Tips to consider when buying a home. Post your ideas.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
My DH and I are considering buying our first home. We are looking at an "as is" home and are wondering what all we need to consider before calling the agent, including questions to ask about the house and loans, etc. I have plans to call our insurance company within the next couple days to find out those costs as well. Thanks in advance for the advice.
By Jessie from KY
A home inspector could tell you the condition of the home, a bank could answer your questions on loans, a visit to a realtor could also answer or give suggestions and lastly there may be some books on home buying at your local library or book store you could read through.
Some communities also offer workshops for first time home buyers. You have to have a home inspector examine a home after your offer is accepted. If the inspector finds a lot of expensive repairs that would have to be made to make the home safe, you have to decide if you can afford to have the work done. A lot of repairs have to be done according to code rules and therefore can't be done by a DIY handiman.
Here is a Florida perspective:
Does the house have east/west exposure? If so, expect your front door to bake or your backyard to sizzle depending upon the time of day. North/south exposure is better in a hot climate. Is there any wood on your dwelling? Virtually all older frame homes have had some degree of termite damage and wood rot- which must be repaired quickly. These issues are a given in our humid climate. If you purchase a wood house you must keep up with termite inspections and periodically replace doors and boards that have softened.
I forgot: Find out where your water pipes are. Did some fool plant an oak tree where the roots would eventually get into your pipes? It will cost six to seven thousand dollars to remove a large oak tree and re-lay your water pipes.
FYI to redhatterb: in many communities, the buyer can waive a home inspection. They aren't necessarily required. To the original question, I notice that you are from Kentucky, and you stated that you are considering an "as is" home. That means that you would be willing to buy the house regardless of its condition. Depending on the laws in Kentucky, the seller may not even be responsible for repairs to bring the house up to code.
Find out the age of the furnace, water heater, air conditioning and roof.
I personally would still want an inspection for an "as is" home. Inspectors are trained professionals who may see expensive problems that a normal person would not. For instance, replacing a furnace isn't really a big deal (to me anyway) but if the house has foundation/structural problems, that's not something I know how to fix or even how to price, therefore I would walk away.
Get a home inspection even if it is not required. I bought an as is and 7 years later I am still living with a 4x6 sheet of particle board as my living room floor. The washing machine drain had problems and leaked into the wall of the living room and the floor. This was covered by carpet at the time I bought it. Not that I would not have bought it because my payments are only $385 a month for a 3 bedroom in a nice neighborhood, but an inspector could have told me what to expect, not mushrooms growing in the carpet due to the leak. I also recommend taking the classes for 1st time home buyers!
Look into getting a home warranty also. In some states the home owner pays for it and sometimes the buyer does. The neighbors next door were lucky and paid about $450 for theirs and within a year had to have a new roof put on. The warranty covered it. If it is an older home the builders probable used asbestos as insulation. That is an expensive problem to remove and now illegal in Ca. I don't know about the other states.
Good Luck and Best wishes. I hope you find the perfect home. GG Vi
Things to consider when looking for a new home. Post your ideas.
We just sold our family business and home, which we ran for 17 years. Due to the economy, we only ended up with $16,000 profit from the sale. Now we need to move out by June 1st and find a home to live in. Any advice on what we could find? We also have one child and two cats. We had to declare bankruptcy and can't seem to get a loan anywhere until maybe in January.
I am looking for jobs in my field (teaching) so I can finally realize my dream, but most teaching jobs don't start until mid-August. Hubby has a part-time job which doesn't go in the summer. So all we have to live on in the summer is un-employment from a part-time job. I'm so stressed out and and can't take this anymore.By Sandee
The way I understand it, is even if you started teaching right now, a mortgage company wouldn't finance you until you had been teaching for awhile. You might have to crowd into a small apartment if you can find one that will allow cats, and for the amount of income that you currently have.
Put the money you have in savings and don't touch it because when you have enough income to buy another house that will make a down payment. I know people that have filed bankruptcy and been able to keep their house, even though the house was mortgaged. If you are a qualified teacher, why haven't you been teaching all along to help pay bills? Consult a realtor and a lender to see what they say.
How do you find real homes? All I get is the various foreclosure rip off sites.
Jerilyn from South Bend, IN
Put the name of any major real estate company in your area in your google. Most share listings(MLS).
You can go to forsalebyowner.com. Also rmls.com and search by area.
Go to www.realtor.com. You can search for any area by putting in the zip code. Good luck.
I bought a bank foreclosed home a few years ago. I asked my friends if any of them knew a real estate agent. One of my friends works in a restaurant and has a regular who is an agent. She gave him my name and he found me a few houses. Try asking friends.
Where R - U trying to move to ? I use to live in S.B. In. for years.
We bought our house 10 months ago and are starting to find some major issues. The sellers said they installed new roof 10 years ago. We had a guy take a look with someone who does roofing for a living and they said that roof was done at least 20 years ago, and it was just a cover up-there's still cedar tiles plus an old roof on top of that, with another lay on top of that.
We had boxes in the master bedroom, it's a very large room. We slept on one side and used the other side as storage. This summer we finally got to getting these boxes out and organized when we noticed the ceiling was wet and cracking towards the edge of the walls. Figures.
I'm trying to find out more about home purchasing and how much of a time limit do we have to be protected from stuff like this. Our realtor was no help, saying there's nothing we can do. So I'm trying to find out if there's any help and relief we can get. We live in Monroe County NY. Thank you for any leads you can provide.
I need advice about what to do. I'm 49yrs. old, have multiple sclerosis and am recently divorced. My ex of 30 years burned me really badly in the divorce (a $250,000 home on 4 acres of land). I didn't have a lawyer.
They have increased my payments 3 times in the first 3 months. Blaming it on many different things. I did not know until after I signed to buy it, that they had done the whole bait and switch on the papers. There is so much, they have done that I know is not legal! I did talk to a community lawyer, a year ago, but he never has done anything. The home, is a danger to me, making the MS much worse. I have no money to take care of myself at all and no one cares! I have called everyone, no one cares to help. I do not qualify for anything, which stocks me. Please, who can I call who could help me? I am losing my body going through all of this.
Thank you, for any advice!
How can you buy a home with nothing down?
By Blanche
