Best Resources for 1St Time Home Buyers

Get preapproved and understand what you can afford before you look. Find a good agent who listens to your needs - ask friends. Also find one who knows the different areas well that you may be looking at. From there, think about what you want in a home and anticipate. Do you have kids or will have soon - make sure you look into schools in the area. What are your have to have's/nice to have's/not needed's? Keep an open mind and know that once you get out there and start looking, you may have to change some of your "have to have's" to get what you want. Also be sure to look past cosmetics to structure...how old is the house? Will it need a new roof or furnace soon? If it's brand new construction, will you have to do lanscaping, put on a deck or pay for window coverings? Just things to think about.... It is a very exciting thing to do and having a home that you can call your own is great!

decide what payment you are comfortable with. Determine your max payment as well. We were approved for $75,000 more than what we ended up buying. I was not comfortable with the payment of that higher mortgage. Get pre-approved and find out where you are comfortable. DO NOT BUDGE. The first lender we tried to use was pushing us to a mortgage that was way more than we wanted. we did not end up working with him.

O. tip: get pre approved, then divide that amount by 2.
That will be a comfortable payment for you.

Always remember, YOU will be paying, not the realtor showing you houses!

Always get a home inspection.

Good luck!

The only resource I can offer...is myself :)
We just bought our first home together about 6 months ago. I told my husband there should be a guide to home buying!
We looked at 30+ homes. While I LOVE our house, some things have popped up that I wish I would have thought about before. o take time and think about how things are important to you.
Privacy:Our yard is wide open, neighbors behind us can see right into our yard, and especially from their upstairs windows.
Upgrades:I disliked the appliances, lighting fixtures, and carpets when we looked at this house. They are all way more expensive then I realized!
Location:Think about wether or not being in walking distance to stores, resturaunts, parks etc is important or could be.
Our house is close to many things, but only if your driving! I wish we could walk to SOMETHING!!!
Size:A JUMBO master, is really unneccessary. Think LIVING space. Think functionality.
My #1 tip, take your time. Really think about the house and all the details before you decide. We were under a bit of a time crunch, so I think we got rushed a bit!
Good luck!