Diary of a First-Time Home-Buyer (Part Two: THE HOME SEARCH)

Join us as we follow the first-time home-buying experience of an average, American couple buying their first home…
The entire experience will be documented–from our first meeting…all the way to the closing table (along with any “bumps”, roadblocks, or transaction difficulty along the way–and how we overcome them).

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PART TWO: THE HOME SEARCH
Yesterday I met with Ben and Jerry to begin looking at homes in person. We began with Homes for sale in Plano under $250,000 and moved to the one home in Richardson that appealed to them. The day began a bit frustrating…to say the least.

After getting confirmations for all of the homes I aligned our route so that we could see as many homes as possible within the time-frame that the buyers had available. On the way to the first home–their favorite home–I get a phone call from the appointment-showing service asking if the sellers can have more time. I text my buyers and ask if we can meet at the 2nd home next…which is 12 minutes away. They agree and begin to go in the opposite direction, as do I. I arrive before they do and begin to get the key from the keybox so that I can have lights on when they arrive. I hear a call from inside “hello! Hello! Who’s there?!”. I tell her it’s Amy from Halo Group Realty and ask if it’s still okay to show. She opens the door with a baby bottle in-hand (as I try to sneak a peak from behind her and she blocks me). I can tell she’s running behind from the look on her face as she tells me she has a newborn and asks if we can come back in 45 minutes. OKAY, I state. A little frustrated myself, and wondering what my clients were going to say after I had them go in the complete opposite direction, I call them. We THEN go to our third (now first) home on the list.

We FINALLY GET IN TO SEE A HOME!
The first home for sale in Villages of Preston Glen in Plano had a nice exterior and showed well, but the floorplan was a little “different”. Sometimes you have to wonder what builders are thinking. The kitchen bar area was open to the laundry room. I don’t know about you…but if I’m in my kitchen cooking or have people over, the last thing I want to overlook is the laundry room. The rooms were also a little small for these buyers.

We go BACK in the opposite direction and–finally–get to see their favorite home. This home was a little older but from the photos, had great renovations, and the french-country kitchen they were after.All excited to see what was inside, we hurried to get in. Wouldn’t you know it…the front door latch was broken. After not being able to get in to two homes already that day, Ben was feeling a little adventurous and decided to scale the 5-foot brick wallthat enclosed the back yard and open the back door. In we go–to discover what a HUGE disappointment this house was, and what a GREAT photographer the listing agent had. The kitchen itself WAS great, but seemed to be the only thing updated in the entire home. Jerry’s “white-glove test” on the fireplace mantle did not really pass the test either. The hand-written note of “please pardon the smell” on the salt-water aquarium was not really enticing my buyers to “call this one home”. The huge pet snake in the kitchenmade us wonder if the smell in the hallway closet was where they kept the mice to feed the lovely pet. At least we got some laughs looking at this home. (Scratch from list immediately).

Now, doing this all day every day, after I get to know particular buyers, I can usually judge (typically from the photos alone, and just knowing the area) which properties my buyers would like the best. We go back 12 minutes in the opposite direction to try to view the home which I ultimately thought my buyers would like the best in Timber Brook West. The upgrades were great, but the floorplan itself seemed a bit small and my buyers felt a little “displaced” this far east. Considering resale value was important as well, in the event of a job transfer or relocation, they quickly ruled this home out as well.

After a few others, we finally arrived at two contenders. One was a stunningly open floorplan with a great rotunda area as soon as you walked in, had the colors they liked, the bedroom sizes….but the yard was SO SMALL. Granted, it was more than they had now (a side-yard, that mimicked a dog-run), in their apartment. Would it be enough to truly be happy here, and have enough space for their dogs?

The last home was more of what my buyers were looking for in terms of a back yard. So large, in fact that they could easily put a pool in later if they wanted to, and still have some grassy area. The kitchen was very open, with loads of angles, but was not upgraded.Plain white, laminate counter tops stared us in the face. Ben, being the project-enthusiast as he was…seemed to be imagining the same thing I was: RENOVATION FUN! Could this be the home for Ben and Jerry? The kitchen was the right size, the yard was huge…it lacked a few aesthetic elements, but those could all be added later if wanted. I personally feel that with Ben’s creative sense, and Jerry’s desire for a larger, open kitchen, that this home could be a great match, and be a calm medium to match what they both wanted in their home. Hmmm…possibly their Realtor could negotiate a counter top allowance for them  The possibilities are endless!

Obviously with a lot to talk about after looking at the Plano and Richardson homes for sale under $250,000, being the last house, we decided to call it a day. The excitement was apparent from the glazed over look on their faces. I did not want the day to seem so long that it was no longer fun for my by buyers. We said our good-byes and told them I would go back and scrub the existing list and continue to update them with other homes that fit their needs while they think about putting an offer in on one of the last two homes.

Today, I shall contact them to see what, if any, questions they have on any of the homes they had seen yesterday.Will we be putting in an offer and discussing negotiation options to get everything (or very close to!) which my buyers want? Only time will tell…

Join us next time and follow us on the First Time Home-Buyers Journey as we follow the transaction process as we put in an offer, OR view more homes to get a closer fit of what my buyers truly want in their “American Dream”.

Would you like to see what YOUR home would sell for in this market, or thinking of buying YOUR next home? Feel free to ask me any questions that you might have or search for your next home here.