Ithaca Real Estate Blog

First Time Home Buyers

On Your Mark...

The first order of business should include finding a qualified, reputable real estate agent. The best way to find a good real estate agent is to ask friends, family members and neighbors for referrals.

Next, you'll need to narrow down your neighborhood choices, price, type of home and features, and define your goals. Using the Internet is an easy way to learn about different communities in any given area.

A good real estate agent will listen to your needs and wants and only show homes which meet your criteria. He or she will also preview the homes before showing them to you to further eliminate the need to visit homes which are not in line with your objectives and goals.

Get Set...

Now that you've narrowed down your choices regarding price, location, type of home and features, your real estate agent will arrange a day to visit a few homes which meet your criteria. Grab a pair of comfortable shoes and bring along your digital camera and a notepad. While you're at each of the homes on your tour, you'll want to take pictures and notes regarding the home's features and amenities.

You'll also want to note the home's surroundings and location. Is it close to the local school, the park or public transportation? Is it near power lines or situated along a busy street?

Once you've left each home, write down your overall, first impression. You can also use a rating system to better organize your thoughts and determine which homes are of the most interest to you.

Go!

After your day of house hunting, review your pictures and your notes and arrange a time to revisit the homes that were on the top of your list. Don't expect to see 20 homes in a single day. The only thing this will accomplish is a pounding headache. Visiting just a handful of homes will better allow you to remember the features of each home and prevent confusion.

Finally, if you find your perfect home, plan to make an offer quickly. A motivated buyer will most often make an offer within two days of viewing a home. Any longer and your dream home could be just a memory.

Shawna Soto is author of this article who specializes in Fort Worth Texas Homes. Find more information about Fort Worth real estate here.