Four Home-Buying Shockers And How To Avoid Them
Buying a home is not easy. If you are not careful, you can fail several times or buy a house and immediately regret your move. The following are a few tips to help you avoid such shockers.
Inadequate Budget
If you are not careful, you can start the home purchase process only to realize that the budget you prepared is inadequate. Most people know that they must have the down payment to buy a house. However, some people don't know that the down payment is not the only expense you incur to buy a house. Other typical expenses include:
- Valuation costs
- Property inspection fees
- Property taxes
- Homeowners association (HOA) fees
You should budget for all these expenses so that you don't become stranded when the payments are due.
Hidden Damages
Another potential shocker is to buy a house only to realize that the property has defects that you didn't know about before purchase. Such a shocker is possible even if you took your time to view the house and ask the seller relevant questions.
The best way to avoid hidden damages is to get a professional home inspector to assess the house. The inspector will gauge the structural integrity of the house, the possibility of pest infestation, the existence of poisonous substances, and other issues. Once you have the inspection report, you can go ahead with or stop the purchase process as you deem necessary.
Mortgage Refusal
Another disappointing thing is to go through the home purchase process only to have your potential financier decline your mortgage application at the last minute. Mortgage financier can decline your applications for several reasons including:
- Low appraisal
- Poor credit history
- Poor debt-to-income ratio
- Poor documentation
- Low down payment
The best way to preempt this problem is to research mortgage prerequisites before you begin to hunt for a house. Ensure you have all the requirements and only hunt for a house within your price range. Get a financier to pre-approve your mortgage so that you only go through the formalities once you identify the right property.
Homeowners Insurance Difficulties
Lastly, you may unknowingly buy a house that home insurance carriers don't want to touch. You may struggle to get home insurance coverage if the house is extremely old, has dangerous defects, is in a dangerous location or has illegal additions, among other things.
Again, research all properties that interest you before you begin the purchase process. Pull up the CLUE (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange) report for a good overview of the property's insurance history. Such information should help you weed out problematic properties as far as home insurance is concerned.
Contact a local real estate agency like Brough Realty for help.