5 MISTAKES FIRST TIME HOME-BUYERS MAKE

The majority of individuals have dreams of owning a home and are very clear about what they want and how much they want to spend on a mortgage, but they overlook numerous crucial factors.

There is fierce competition for homes in this hot market for home buyers, and many are making all-cash bids. Yet if you are unaware of all the complications involved in buying a home, you can later come to regret your decision. The top five errors made by first-time homeowners are listed below.

1. They do not consider all of their choices. Although though buying a house is frequently the finest financial choice you can make, not everyone can afford it. For instance, it might not be wise to purchase after deducting the closing costs over the course of a few years if you know you'll only be living there for a short while.
2. Other charges beyond the down payment are not taken into account. Your money could be devoured by homeowner's insurance, upkeep, HOA (Homeowners Association) fees, and closing costs, leaving you without emergency reserves.
   
   
3. They do not have a home inspection. A home inspection is not a technique to reduce the price of a house. The faults a home inspector could discover far outweigh the cost of a house inspector, and you could end up saving thousands of dollars on future repairs.
   
   
4. They expect the value of their house to rise. Many homebuyers believe that if they invest their entire life savings in a house and keep it for a few years, the value of their home will rise significantly. The property is one of those things that isn't really liquid if you need money quickly, despite the fact that home equity is still equity.
   
   
5. They do not take the debt-to-income ratio into account. This percentage is taken into account by a lender when assessing your capacity to purchase a home. You could not be accepted if you have a lot of debt. Before you apply for a home mortgage, demonstrate a history of saving and refraining from taking on debt.

Even if you receive a letter of pre-approval, the loan is not guaranteed to go through. If your financials significantly changes or ommit to mention something to the lender, you might learn just before the deadline that you are ineligible.

Before diving headfirst into the home-buying process, it's critical that you spend some time with a professional, such as a reputable estate agent. Many buyers of homes today rely on internet, which may give them a false impression of the genuine value of the properties nearby. A professional estate agent can help you see the reality of home pricing and keeps up with changes in market values and mortgage company business practices.

Author: Christos Nikolaou

BEng Mechanical Engineering, MSc Real Estate, ETEK Property Valuer, Register and Licensed Real Estate Agent.

Christos Nikolaou is the founder and Managing Director of Property Canvas, he holds a license as an Estate Agent from the Association of Real Estate Agents of Cyprus and he is a registered Property Valuer in the Technical and Scientific Chamber of Cyprus (ETEK). He is the author of our “5 MISTAKES FIRST TIME HOME-BUYERS MAKE” and is a certified advance negotiator.