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5 Powerful BuyingStrategies

1.    Don't Get "Pre-Qualified!" Get"Pre-Approved"

Do you wantto get the best house you can for the least amount of money? Thenmake sure you are in the strongest negotiating positionpossible.  Price is only one bargaining chipin the negotiations, and not necessarily the most importantone.  Often otherterms, such as the strength of the buyer or the length of escrow,are critical to a seller.  In years past, we alwaysrecommended that buyers get "pre-qualified" by a lender.  This means that you spend a few minutes on the phone with a lender who asks you a few questions.  Based on the answers, the lender pronounces you "pre-qualified" and issues a certificate that you can show to a seller.  Sellers are aware that such certificates are WORTHLESS, and here's why! None of the information has been verified! Unknown problems can surface for example: recorded judgments, child support payments due, glitches on the credit report (due to any number of reasons both accurately and inaccurately), down payment funds that have not been in the clients' bank account long enough, etc.  So the way to make a strong offer today is to get "pre-approved".  This happens
AFTER all information has been checked and verified.  You are actually APPROVED for the loan and the only loose end is the appraisal on the property.  This process takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks depending on your situation.  It's VERY POWERFUL and a weapon we recommend all of our clients have in their negotiating arsenal.

2. Sell First,Then Buy

If you have a house to sell, sell it before selecting a house tobuy!  Let's pretend that we go outlooking for the perfect house for you.  We find it and you loveit!  Now you have to gomake an offer to the seller.  You want the seller to reduce theprice and wait until you sell your house.  The seller figures that's a riskydeal, since he might pass up a buyer who DOESN'T have to sell ahouse while he's waiting for you.  So he says OK, he'll do thecontingency but it has to be a full price offer!  So you see, you paid more for thehouse than you could have because of the contingency.  Now you have to sell your existing house, and in a hurry! Otherwise you lose the dream house! So to sell quickly you might take an offer that's lower than if you had more time.  The bottom line is that buying before selling might cost you TENS OF THOUSANDS of dollars.  We always recommend that you sell first, then buy.  If you're concerned that there is not a house on the market for you, then go on a window-shopping trip.  You can identify possible houses and locations without falling in love with a specific house.  If you feel confident after that then put your house on the market.  Another tactic is to make the sale "subject to seller finding suitable housing".  Adding this phrase to the listing means that WHEN YOU DO FIND A BUYER, you will have some time to find the new place.  If you don't find anything to your liking, you don't have to sell your present home.

3. Play theGame of Nines

Before house hunting, make a list of nine things you want in thenew place. Then make a list of the nine things you don'twant.  We call this "NINE OF THIS ANDNONE OF THAT".  You canuse this list as a scorecard to rate each property that yousee.  The one with thebiggest score wins! This helps avoid confusion and keeps things in perspective whenyou're comparing dozens of homes.  When house hunting, keep in mindthe difference between "SKIN AND BONES".  The BONES are things that cannotbe changed such as the location, view, size of lot, noise in thearea, school district, and floor plan.  The SKIN represents easilychanged surface finishes like carpet, wallpaper, color, and windowcoverings.  Buy thehouse with good BONES, because the SKIN can always be changed tomatch your tastes.  Wealways recommend that you imagine each house as if it werevacant.  Consider eachhouse on its underlying merits, not the seller's decoratingskills.

4. Don't BePushed Into Any House

Your Realtor should show you everything available that meets yourrequirements.  Don'tmake a decision on a house until you feel that you've seen enoughto pick the best one. Review the Multiple Listing printout with your Realtor to make surethat you are getting a COMPLETE list.  In the late 1980's, homes wereselling quickly, usually a few days after listing.  In that kind of market, Realtors advised their clients to make an offer ON THE SPOT if they liked the house.  That was good advice at the time.  Today there isn't always this urgency, unless a home is drastically under priced, and you'll know if it is.  Don't forget to check into the SCHOOL DISTRICTSof the area you're considering.  Information is available on every school; such as class sizes, % of students that go on to college, SAT scores, etc.  You can get this information from your Realtor or directly from the school.

5. Stop CallingAds!

A word of caution - Realtors create ads solely to make the phonering!  Many of thehomes have some drawback that's not mentioned in the ad, such astraffic noise, power lines, or litigation in thecommunity.  What's notmentioned in the ad is usually more important than whatis.  For this reason,we want you to be very careful when reading ads.  Remember that the person writingthe ad is representing the seller and not you!  The most important thing you cando is have someone on your side looking out for your bestinterests.  Your ownRealtor will critique the property with an eye towards how well itmeets your needs and will point out any drawbacks you should knowabout.  So whether youdecide to work with us or not, pick a Realtor you feel comfortablewith and enlist the services of that Realtor as a buyer'sbroker.  Then youbecome a client with all the rights, benefits, and privilegescreated by this agency relationship, and you're no longer just ashopper.  Did you knowthat many homes are sold WITHOUT A SIGN ever going up or an AD EVERBEING PUT IN THE PAPER?  These "great deals" go to thosepeople who are committed to working with one Realtor.  When a Realtor hears of a great buy, who do you think he's going to call? His client, who he has a legal obligation to work hard for, or someone who just called on the phone and said "keep your eyes open"? So, to get the best buy on a property, we always recommend that you hire your own agent and stick with him.

If you’d like todiscuss your Real Estate needs with us in a relaxed, hassle-freemanner, feel free to call or e-mail us for a no obligationappointment.  DirectLines: Uzi 416-419-0802 or Reesa416-417-1593

         uziandreesa@spotlightonrealty.com