Are you considering buying a new home? Purchasing a house, especially if it’s your first home, is such an exciting time in your life! There’s a lot to consider, from where you want to live, to how many bedrooms you’re looking for, and many other criteria. Follow this buying a new home checklist to make sure that you’ve thought of everything before making the biggest purchase of your life!
Buying a New Home Checklist
Apply For Pre Approval
Before you can even think about starting your house hunt, you first need to ensure that you have the funds to purchase a property; that’s why this is the first item on this buying a new home checklist. Head to a mortgage broker or the bank to apply for pre-approval. This way, your lender can let you know exactly how much money they are willing to loan you to buy the place.
Make A Budget
Once you have pre-approval, you’ll know exactly how much money you have to work with to buy your new home. But don’t forget all of the other costs that go along with buying a new home. You will also need to factor in expenses such as hiring professional movers, buying furniture, and getting house insurance. These can add up, so make sure that you don’t spend your entire budget just on the cost of the house.
Define Your Requirements
Now, you need to decide what your requirements for purchasing a home are. If you are buying the place with someone else, such as a partner or spouse, get them to help you make this list. Consider factors such as the number of bedrooms, location, age, whether renovations are required, and the number of bathrooms.
Remember on this list to only include the absolute must-haves. If you create a list including everything you want, you’ll likely end up going over budget as no house is truly perfect!
View Many Houses
With the current housing market as it is, it’s best not to put all of your eggs in one basket when it comes to finding your new home. There is a lot of demand for houses, so places that go on the market are either getting snapped up quickly or creating a bidding war. Seeing lots of homes gives you options and helps you to avoid getting your heart set on one property that you may not get.
Check Out The Neighborhood
Think you’ve found your dream home? Go for a drive around the neighbourhood to see if it’s somewhere that you envision living. It’s an excellent idea to visit the location during the day and then again at night to see what the place is like at various times. You never know – some neighbourhoods are scary places at night time! If you find out later that the house is not perfect, you can always renovate it. However, there’s not a lot that you can do about a neighbourhood you don’t like living in except start the house hunt all over again.
If you have kids or plan on having them, check out which schools are in the area and how good they are. Education is incredibly important, and it makes things so much easier when your kids can go to a school that’s close by. And, of course, consider the proximity of your job, as you won’t want to have to commute a long way each day.
Home Inspection
The final step before committing fully to buying a new home is to get a professional inspector in to see if the property you’re considering buying has any issues. It’s best that you know about problems beforehand so that you can adjust your offer accordingly and set expectations for how much you may have to spend on repairs in the future. This way, you’re entering into a contract with a full understanding of the home’s condition.
Make An Offer
Now, it’s time to make an offer! Your real estate agent should be able to give you advice on what the market is like at the moment and the amount the owner is likely willing to accept. Be prepared to negotiate when buying a new home, but don’t try to offer a price too low, as it’s easy for sellers right now to just find another buyer.
Move In!
Once you’ve had your offer accepted and the sale has gone through, you’ll be ready to move into your new home! After the time-consuming and stressful process of buying a property, you’ll be exhausted. Don’t forget that hiring professional movers is a cost that’s well worth it, as you won’t have to do any of the heavy lifting yourself. Instead, the movers will do all the hard work for you, and you can enjoy just showing up at your new home and getting started on settling in.
Give EasyMove a call as soon as you know your settlement date, and we can book in your move.
