3 Questions to Ask Before Buying Your Dream Home

If you are debating purchasing a home right now, you are probably getting a lot of advice. Though your friends and family will have your best interest at heart, they may not be fully aware of your needs and what is currently happening in the real estate market.

Ask yourself the following 3 questions to help determine if now is actually a good time for you to buy in today’s market.

1. Why am I buying a home in the first place?

This truly is the most important question to answer. Forget the finances for a minute. Why did you even begin to consider purchasing a home? For most, the reason has nothing to do with money.

For example, a recent survey by Braun showed that over 75% of parents say “their child’s education is an important part of the search for a new home.”

This survey supports a study by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University which revealed that the four major reasons people buy a home have nothing to do with money. They are:

A good place to raise children and for them to get a good education
A place where you and your family feel safe
More space for you and your family
Control of that space

What does owning a home mean to you? What non-financial benefits will you and your family gain from owning a home? The answer to that question should be the biggest reason you decide to purchase or not.

2. Where are home values headed?

According to the latest Home Price Index from CoreLogic, home values are projected to increase by 5.3% over the next 12 months.

What does that mean to you?

Simply put, if you are planning on buying a home that costs $250,000 today, that same home will cost you an additional $13,250 if you wait until next year. Your down payment will need to be higher as well to account for the higher home price.

3. Where are mortgage interest rates headed?

A buyer must be concerned about more than just prices. The ‘long term cost’ of a home can be dramatically impacted by even a small increase in mortgage rates.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), the National Association of Realtors, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have all projected that mortgage interest rates will increase over the next twelve months as you can see in the chart below:

Bottom Line

Only you and your family will know for certain if now is the right time to purchase a home. Answering these questions will help you make that decision.

Many potential home buyers overestimate the down payment and credit scores needed to qualify for a mortgage today. If you are ready and willing to buy, you may be pleasantly surprised at your ability to do so as well.

There are many options for helping a prospective buyer with help getting the down payment together. As a buyer agent we can as the seller for closing costs. Its a little bit tougher in a sellers market but still possible.Please click here to contact us and see if this option might work for you.

There are also many federal, state, county and city programs that we know of that could also get you potentially free money. Click here if you would like to find out more about these programs. Click here to be directed to a website that will give you more information on down payment assistance programs.

Selling a home

Here are some reports on systems that we use to help a homeowner get up to 18% more when they sell with us:

Get our Maximum Payoff Guide for Sellers as seen on Amazon.com FREE

Get our “90 Things you must not Neglect when selling your home” report FREE

or go to http://wesellhomesformore.com/ for more information on our selling process and why we sell for more.

Curious about what your home is worth goto http://www.socalhomevaluenow.com/ and find out instantly. This will give you a rough estimate on what your home is worth. For an accurate home value contact me directly for a free home value assessment.

Buying a home

If you are looking to buy a home whether its your 1st or 20th its important to choose the right agent. This decision could cost your thousands of dollars! Go to www.why-buy-with-us.com and see how we can help you!