10-STEP GUIDE TO BUYING A HOME IN COEUR D’ ALENE, IDAHO
For the most part, buying and selling a home is one of the biggest money exchanges that you will ever go through in your life, so it’s important to understand the process. Follow this 10-Step Guide to Buying a Home in Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho to help you buy your dream home at a fair price.
Prepare Yourself for Buying
Regardless if this is your first home purchase or you are a veteran, it can be an emotional and challenging experience. That is why it is crucial to have the right professionals to help along the way! People you trust!
FIND A REAL ESTATE PRO THAT YOU CAN TRUST
Between all the forms, deadlines, other service providers involved and counter offers it is important to have someone on your team that will fight for your best interests. Work with someone who knows the market and the area well and who will take you step by step through the whole process.
We pride ourselves on being reliable professionals that put our client’s needs first. Please give us a call if you’re considering buying a home.
Get Pre-Approved
Before you begin the process of looking at homes it’s important to meet with a loan officer to determine what price range you are going to be searching in. And besides, an offer accompanied with a pre-approval letter is must stronger!
LOOK AT HOMES & NEIGHBORHOODS
Be sure to pick homes that are in whatever school district you want to be in, and have the right neighborhood type you are looking for. There’s no sense in going inside homes that aren’t in the areas you see yourself going home to each night. Narrow down your priorities before choosing your list to go see.
Choose a Winner
Sounds easy enough but it’s important to pick the home that meets your needs and that will hold it’s value for years to come. No home is perfect, but it’s important to pick the home that can suit the needs of your family, and has as many of your wants as possible.
Ask Questions
Regardless of how many homes you have bought or sold, each experience brings new and exciting challenges and situations. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, make suggestions and become comfortable with all aspects of the process. There are no dumb questions, and we are more than happy to give explanations.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
This 10-Step Guide to Buying a Home in Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho applies to buying in any market around the country, but especially in Coeur d’ Alene. Here we have every different kind of living from suburban, ranch, acreage, city, condo, waterfront, secondary lake views, community, commercial, investment properties and much more!
It’s important to know which you are interested in! Depending on your life situation and your future goals for the home you are buying could help determine what type of property you need. Do you have kids, are you planning to have kids, are you empty nesters looking to downsize, needing farm land, a vacation home, searching for a secondary income opportunity or just a house that feels like a home! All of these things are good to let your real estate professional know up front so they can better serve you!
Make a budget
Your loan officer will be able to give you a reasonable budget to use, and it’s very important to stay within that! In today’s market Coeur d’ Alene homes are selling for approximately 96% of their list price. That means there isn’t a significant amount of wiggle room or negotiating in our market. Keep that in mind when looking for your dream home!
Make an offer
There are seven pages to the Idaho Purchase and Sale Agreement, not to mention the plethora of other forms that go along with buying a home. That is why hiring a professional who is familiar with the forms, knows how to get the best out of a deal for you and can walk you through each step of the process is very important!
Acceptance
After the negotiating process is over and both parties have come to a mutual agreement there are still a lot of things left to get done! Among those are depositing the earnest money, turning in proof of funds and a lender approval letter, meeting the inspection deadline, applying for home owner’s insurance, reviewing and approving the CC&R’s, reviewing the preliminary title commitment, the final walk through and then closing day. There are so many deadlines which is why Realtor Mike DeLong of Coeur d’ Alene would be helpful to get things done on time and correctly the first time!
Although there are some complicated situations involved, selling homes is what we do for a living! Please don’t hesitate to call us, we promise to give you an unforgettable buying experience!