Oh, how exciting it is to buy one’s first home! You are finally a grown-up, and you get to act and feel like one. On the other hand, a house is the priciest purchase you can make. Of course, we are talking about regular folks, not those entrepreneurs who are used to trading stocks and making pricey purchases on a daily bases. So, once you get to that point in life when you are financially and mentally ready to buy a house, you need to be prudent. You need to be on the lookout for the common mistakes first-time home buyers make so that you don’t make them yourself.
Whether you are moving to New Jersey and buying a house or going to some other part of the world doesn’t really matter. What matters is that we are here to help and warn you of the mistakes you should not make! Take a look!1. You don’t have a budget in place
It is only logical to start the list with this entry. Even though it’s really the most crucial and basic part of homebuying, people usually forget all about it. Before you get to the part where you are visiting open houses and dreaming about your future life in them, you actually have one very important task at hand. And that’s setting up a budget.
Calculate your budget and avoid one of the worst mistakes first-time home buyers make.
As simple as it seems, it really isn’t. You want to set a realistic budget that will still allow you to buy the house of your dreams. As you can imagine, it can be a hard thing to do. Here’s an idea – use a mortgage affordability calculator. It will tell you which amount you can easily afford based on your earnings. And, it’s always better to just be honest with yourself and avoid all those sleepless nights you spent wondering whether you can make your next payment or not.
2. Having zero savings is one of the worst mistakes first-time homebuyers make
For starters, before you can decide on the things like the traits of your perfect neighborhood and a house, you first need to make sure your bank account is not in the red. Home buying is an expensive process! Even though you will get a mortgage that you will have to pay monthly, you will still have to cash in a significant sum of money for a downpayment. It’s a rule of thumb to pay 20% of the total value as a downpayment. This rule is not set in stone, though. There are plenty of homebuyers who had to pay nothing at all or a symbolic sum of a few percents. If you were to ask those same people what they think about it now, they would tell you it’s one of the worst mistakes they made in the home buying process. So, be wise and save up! You will need it for more than just a downpayment.
3. You didn’t factor in the costs of renovation
Unless you buy a house which is already in perfect condition and 100% suited to your taste, you will have to make a few changes. Not taking these changes into account is one of the worst mistakes first-time home buyers make. No doubt about it! Some alterations may be fairly simple and require only an additional coat of paint. But, others may be much more complex than that and require work done on the roof or flooring. And you can only imagine how much that costs.
Who knows how much money you will have to spend on remodeling?
Besides, moving in itself will be difficult, not to mention expensive. You will have to buy packing supplies, hire movers and packers NJ, take a few days off from work, etc. There will be plenty of things to pay for, so you need to take it into account when creating your budget. The more detailed it is, the better!
4. You are either too picky or too quick to say yes
Moderation is the key the success – that’s something we all know. It definitely applies to the process of home buying. Some people are too picky and will not say yes to a house until it satisfies every demand, no matter how minor it is. And then there are those who just say yes, even though they are compromising on a deal breaker. Going into one extreme or the other is one of the most common mistakes first-time home buyers make. For example, don’t agree to buy a house that has two bedrooms when you already have two kids and planning to add another one quite soon. Also, don’t back down from buying a home simply because the color of the wallpapers isn’t to your taste. It’s all about finding the perfect balance between your dealbreakers and the things that can easily be altered in a home.
5. Gullibility is one of the worst mistakes first-time home buyers make
Homeowners are smart people. They know that there are a number of small and inexpensive alterations to be made that will considerably increase the selling price. They are in their right to try and do so. And it’s your duty to make sure it doesn’t happen to you. Our residential movers NJ have witnessed numerous occasions where people were completely dissatisfied with the deal they got.
It’s very easy to increase the price value with the help of a few cosmetic tweaks.
They either didn’t inspect the house thoroughly before buying and thus, found damage or mold after making the purchase, or they let themselves be persuaded by cosmetic fixes to the house. You are now completely warned about what can easily happen, so it’s up to you to ensure your safety.
To summarize…
You will need to be extremely careful and wary of all the things that can go wrong. Make up a realistic budget, take the additional costs in mind, and be prudent. It’s the only way to avoid the most common mistakes first-time home buyers make. And there are plenty of them! Good luck and may you find happiness in your new home!
