Buy In Seeley Lake With Less Stress

Buying a vacation or second home in Seeley Lake should be fun, not stressful.  To avoid turning your dream of spending more time with family and friends in a place you love into a buying nightmare, follow these helpful tips to minimize your stress and make the process of buying a house smooth and as easy as possible.

1. Find a professional real estate agent that understands your needs. Remember that buying a home is as much of an emotional commitment, as a financial one.  Your real estate agent needs to be both skilled in the market and have a personality that fits with yours.  Be sure to interview yours before you begin working together.
2. Remember that there’s no such thing as a “perfect” time to buy or sell. If you find a home you love now, don’t make the mistake of waiting until interest rates lower or prices drop. A good home won’t stay on the market long, and while prices may drop a small percentage, interest rates are likely to go up.
3. Realize that there’s no such thing as a “perfect” house. If the home you’ve found is in the right location, the master bedroom might be smaller than you had hoped. The kitchen may be a dream, but the carpet in the living room needs replaced. Before you begin looking, make a list of your top priorities and be willing to let the minor imperfections go.
4. Negotiate wisely.  By refusing to budge on your offer or trying to achieve an extra-low price, you may lose the home you really want.  While negotiation is certainly part of buying any home, remember not to lose sight of your goal by being too rigid.
5. Pay attention to more than the number of bedrooms and size of the lot. Don’t get so caught up in the physical aspects of the house itself, that you forget about important considerations like neighborhood, noise level, and nearby amenities.  All of these will impact how happy you’ll be in the home.
6. Think ahead. Get pre-approved for a loan before you begin looking for your home, and set a budget for your mortgage, insurance, and any other homeowners fees ahead of time.  And, if this is your second home (or vacation home), be thinking about any other costs, such as maintenance while you’re away.  If you know what your spending range is, you’ll avoid falling in love with a house you cannot afford, and your offer will be more attractive to sellers if your financing is already in place.
7. Choose a home first because you love it; then think about appreciation. While U.S. homes typically appreciate over the years (especially the longer you own the home), a home’s most important role is to serve as a comfortable, safe place to live.

Are you dreaming of buying a vacation or second home in Seeley Lake?  Contact me, Kim Koppen, and let me be your local real estate expert.  I’m experienced, offer top notch service, and am ready to help you with all of your home buying needs!