! Don't settle!! If you don't feel "right" about it, chances are there is a reason.
5. BELIEVE IN HOUSE LOVE! A co-worker told me that when I walk into a house, wait and see if I start to feel "House Love." I didn't know what she meant until I actually experienced it. House love is when you can start to picture yourself in the home with your things and your family. I got that in almost every house we walked in to but I think I was just overly excited about buying our first house. Serious house love is when you can't stop thinking about it and you can remember tiny details that you loved and start to fantasize about your life there. I had serious house love with the house we ended up buying and still do!! After a couple of days and sometimes just hours after walking through some of the other ones, I was able to come up with a list of things that I didn't like or immediately wanted to change and knew that I wasn't in "house love" with those. Just like with a significant other, when you know, you know!!
Those are my tips for you. We definitely don't know everything to know about buying a home but we feel a little smarter about the process and will make some changes the next time we are in the market. Below is a picture of one of my favorite spots at our new place! The front porch! I have big plans for the future of the porch but for now, it is just perfect!
Thanks for stopping by!!
1. SAVE YOUR MONEY!! For those that know me, you know that I like to shop and purchase things. For those that know my husband, you might be surprised to find out that he likes those things too, but he is also a serious money saver. I have learned from him over the years that having a cushion can be beneficial in so many ways. A couple of years ago we opened a savings account that was to be used for our first house. We (probably more Nick) put as much money as we could in that account and before we knew it, we had a very comfortable nest egg to sit on. I can't say how thankful I was for that nest egg through this whole process. We encountered so many little charges and fees that we were able to pay for out of that savings account and if we hadn't had it, I'm not really sure what we would have done. Also, pay attention to your debt/income ratio and your credit score! It will make or break the amount you can spend on a home!
2. KNOW & TRUST YOUR REALTOR! Having a good relationship with your realtor is something that can completely change your outlook on the home buying experience. We went with a friend of the family and I am so happy that we did. I know this is not an option for everyone, but no matter who you chose, do your research. Ask around and get recommendations. You want someone who is going to be honest and tell you when those pesky red flags appear! Since we had never bought a house before, it was important to us to work with someone that had years of experience and knew the tricks of the trade.
3. ALWAYS GET AN INSPECTION! I will never understand why people buy homes without having them professionally inspected. Yes, it is a pain. Yes, it is expensive (this is where the nest egg comes in). But inspections can save you thousands in the long run. Both sets of our parents and our realtor insisted that we have an inspection done on any house that we put an offer in on. The first house we fell in love with, we put in an offer, and waited for the inspection report. Long story short, the septic system was bad, the roof was bad, and the septic and well were located too close together. None of these problems were listed on the seller's disclosure statement (of course they wouldn't be) and you couldn't tell that there were any issues just by looking. We got estimates for the work that needed to be done and the lowest one came in around $20,000!! We walked away from the house and began our search again but feel so lucky that we didn't just buy the house and find out later that we needed to come up with 20 grand because there was s*!t pooling in the yard...literally!
4. SHOP FOR A LENDER! Make sure you shop for a lender!! Don't settle!! If you don't feel "right" about it, chances are there is a reason.
5. BELIEVE IN HOUSE LOVE! A co-worker told me that when I walk into a house, wait and see if I start to feel "House Love." I didn't know what she meant until I actually experienced it. House love is when you can start to picture yourself in the home with your things and your family. I got that in almost every house we walked in to but I think I was just overly excited about buying our first house. Serious house love is when you can't stop thinking about it and you can remember tiny details that you loved and start to fantasize about your life there. I had serious house love with the house we ended up buying and still do!! After a couple of days and sometimes just hours after walking through some of the other ones, I was able to come up with a list of things that I didn't like or immediately wanted to change and knew that I wasn't in "house love" with those. Just like with a significant other, when you know, you know!!
Those are my tips for you. We definitely don't know everything to know about buying a home but we feel a little smarter about the process and will make some changes the next time we are in the market. Below is a picture of one of my favorite spots at our new place! The front porch! I have big plans for the future of the porch but for now, it is just perfect!
Thanks for stopping by!!