Five Big Mistakes Homebuyers Make

We’ve seen a lot over the years working in real estate. Here are some of the biggest mistakes home buyers and home sellers make, and some steps you can take to avoid doing the same!

BIG MISTAKE: Searching for homes without a licensed agent. Good agents help with the home buying and home selling process. We can recommend reputable vendors like lenders, home inspectors, electricians, plumbers, etc. Many well known home search sites are not necessarily updated with listing information in realtime. Realtors have realtime MLS access and as a result so will you. That includes the MLS history and other insights related to the property. Just clicking a link on a random search site to contact an agent can be a big mistake. Those agents may not even live that close or even know the area; they simply pay money to have access to your contact info, etc. You are much better off asking locally for a personal recommendation. Even if you’re relocating, an agent you trust nearby can use their professional network to find someone for you!

Do This Instead: Contact us! We are a team of seasoned licensed agents who know the area and the market! If you don’t have someone local to you to help and aren’t sure where to start, we will find you someone for free. Just give us a call or send an email. Click here to get started.

BIG MISTAKE: Looking for homes without pre-qualification. The pre-qualification process will determine several things for you in preparation for buying a home. Lenders are the ones to give you the pre-qualifications. This will outline the maximum home price you can afford, what out of pocket costs you may incur, your loan type (there are several kinds!), and a ballpark interest rate. All of these things will help you determine what price range you should be looking in. Some sellers choose to accept only offers with certain types of financing and most will NOT accept an offer without a pre-qualification. You want to know what type of financing you’re qualified for before looking.

Do This Instead: Contact us! We can help you get in touch with a qualified, reliable lender who can assess and send you that pre-qualification letter! Who you work with is entirely your decision so choose wisely.

BIG MISTAKE: Searching for homes way outside of your price range. Let’s not make a terrible offer on a home you can’t afford and “see what happens.” A seasoned agent will help you navigate price ranges. They can contact listing agents, gauge the showing activity and motivation of the seller, ask questions and gather information. Without the right agent, you don’t have the best information available to you. A good agent will also keep you within your budget. There is no sense viewing a $750K house when your max loan amount is $450K. It will only get your hopes up and then bring them crashing down.

Do This Instead: Talk to a lender, get your pre-qualification and KNOW your budget. This will save you priceless time in the offer process when time is of the essence!

BIG MISTAKE: Believing the computer generated home values above all else. I’m going to let you in on a dirty secret here in the industry: the pricing algorithms are not reliable. Those “get your home value instantly” links you see online are really are just a broad range of numbers. Computer algorithms are still a neat tool to track trends with home sales and home values. We have portals on our websites for users to enter their home info as well and see what the trends say their home could be worth. But they can be VERY broad numbers. You need a true Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) by an experienced realtor. Sites like Zillow do not have access to sold data in Texas and other areas, making their valuations such as a “Zestimate” incorrect.

Do This Instead: Contact us! We can pull real time data that will give you an accurate CMA, as well as give you insider info on what is happening with your market!

BIG MISTAKE: Hesitate because they’re trying to time the market. Buyers and sellers are all doing business in the same market. Rates are still currently historically low. If you wait to sell because you think value will go up, well so will the next home you buy. When rates were in the high 2%’s I remember hearing how some individuals were going to wait until the home prices “went down.” Well, here in Dallas-Fort Worth, that never really happened, but the rates sure went up! In the end, now is always the perfect time to buy because you can’t see the future.

Do This Instead: Contact us! If you are ready to dive in to the home buying process, let us walk you through the process. The buyer’s consultation is free!! There is no cost for us to guide you and get you headed in the right direction!