Hi Sweet Friends. I am so excited to share today's guest post by Cait from
Cait's Cozy Corner. She's a fellow Southern Belle and Mom to two of the most precious little kids ever. She and I have been talking about a collaboration for a little over a month but the timing was off because my husband and I just bought a new house (I'm sure y'all knew that by now). When she presented me with this idea for a collaboration everything just fell into place. It was meant to be so she's here today to share 5 Tips To Purchase A Home.
Image:Pinterest
Buying a home can be stressful, especially if you are a first time home owner. Sometimes it’s planned to save and purchase a home but other times, you are thrown into it! So what are some tips and tricks for purchasing your first home that you wouldn’t think to look for? These are some that my husband and I found out when we were going through the process that I think would be beneficial to all of you!
1.
Hire A Lawyer- This necessarily isn’t something you HAVE to do nor is it required. However, in some states, like Georgia for example where I currently live, a real estate agent’s help is not legally required, although some agents can help you with the tasks that border on legal ones such as preparing a home purchase contract. For example, what if your prospective new home has an illegal in-law unit with an existing tenant whom you want to evict in order to rent the place to a friend? Only a lawyer can tell you with any certainty whether your plans are feasible. Or what if you’d like to rent the home for an extended period, such as a year, before you’re obligated to buy it? That will require drawing up an unusual lease. Or, if you're drafting any unusual language for the purchase contract, or are concerned about some language in your mortgage, you may want to have an attorney look the documents over. A lawyer in the
Atlanta area is the
Law Office of Glen P Burn. Although Glen is not directly a lawyer for purchasing home, he does have 15 years experience to help those out when needing help deciphering all the legal jargon that’s written in contracts. Those that may have trouble in their past such as
DUIs, criminal history or drug offenses- he is the one to help and assist you in learning your rights and how you can protect yourself. Having a criminal history or drug offense could hurt some chances of purchasing a home so it’s always a good idea to go over it with someone who knows the legal system before purchasing.
2.
Check For Wet Paint- This may not seem like a huge red flag to some as many home owners will refreshen a room with new paint. However, some owners will try to use the paint to cover up damage to the walls or area! These may be causes of concern down the road to keep an eye out for it!
3.
Poor Neighborhood Condition- You don’t want to be the nicest house on the block. Your neighbors should also be taking care of the outside appearance of their home! Keep an eye out for houses that may be vacant or boarded up. This always can be a cause of concern that something may have happened. You don’t want to in a high ended crime area for future problems of burglary or theft! You want to feel safe and secure around your neighbors and their homes
4.
Electrical Issues- Although many of us are not electricians, always walk around the home and turn the lights on and off. Check for flickering lights and look at outlets to make sure your electricity is working properly. Some of the most common inspection findings when you are walking through your home are with the electrical wire cable and improper wiring through the home. Your home inspector will go over these with you but it’s always a good idea to find them yourself as well!
5.
Mold - This is not always an issue when walking through a home but if you’re looking at a house that is in foreclosure, it may not be getting the proper treatment because no one lives there on a day to day basis. When we were walking through one home, Zach noticed a board that was up against a wall. When we took it apart, we noticed mold in the bedroom as well as the attack due to not properly being sealed off. This was a huge concern as we didn’t want to deal with paying for it ( it can be pretty costly ) to have clean air.
It’s very critical whether you are a first time home owner or not to be aware of these red flags when inspecting a potential home for you or your family. These items can occur of course after you purchase the home or may have been overlooked, but if you keep these 5 items in mind while walking through, you should be ok.
Big thank you to Cait for sharing this post. Buying a home can be stressful and there's a lot to take into consideration, Cait did a wonderful job of covering these things from a potential buyer's stand point.
Be sure to stop by Cait's blog and leave her lots of love.
