| Home Buyers Click on The House Hunting icon to see how you can save hours of your time and $100's in gas when looking for your new home Buying a home is an exciting time in one's life. Making the smart move of choosing a REALTOR® is your first step to ensuring that your new home and community meets your needs. My services and experience range from financial aid to helping you find the home that best suits you and your family. For your convenience, I also provide listings by email. I pride myself on repeat business and hope you'll come to understand why. Whether you're buying your buying a house for the 1st time or the 5th, we're here to answer all of your questions. The key to a successful home search is preparation. Your agent is there to assist you. However, like most any other professional (doctor, lawyer, hair dresser, you name it), the more that you can tell your agent about what your specific needs are, the better the search will go. There are few things more frustrating than spending a lot of time running around looking at all the wrong homes and/or in all the wrong places. There are a couple of pieces of information I'd like to share with you right off the bat. 1 - Determine your specific home needs as completely as possible - In order for your agent to help you find the right home, the more specific information you can provide them, the better the job they can do in assisting you to find the right home in the right place. This would include things such as how many in your family as well as their ages (at least approximately), any preferences such as having the master on the main floor (or at least a bedroom), having a basement (unfinished or finished), yard size, age of homes you're willing to consider, swim/tennis, school needs, and especially work locations (the proximity of your new home to these, as well as traffic patterns to get back and forth can go a long ways towards making sure you're happy with where you elect to live; no one wants to spend anymore time than is necessary commuting). However, the single most important factor in what you look for and where, is the buyer's budget or price range. Without the above information, your agent's hands will be tied, and you will all likely spend a great more time than anyone cares to looking at the wrong homes. If you're not sure what you're looking for, talk to your agent. They should be able to help you define your requirements based on yours and your family's needs and preferences. With proper planning, this should be a lot of fun. 2 - Understand the downside of being too specific in your search - While it is generally far better to be as specific as possible, please understand that there is a downside as well. The more things that are "must haves" will certainly limit the number of homes that fit your needs and your budget. If you can accept simply a bedroom on the main floor, rather than master-on-main (should that be a requirement), then you'll have more options. Yard size, especially depending on your desired area and the age of the homes, can greatly limit your options. Just like any other desirable area to live in, many of the "best" lots in any given area here were sold years ago. Hence, in most cases, you can expect the newer the home, the smaller the lot to be the general rule (within any given area and price range). And while it is certainly understandable that having children in the right school district is important and desirable, please know that this can greatly limit the number of homes that will fit a family's needs. There are also drawbacks to trying too hard to tie your home purchase to a specific school (discussed under FAQ's). In many cases, you may find that there are tradeoffs. Getting the right home at an affordable price, may entail having a slightly longer drive to work. Conversely, getting closer to work, may mean either paying more and living without some of the items that you might otherwise desire. In any price range or area, there are NO perfect homes. That's a fact. The goal is to find you the "right" home, not a "perfect" one. As Your Agent, I Will: - Assure that you see all the properties in the area that meet your criteria. - Guide you through the entire home buying process, from finding homes to look at, to getting the best financing. - Make sure you don't pay too much for your new home and help you avoid costly mistakes. - Answer all of your questions about the local market area, including schools, neighborhoods, the local economy, and more. Before You Start Looking For Your New Home: - Check your credit and Straighten out any errors before its too late. If you do not know a good lender, we can - recommend several, who are extremely reputable, that you can pick from. They can usually provide you a free, - pre-approval letter in just a few minutes over the phone. - Determine a comfortable monthly budget for your new purchase, including down payment and monthly payment. - Find a lender that meets your needs and get pre-qualified (preferably pre-approved). - Choose a REALTOR® that you trust and who understands your needs. - Determine what neighborhood best matches your needs. - Identify important features you need your new home to have. Closing Costs to Expect: - Lender fees include charges for loan processing, underwriting, preparation and establishing an escrow account. - Third-party fees include charges for insurance, title search, and other inspections such as termites. - Government fees include deed recording and state & local mortgage taxes. - Escrow and interest fees include homeowner's insurance, loan interest, real estate taxes, and occasionally private ..mortgage insurance. - In the State of GA, it is generally safe to estimate no more than 3%, although this will certainly vary with each lender and ..type of loan you consider. |
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| ....... ........Tony Whitworth ....Your Atlanta Realtor ...........770-844-0214 |
It's your move...
Prospects Realty in Atlanta
