Be Patient
I know many people will disagree with me, but trust me the perfect home or real estate opportunity will fall into your lap.
Never Settle
If you can't see yourself in a home, don't buy it. If you can't picture anything but ways to remodel the home, don't get it. You should only buy the home if you can picture yourself happy there, your kids growing up, family holidays, things like that.
Don't Rush Unless You Have To
You have your whole life to find the perfect new home. If you can stay where you are for a while do that until you can really research all your options. The only reason you ever really have to rush out of your current home is eviction, or toxic mold! If neither is happening to you, stay put!
Read all the Fine Print
Don't let this happen to you, I know a person who bought a little slice of America to build a home on. The purchased a manufactured home, which is very nice by the way. Putting up a manufactured home takes a month at the most, and this person has been waiting almost 2 years because they didn't read the contract. They signed a paper saying that the builder had up to 3 years to complete the project. Don't be a victim.
Do Multiple Showings
If you can arrange it try to get a few home showings in one day. That way you can compare right off the bat, and don't have to worry about remembering all the little things. Your realtor will be more than happy to set it up that way for you. They actually prefer to do it this way.
Many realtors I've talked to explained it to me like this:
The more houses you can see in a day the better off you are. Go ahead, bring a camera and take pictures. This will help compare all the details that you may forget, and it also eliminates confusion of features that may not be listed on the flyer.
Don't go to a bank
Seriously, this is the biggest mistake homebuyers make. You're probably thinking, “How do I get a loan without going to the bank?” It really is simple enough, and I'll be more than glad to tell you how. Go to a mortgage broker. They can and will compare multiple rates and multiple banks for you. They are more interested in you getting what will really benefit you because they work on commission. If they can't find something to help you they don't get paid. They simply work harder to get you a better rate. Big banks tend to lean more toward big business and will greatly hesitate to sit down with you and discuss all your options for a standard mortgage. The only time its acceptable for you to go to a bank is to get a construction loan for you to build your own home. When you do this be prepared to have some sort of collateral and/or a hefty down payment normally upwards of $20,000 or more.
