A big issue for most first time home buyers is being overwhelmed.
Here are some ways to help keep the first time home buying process manageable:
1. Ask your agent to send you the lisings BEFORE you go out together. MANY homes I was able to eliminate from my list just by driving by. The location, the neighborhood, the neighbors, the barking dog... good way to narrow down just how many you actually want to go inside of!
2. Take a buyer worksheet with you. This is a worksheet that allows you to list the address and each amenity that house has with some extra room for notes. For example: The house on REDFIELD has a great kitchen, small yard but swingset for the kids, purple bathroom but LOVE the jetted bathtub.. that kind of thing. Once you have looked at more than one house, they will all start to merge together and you won't be able to distinguish one from the next. Email me at mortgagedr@fcfs.net and Ill email you the worksheet I used when I bought my house.
3. Bring your camera. On your worksheet, list each house in the order you saw them- then as you review your pictures you can associate them to the property. Many times our minds have a way of altering what we saw...
4. Not to point out the obvious but LOCATION. LOCATION. LOCATION! It is really the core of your search. Just trust me.
5. Rely on your instinct. Don't ask too many people's opinion. Don't exclude everyone but really the more opinions only makes the decision more difficult. It's like the great menu at California Pizza Kitchen, great food but 1,000,000 choices... more is not always better. Get a trusted advisor. Parent. Fellow homeowner. Co-worker. They will have past experience to be able to give you good advice. They can also give their two cents on the tough questions that your realtor legally cannot even address.
Having a dream is good, owning one is better!
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