FINDING YOUR PERFECT HOME
10 Secrets to Find Your Perfect Home
Without losing the home to another buyer, paying too much, or getting stuck with a house that's falling apart
You can lose the perfect home to another buyer if you don't notice the home in your online search, you're back and forth on whether you love the home or not, or you make an offer to buy too late and the home is already under contract with another buyer.
This is all worst-case scenario, of course. What you really want is to find the home you've been dreaming about and get your offer accepted.
We've been doing this for a while (more than 38 years combined experience) and we've gotten pretty good at helping our clients buy homes they love living in ...homes that have also turned into rock-solid, smart financial investments.
Here are 10 things we've learned over the years while finding the perfect homes for our clients ...without losing the homes to other buyers, paying too much, or seeing our clients stuck with homes that are falling apart.
#1. Focus your online search
Focus on what's really important to you. If your home search criteria are too wide, you'll have too many homes to sort through and the best ones could slip through the cracks unnoticed.
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Neighborhoods
What cities or neighborhoods? Fine-tune your search and property alerts for areas where you'd love to live.
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Property Type
Are you looking for a single family house, townhouse, condo or multi-unit home? Narrow your search and property alerts.
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Purchase Price
What's the maximum price you're looking to pay? What are you pre-approved to? Because prices are negotiable, search a little above your max in case the seller is willing to reduce the price.
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Beds & Baths
How many bedrooms & baths? Can you go with one less bedroom if there's a home office or loft? Fine-tune your search and property alerts.
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School District
Are you looking for a certain school district? If so, narrow your search and property alerts to include what you're looking for.
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Fixer Upper
Are you looking for a fixer upper or move-in ready? Be clear with your agent what "fixer upper" means to you ...a coat of paint and new flooring? ...or ripping out the kitchen or tearing down a wall?
#2. Don't narrow it too much
On the flip side, don't narrow your home search too much either. Don't get stuck looking for home features or amenities you can add later such as a modern kitchen, updated bathrooms, fenced-in backyard, or pool. Check into available mortgage programs that include money to purchase the home and money for renovations, all in one loan. (And you can refinance into a lower rate later, if/when rates go down.)
#3. What's your agent up to?
It's a good idea to know if your real estate agent is keeping an eye out for homes for you too ...or if you're on your own. Whether your agent is looking out for you or not, give your agent feedback on the homes you like or don't.
#4. Look for these property alerts
Sometimes it can be overwhelming to sort through all of the available homes for sale. If you've narrowed your search criteria (but not too narrow), it's more manageable. Keep your eyes open for these property alerts matching your home search criteria: New Listings, Price Reductions, and homes that fell out of escrow and are now Back On The Market.
#5. Drive the neighborhood
Some buyers like to drive through a neighborhood at certain times of the day or night before scheduling a home tour with their agent if the buyer is not familiar with the area. If you (the buyer) do not like the neighborhood (maybe the streets are too busy, parking is an issue, etc.) then you don't tour the home and it saves you a lot of time. Just make sure you don't delay scheduling a tour because the best homes go fast.
#6. Build to your tastes
If your budget is, let's say, $800,000 ...and you're not seeing anything you're crazy about at that price that's move-in ready ...consider an all-in-one purchase and renovation mortgage ...and look for homes around $650,000 to $700,000 and put $100,000 to $150,000 in renovations and remodeling into it. You'll have a custom home built to your tastes and specifications. Plus, you can always refinance later into a lower rate when/if rates go down.
#7. Date the rate and marry the house
Don't get paralyzed by indecision because of interest rates being higher now than they were during the pandemic era that has passed. Why not date the rate and marry the house? You're committing to a home you love now, and dumping the rate later if/when rates go down. (Rates are predicted to go down likely late 2023 or possibly 2024 but can't be guaranteed.)
#8. New Construction
Are you considering new construction? If so, talk about it with your agent. You'll likely need your agent to call ahead or visit the model homes with you, possibly even attend your design center appointment too. Some builders offer incentives that can be difficult to understand and may be tied to using their in-house lender. Not all areas will have new construction. New construction will have higher property taxes ...have you taken that into consideration?
#9. For sale by homeowner
Your perfect home may be listed for sale by owner without the help of a realtor. Homes like these can be searched at FSBO.com and other sites like Zillow under "other listings". If you decide to buy a home for sale by owner, you won't have the representation of an agent unless you and/or the seller agree to pay the agent an acceptable fee.
#10. Distressed sales
These are short sales, foreclosed homes, bank-owned homes, and HUD homes. Are they good deals? Is something wrong with them? If you search for only those types of distressed sales, you may not find many (or any) homes to choose from. But maybe include them in your search along with standard sales?
We hope this list helps you buy the home you've been dreaming about
Here's some great news
If you enjoyed this list of 10 tips, then you'd really enjoy The Home Buyer's Kit. Whether you're buying your first home or your 101st, the home buying process can be tricky.
One wrong move in the home buying process and you lose the perfect home to another buyer, pay too much, or get stuck with a house that's falling apart.
The Home Buyer's Kit helps you navigate the buying process. It shows you what steps to take, where to turn, and which pitfalls to avoid. For FREE and with no obligation.
What to do next
If this sounds interesting to you, we've posted a short description of The Home Buyer's Kit here: TheBuyersKit.com. Check it out and let us know.
Karin Aguilar & Brian Smith
Karin and Brian have more than 38 years of combined experience in real estate and mortgages. They founded Showcase Agency, Inc, a real estate and home loan company, in 2017. They live in Irvine with their two daughters.
Languages: English, Spanish
Showcase Agency, Inc., Real Estate & Home Loans
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