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Buying Home Tips

Before you buy a house or condo, you have to think first if it is good for you to buy a house or rent and invest your money in stocks, mutual funds extra. Buying house is not always a good choice to make. It al depends on you personality and what kind of person you are.

You should rent if

You do not want to bother with maintenance and home repair
If you rent is not high.
If you are not settled and you might be moving around

You should buy a home if

If you want to invest since houses prices went down
If you want to reduce your taxes
if you want to have more security, and to some point more privacy

Once you decided to buy a home, you should figure out how much monthly payment can you make that would include mortgage, taxes, repairs etc.
The next step is to know how much loan can you get. Do not assume, or ask friends. The best and the most reliable way is to talk to professionals. Start on the right foot by making appointments with mortgage brokers and see how much loan you can get.

Getting a good deal on buying home

It is always better to buy a home when prices are low, but there are usually times of the year when prices are lower than the rest of the year. December is the best month to buy, there are so few buyers at the end of the year, in fact, that “motivated” sellers will often grab at ridiculously low offers just to get out of their property. If you want to save money, that’s when you should make your offer. Buy your home in late December. Try to avoid buying in late spring and early summer, specifically the months of April, May, and June. Historically, 30 to 40 percent of all homes (new and resales) will be sold during those three months. They are the peak selling times.

Are home prices going up or down ??
Take a look at the interest rates. The real estate market is very interest rate sensitive.
The reason is that most people get large mortgages, and interest rates affect their monthly payments. When interest rates are low or dropping, it means more people will be able to afford bigger mortgages, and consequently, more expensive houses, causing prices to rise. When interest rates are rising, the opposite is true. The real estate market rarely turns down when interest rates are falling. It rarely maintains high levels of sales when interest rates are rising.
Real estate very rarely “explodes” upward in value or “crashes” downward. In other words, there are no “bubbles.” When prices go up, they tend to go up over time as each price
increase builds on the last. When prices go down, many sellers convert their properties to rentals, take their homes off the market, or make other arrangements. Rather than crash, the market
tends to slow down and prices slowly drift lower.

What is better a condo or a house ??

Every choice has an advantages and disadvantages.
The advantages of buying a house:

You can do whatever you want in your house
No neighbors noise, more privacy
No monthly fees like condo fees, but maintenances are required
the house value goes up with time

The advantage of buying a condo

No maintenance is required but you have to pay monthly condo fees
Condo value goes up with time
You have no control over the condo exterior
It might be noisy, depends on your neighbors
Smaller space than a house
You do not own the land, you just own the space in the condo.

What kind of mortgage raet should I get?? Fixed or Adjustable

When interest rates are low, get a fixed-rate mortgage to lock in
the low rate. When interest rates are high, consider an adjustable rate
mortgage with payments that will fall as interest rates come
down.

How to choose a good Real estate agent.

A good real estate agent is not the agent who drives an expensive car, or the one who talks the talk. But it is the one who walks the walk
A good Real estate agent is the one who

1. Always has time for you.
2. Knowledgeable enough to know the market and helps you making decisions.
3. Does not force or push you to make a decision
4. Can provide referrals