Don’t make “fast-food” decisions when buying a home

Most potential home buyers want to purchase the home of their dreams while paying the lowest possible price. These people follow certain steps to educate and prepare themselves for what will probably be the biggest financial decision in their lives.

There are other people who take a fast-food approach to buying a home, taking the first thing that’s offered to them without gathering enough information to help them make an informed decision. As a result, they don’t get the home they need at a price they can afford.

If you’re one of these fast-food decision makers, and want to quickly gulp down a financial disaster, follow these home buying steps.

Ignore your financial goals. Don’t figure out how much you can afford to pay for a home each month and how that fits into your lifestyle or future income. Just buy as big a house as your lender will give you the money to buy.
Do not compare real estate agents. Take the first agent whose name you see on your grocery cart. Don’t question the commission rate proposed your selected real estate agent.
Take the first loan rate and mortgage product offered by whatever lender advertises in your local newspaper. Comparing rates and loan types will only take up your time, and all you could do is save money anyway.
Have your Uncle Herb inspect the house before you buy it, rather than hiring a qualified, professional inspector. You’ll save money now, which is more important than avoiding expenses later (like replacing your termite invested roof that Uncle Herb did not detect.)
Don’t research the schools or other aspects of life in your potential neighborhood. Your can always home tutor your child if the school isn’t very good, and who cares if your neighborhood association won’t let you build the shed you want in your back yard?

If you’re someone who just takes what they’re given and don’t care what you’re getting yourself into, follow every one of these steps and you’ll be sure to buy the wrong home for the wrong price at the worst time.

If you don’t make “fast-food” decisions and take whatever time and effort is necessary to buy the right home at the right price at the right time, then ignore every one of these tips like the plague, and you will be more likely to find the home of your dreams.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 at 7:06 am and is filed under FSBO. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.