When is the Right Time to buy your First Home?

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846

Summary:
There are many market predictions, however if you want to buy your first homethere is no wrong time. The motivation to buy is not determined by regional market conditions or by location. Industry opinions and investor speculation can not predict when a particular individual will be ready to buy. For the great majority of folks, the most compelling reasons to buy a home are based on individual circumstances and personal needs.

Keywords:
real estate in the bay area

Article Body:
There are many market predictions, however if you want to buy your first homethere is no wrong time. The motivation to buy is not determined by regional market conditions or by location. Industry opinions and investor speculation can not predict when a particular individual will be ready to buy. For the great majority of folks, the most compelling reasons to buy a home are based on individual circumstances and personal needs.

Family needs and desires for children/parents/in-laws/couples
Convenience to home, work, school, social activities
Sense of achievement or fulfillment
Freedom and independence

Even though there are many changes in the market, both up and downpeople still need and want to buy homes. This desire to buy a home is deeply rooted in the fabric of our consciousness. The value of homeownership gives far more satisfaction than ROI calculators can quantify.
Today, there are many different loan programs with flexible terms to fit all buyers. There are city and county down-payment assistance programs to assist in buying a home. For future buyers with blemished credit, there are debt reduction and counseling programs to help gain a fresh start.

How do you make the leap to become a homeowner? First, determine that you want to buy a home. Get your finances in order. Determine your financial situation and check your credit to determine where you fall as a borrower. Look at all of your available assets for your down payment and examine all of the finance options available to you. If you have some credit blemishes, take the time to make timely payments to your creditors to present the best financial picture. Make sure that you have a track record of stability in your employment history. Postpone any major purchases. Your actual home purchase may still be 12-18 months down the road, but you can still prepare for it now.

Get pre-approved for your mortgage. Once youve cleared the financial hurdles, talk to your lender or broker to find out how much you can afford to borrow along with the expected out-of-pocket costs you will need to incur for the closing. This will include the required down payment along with funds for closing costs. If you are buying in a sellers market, you may want to search for homes below your approved price range, so that you can have the most room for negotiation.

Find a credible licensed real estate agent. Look for an agent that can work with you based on YOUR needs and your schedule. Check references of previous clients. You may not know exactly what you want in terms of a new home, and your agent should work with you to determine your needs and help you find a property that meets your immediate and future needs. Check with family and friends for successful agent referrals. Ask them how satisfied they were with his/her services and if they would use them again.

Become an informed and practical buyer. Once you determine where you would like to live, determine what factors are most important for your family. Calculate your new commute time and research school information for your children. Make sure to evaluate the surrounding factors that are most important to you, along with factors that are least important.

Find a home that works for you. Envision yourself (along with your family living in the home). What are the key points of consideration for your home? If you spend a lot of time in the kitchen, then you want to make sure that the kitchen can accommodate your habits. If you will be working from home, make sure that your home office setup will work. Make sure that all of your telecommunications and electrical needs can be met.

Make the offer. Once you have located a property that meets your needs, make an offer based on the listing price, along with comparables information and market considerations. Your agent can work with you to determine the best price, along with any contingencies for the sale.

It is good to get a home inspection, so that you can know what the potential pitfalls and future maintenance needs may be. In a sellers market, you may find yourself bidding with several other buyers for a single piece of property. Work with your agent to determine what is customary in your area. This is when negotiation skills really come in handy!

Once your offer has been accepted, you will enter an escrow period, where all of the title research will be handled, funding requirements met; tax and title transfer paperwork managed. Prior to the close of escrow, you will sign all of your finance paperwork, and pay your remaining deposit and closing fees. After funding is complete, the title company will record the new purchase deed with the County Recorders office, and you will officially close.

Congratulations! It’s time to move. Make sure to connect your new utilities along with mail forwarding. The purchase of a home can be a lifelong achievement, but one that is truly a worthy accomplishment.

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524

Summary:
Divorce is hard, theres no question about it. Not only has your marriage ended but, most likely, your lifestyle is undergoing some drastic changes also. This is especially true if you are forced to leave the place that was home to you and your family.

Keywords:
moving, divorce, child custody, apartment search, movers, parenting, marriage, apartments, apartment, renting

Article Body:
Divorce is hard, theres no question about it. Not only has your marriage ended but, most likely, your lifestyle is undergoing some drastic changes also. This is especially true if you are forced to leave the place that was home to you and your family.

Depending on your particular situation, you may find that moving into an apartment is your only option. Many times its hard to think of an apartment as home after youve been accustomed to living in a house surrounded by family. But, if you choose your apartment wisely, you may find itll become a cozy, comfortable haven.

Take some time to select your apartment.

Remember, this is going to be your new home. Dont rush the selection process. Decide how much you can afford to spend for rent and look at as many apartments in that range as you can. Location should be one of your prime considerations. Your life is complicated enough right now, dont make it worse by choosing an inconvenient location where commuting becomes a problem.

If your children will be visiting regularly be sure your apartment is large enough to let them feel at home. If possible, select an apartment with a room just for them. Let them have a hand in decorating it so theyll feel a part of it. If you have joint custody of the children and they will be living with you while attending school, youll also want to choose an apartment that is convenient to their schools and recreation areas.

The type of apartment you choose will be important to how well you adapt to living in it. Like a house, choose one that fits your personality. If you like puttering in the yard, make sure there is some private space where you can do that ~ even if its just planting flower boxes on your patio. If you enjoy cooking, make sure the kitchen meets your requirements.

You also need to consider the atmosphere of your apartment complex. If youre going to have children living with you part time, most likely a singles community would not be the best choice. Neither would you probably want to choose an apartment in a building that is filled with senior citizens. If there are pets involved, make sure rules dont prohibit them.

Turn your apartment into a home.

Dont consider your apartment a place of exile! Its your new home and if you want to be happy there, you must give it your attention. Unpack the boxes and arrange your furniture in a way thats pleasing to you. Hang pictures or other art work on the walls and stamp your new home with your own personality. If you take pride in decorating it according to your own tastes, youll find it becomes a welcoming and comfortable place to be. Remember you no longer have to consider anyone elses preferences ~ this is all yours to do with as you please!

The more youre apartment reflects you and your interests, the more it will seem like home.

Enjoy it!

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363

Summary:
House hunting is a game wherein you try to get the most while paying the least. Part of getting the most is often finding a home with a view, but dont be a sucker.

Keywords:
real estate, homes, houses, view, construction, views, regulations, laws, codes

Article Body:
House hunting is a game wherein you try to get the most while paying the least. Part of getting the most is often finding a home with a view, but dont be a sucker.

When A Great View Is Not A Great View

After a hard days work, you come home to your dream home. You change into something comfortable, grab a beverage and head out to the deck. There, you relax and take in your fabulous view. This is the daydream you have while standing in a home for sale that has an incredible view.

Yes, it is a nice view. In fact, it may be so nice that you do not really pay attention to the rest of the home. Even if you do, you may be able to overlook some problems that you would not otherwise if there was no view. At the end of the day, you make an offer and the seller accepts. Sixty days later, you are the owner, moved in, unpacked and enjoying your new property.

After a year or so, you come home after a stressful day. You change clothes, grab a beverage and head out to the deck. You are stunned to see a two-story home being built in the middle of your view. How can this be? This is an outrage! Unfortunately, you probably are out of luck. Depending on your state laws, you may have no way of keeping the other property owner from spoiling your view.

As you might expect, this situation arises more often than people would like to admit. When considering making an offer on a home, one must be very careful when it comes to views. You should never dismiss other problems with the home because you like a view. Further, you should not overvalue the view. A beautiful view today may just be a view of the side of a home in a year. Investigate local legal regulations regarding new construction in the area, the height homes can be built to and whether pre-existing homes can add second or third floors.

If you do not, you run the risk of owning the room without a view.

The idea of pre-construction investments when it comes to real estate is actually quite a clever way in which many have made millions. The theory is simple really. Invest in a property before when it is in the planning stage. Those who will be building these buildings need money and investors in order to do get the building off the ground. By investing (in many cases basically purchasing options to purchase) in the units, typically condo units in high demand areas, before the ground is broken investors often have the option of investing for pennies on the expected dollar once the building is complete and can re-sell the property at full market value once the building is complete pocketing the difference in the original investment and the asking price.

This is a win-win situation for many builders or ‘owners’ of the property in questions because ‘pre-selling’ the units allows lending agents to have confidence in the viability of the project as a money earner by selling many of the units sight unseen. The benefit to investors is that they are able to purchase at a much lower price pre-construction than afterwards and can sell afterwards at the full market value (or above in some high demand and under saturated areas for real estate).

This style of investing is not nearly as glamorous to some as flipping houses. There are no beast to beauty renovations. There are, however, some things that should be kept in mind while making this type of transaction.

First of all, no real estate venture is ever guaranteed to turn a profit no matter what the glossy little brochures tell you. With the current trends in property sales, this is typically not the best environment for pre-construction investing though these things tend to change on a regular basis and that market could be looking up again in the very near future.

Second, networking is more often than not the best way to break into this particular business. There are all kinds of fly by night would be real estate investors. The ones that manage to last are those that network with other real estate agents as well as those who have specific interests and experience with pre-construction investments. Join local groups in addition to online groups that deal specifically with this sort of investment in order to get more information more quickly. The costs involved might appear daunting at first but they are far less than the costs of getting in over your head by not having a grasp of even the most basic ‘ins’ and ‘outs’ of pre-construction real estate investing.

Third, develop a close-knit relationship with a realtor that specializes in this particular type of real estate investing. This could prove to be the most beneficial thing you will ever do in order to insure future success. Be developing the right relationship with the right realtor you can get information on new properties before they make it to the public sector. This puts you in the rare and wonderful position of beating the competition to the punch. This gives you a much better shot at receiving the rock bottom prices that are often missed by waiting too long to make the purchase.

Fourth, be prepared to hold onto the property for a little while if you need to do so. The problem with pre-construction investing is that there are no guarantees that when the time comes you will have been able to ‘seal the deal’. Things come up even when you have a buyer that is willing and eager to make the purchase. In other words, there are times when you will need to hold onto the property for a short while and sometimes as a long-term investment. Some options in the case of long-term holds would include renting the property out to vacationers if it is in a high demand tourist area. You can use your realtor to help with that. This allows the property to be earning some income until the sale can be made. Others decided to hold onto the property as a personal vacation home for themselves, friends, and family. In the end, the important thing is that there is a “Plan B” for the property should the deal fall through and you are left paying the monthly note.

Pre-construction real estate investing may not have the ‘name in lights’ appeal that other types of investing carry but it does provide a viable investment style that has the potential to bring in significant profits. The name of the game when it comes to investing is profits so keep this in mind when considering your investment options. This is one of the forms of investing that requires (in most cases) the least amount of capital up front.

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