Looking to buy a home
in Newport Beach or Orange County? If you’re a first time home buyer, you may
be in the middle of your research but still cannot decide where to start in the
process. For that matter, see the following first time homebuyer checklist,
prepared by the Tenore Group led by Patrick
Tenore Sr., for your reference.
Homebuyer’s Checklist
- How much can you afford? For this, you
may want to check your monthly income and debt as well as check your FICO score
and credit report. If you find some discrepancies or misrepresentation in your
credit report, you may want to fix it before buying a home. Part of the process
of determining how much house you can afford is to figure out the down payment,
too.
- Do you have a pre-approved mortgage
ready? Prior to buying a home for sale, you may want to select a mortgage as
well as speak with mortgage brokers and lenders. You should also shop around and research
about interest rates and programs.
- What kind of home do you want and need?
This is a crucial step in the process of buying a property. Select your ideal
location, including suburban, downtown or rural. Then, what kind of home are you looking to
buy (townhouse, apartment, condo or co-op)?
Upon determining it, you should also set a price range, determine the
size of the house and select the architectural built and style of your choice.
- What kind of neighborhood are you
looking for? Aside from determining the price, type of home and other factors,
you should also research about your target location, which includes statistics
and facts about crime rate, schools, amenities and facilities, zoning and
traffic. You may also want to figure out the neighborhood’s accessibility for
public transportation. At this stage,
you should also figure out how much time you need to spend on driving or
commuting to and from your workplace.
- Do you have an expert real estate agent
who knows Newport Beach or Orange County with you? One of those that you should
be looking for when hiring a real estate agent to look for that perfect home is
someone with years and years of experience like Patrick Tenore Sr. Through the years, he has worked with both
homeowners and homebuyers and helped
them achieve their goals—sell or buy a home. If you’re looking for guaranteed
help, you may want to get in touch with him and his team that are seasoned and
well-familiar with the communities in these locations. They can help you find
the right property based on your preferred location, budget and other factors
you consider important in buying a new home.
- Research about every home you are
looking to buy and review disclosure with your real estate agent.
- Make an offer and be able to negotiate.
Do not forget to include contingencies, such as financial, purchase or
inspection. Define a move-in date and finalize everything. You may want to get
professional home inspection and appraisal, too. Select a home insurance
provider and complete the loan with your lender and allot budget for down
payment, and closing cost.
- Close the home purchase.