Week 4

This 8-week series, How to Find the Perfect Home for You and Your Budget, will show you how your next home can match your wants, needs and, most importantly, your budget. There’s no reason you can’t dream big with this next purchase, all the while working within your budget. Even though you may feel more financially secure if you plan to use funds from the sale of your current home, moving up to a new home requires some self-evaluation of what’s next, a mortgage strategy to make it affordable, and then putting it all together for a successful purchase of your “perfect” home.

There’s a very specific formula and step-by-step approach that buyers should take to make sure they end up with the home that best fits their needs, wants, and budget.  

It requires some initial patience on your part so that each step is done right (and then you are prepared to quickly put in an offer with confidence when you reach that point!). 

Don’t Skip These Three Steps

No one should rush out to purchase a home before they are ready since this is a big financial decision. Even though you’ve bought a home before and may even feel more financially secure, you still need to be prepared and knowledgeable.

Remember being methodical and steady in this initial phase of your home-buying journey will help you make sound decisions and the right choices from the start. And what you decide and what you do from the get-go will set you up for success.

First, you should have determine your deal breakers, “must haves” and lifestyle goals. That process was covered in previous articles from this series: 12 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Ever Start Looking at Homes and Are You a “House” or a “Location” Person?  Go back and read them again if you need a review, and thenyou can move forward. 

Now you’re ready for the next three important steps. But do not bypass these steps since you’ll end up wasting time, getting confused, and ultimately, buying a home that you will regret.

1. 1. Be 100% sure you want to buy a new home

Many people start looking for a home before they are truly convinced that buying a new home is right for them. 

This is the same even for those of you who are current homeowners. Maybe your friends are moving on to bigger homes, you’ve heard it’s the best time to capitalize on the market, or you’re newly retired or empty-nesters and think you should downsize like others.  

Buying a home is a big deal and a commitment that you have to be willing to make for at least three to five years, if not more, to make this purchase financially sound. 

That’s why you must first make a conscious decision that you want to really move and own a new home. You must decide whether this next step in life is something you want to make — and that it’s right for you both financially and otherwise.  

Depending on the current market, the looking process can be frustrating, time-consuming, and difficult at times (plus you’ll be juggling buying and selling at the same time). So you’ll also need to prepare yourself for that and truly commit yourself to the home-buying process if you want to be successful. 

Being wishy-washy and just “kind of looking to see what’s out there” wastes time, and you won’t find your next home that way. So make sure you’re 100% ready, and if you’re not, that’s perfectly okay to wait and be ready at a later time.

2. 2. Slow down to get the best fit for you

Often times, we spend so much time thinking about wanting to buy a new home that once we make the decision to buy, we want to find a home ASAP.  

This is called immediate gratification syndrome. Don’t let it get the best of you! 

You can’t just wake up one day and go buy the first home you see just because you think it’s better than your current home. This happens to those who are feeling more frustrated with their current home and just want to get out already! 

It’s truly a process (that’s why we call it a home-buying process!). You want to make sure you are making the best decision for both your financial life AND for the life you want to live over the next few years.  

Figuring all that out and having a home that fits your goals does take time. Once you’re committed to buying a new home, slow down to find just the right home for the life you want to create.   

Take a deep breath, slow down, and understand the process. You might just enjoy it more and you will find that perfect home!

3. 3. Decide who will represent you

There is a lot more than meets the eye to buying a home. You need someone experienced in the type of home you are buying — price range, location, and loan programs you’ll be best suited for.  

You’ve bought a home before and depending on your experience during that process, you know how important the right agent is. They can really make or break your experience and impact the house you end up in!   

Not every agent knows how to help every buyer, but I am ready to meet up with you to see if your goals match what I have to offer you.  

If you’re thinking of buying a home within the next few months or even the next few years, the first step is scheduling an initial conversation. When I meet with my clients about their move, I start by talking through the process of how to buy and sell at the same time so you can avoid having to move more than once and also avoid having to pay two mortgages for too long, if at all.  

I will also get you up to speed on the current real estate market, provide insight on local neighborhoods, and also advise you on all the great loan options that are out there specifically for people who are looking to buy when they have a home to sell.

I’ll be asking you a lot of questions to help you gain clarity about if moving is the best decision for you, help you identify the best timing based on your needs and also the market’s best times to buy and sell.  

Lastly, my questions will help us both decide whether we are a good fit to work together. I’ll be the first to tell you I’m not the best agent for everyone, nor is anyone!  

Your honest answers to my questions (and vice versa) will give us a sense if we’ll be compatible and well-suited together. It’s important to have a good working relationship and be attuned to each other. 

All of this is very important since I want to guide you toward homes that will work best for you, and for your wants, needs, and budget — and not waste time on homes that do not.

I hope I’ll be a good match for you and your home-buying goals, but let’s find out. If you’ve been thinking about moving, let’s meet up. 

No matter what, you’ll gain more insight on the how-to process of buying and selling at the same time, understand the current market and what you can expect if you’ll be buying a new home and selling your current home.

Hope you are enjoying this series — How to Find the Perfect Home for You and Your Budget! In next week’s article, How to Finance Your Home Purchase, you’ll learn what you must tell your lender first and foremost so that you can determine the best way to finance your next home and stay on budget.