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The Top 5 Buyer Considerations:
- Pick an agent you can trust, and whom you like, and then listen to him. A good agent will treat your purchase very much like his own, and work very hard to meet your needs as he sees them. Virtually anyone can show you a house, but finding someone who knows what he's doing and who will seek your best interests is not so easy. If your agent is reluctant to show you more than a few properties, and is always trying to get you to buy each house, he's probably not working for you, but only for himself. You should expect your agent to want to help you find "just the thing," or at least to find something that approximates it, and then make every effort to see that you are well-treated throughout the transaction.
- Get preapproved with a good lender. It may be best to work with a lender your agent recommends, unless you have personal experience with the lender you've selected. The reason? Most agents only select lenders whom they know will do a good job. It doesn't benefit them if you're preapproved, and then you can't close because the loan was not really available, or you were misqualified. Normally a reputable agent will not try to do both the loan and the purchase--trying to do both jobs often means doing neither job well. Today's lenders will require thorough documentation.
- Stick to one zip code, if you can. The universe of properties is huge, especially in a city the size of San Diego, and if you try to look in too many areas, you will be overwhelmed by the number of available properties. If you find you cannot stick to one zip code, a single general area will work (Mira Mesa) or at most, a couple. The most vexing problem an agent has is to help a buyer who's not sure where he wants to live. So try to figure out your ideal location, given the money you have available, and your preferences. Your agent will help you make this selection. A good agent will be familiar with pricing in most areas.
- The current market is a seller's market. That means you must come in with a strong offer. Most properties in today's market eventually wind up with multiple offers, and the best one (meaning the one that has the best overall price, is the simplest, and provides the quickest path to close) will prevail. Therefore, when you make your offer, consider the fact that you will be in a bidding war from the very start. That also means you may have to bid on more than one property to get one, so don't get discouraged. In our office, we have seen as many as 15-20 offers placed before the buyer actually "hits." This, fortunately, is unusual, but it does happen. You also have to be able and willing to act immediately on the opportunities your agent presents to you. This is not a time for procrastination in your decisions.
- Be willing to "think out of the box." That may mean moving to an area you had not considered, or even paying more than the asking price to obtain the property you want. It may also mean looking at opportunities that aren't currently "in favor" to get yourself into ownership--as an example, our office has a number of listings that are on a land lease. These are not highly favored by most buyers, but they are nice homes, and afford the buyer an opportunity to act without undue competition. Another path you might take is to look for that (extremely) rare overpriced property, and offer what it's really worth (less). You are looking for an edge on the buying competition. A good agent will work at this, and offer you the assistance you need.
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