Top 10 Critical Mistakes Homebuyers Make And How To Avoid Them (part Two)
By Don Glasgow
In part one of this article I discussed critical mistakes 1 through 5:

1.Using and out of town lender.

2.Not getting a loan approval letter before writing and offer on a home.

3.Buying too much house for your income.

4.Thinking short-term in regards to how long you will own your home before selling it.

5.Using 1031 exchange money to purchase a personal home.

Now for the “Top 10 critical mistakes home homebuyers make and how to avoid them”, 6 though 10:

6.Waiting for the “bubble” to burst.
Hot markets come and go. Cold markets come and go. Markets become over-priced, then over-time become under-valued. If you are waiting for a severe correction in real estate prices, pull up a seat, because you might be waiting a long time.

Homes, unlike other investments (the stock market for example) are valuable in two ways: 1) Psychological value - homes have value because everyone thinks they should, and 2) “real” value (people, homeowners and renters, need shelter).

Because homes are valuable in both respects, home values historically will usually only level out after a hot market. Sometimes homes will lose some value but not very much. St. George homes lost about 5% of their value after the last hot market in 1995…sort of like a balloon deflating because it took several years for this to happen.

If I were looking to buy a home I would be more concerned with interest rates and less concerned with playing with bubbles.

7.Not choosing an agent carefully.
In our town about 75% of real estate agents have been in the business one year or less. I suspect that this is true nationwide. The hot market of 2005 caused everybody and their brother to want to get their real estate license. When you contact a local agent, you probably have a 3 out of 4 chance of getting an agent who is severely under-qualified to represent you in the purchase of $250,000+ investment…your home.
You’ll want to contact at least four agents to make sure you are getting the best one you can find. Ask questions and then trust your instincts as to which agent is the best one for you.

8.Not having a home inspection done by a Professional Home Inspector.
A good, experienced Home Inspector will catch problems in a home that most homebuyers would miss.

I have seen all of these items missed by a potential homebuyer, but caught by a home inspector:
a.A dryer vent, venting into the attic
b.A ground fault interrupt breaker not working (this can kill you!).
c.Evidence of termites
d.Aluminum wiring
e.A roof leaking into the attic, but not into the main part of the home (yet!).

Several years ago I became aware of a transaction in our real estate office where the buyers decided not to have a professional inspection on an almost new home they were buying. They “inspected it themselves” to save the $300. Too bad they didn’t catch the fact that some of the basement windows leaked badly when it rained. The water stains were clearly visible had they known to look. That turned out to be a huge mess involving lawyers, threats and grief. This could have been avoided by paying the $300 to have a Professional Home Inspection.

9.Not receiving a home warranty at closing.
It’s 3:00 AM. You wake up hearing water running in your newly purchased home. It keeps running. And running. You get up to check it out and find your basement floor covered with water from the broken water heater. Luckily the damage from the water is minimal. You go to look for the Home Warranty confirmation in the documents you received when you bought your home the previous month. You know that the home warranty company will replace your broken water heater for only $55. Suddenly, you slap your hand to your forehead and make the Homer Simpson “Douhhh” sound as you realize that you didn’t get a home warranty because the seller wouldn’t pay for it and you certainly didn’t want to pay for it.

Lesson learned, always get a home warranty you buy a new home, even if you have to pay for it. It is money well spent. I would never buy a home without purchasing a home warranty. I never sell my own properties without a warranty for the buyer. It just makes good sense

10.Not meeting the neighbors before you make an offer.
Don’t you really hate it when your neighbors suck? Don’t you think it would be a good idea to do a little door knocking before you buy your new home? How about going online to look at your state’s website for registered sex offenders?

I did a little door knocking before I bought a foreclosed home in St. George. I was buying the home

Lose 90 Lbs in 6 Months - Sponsored Link
Ad - www.MyFatLossBlog.com Aug 18 2008 6:35PM GMT
Prescription Sleeping Pill Use Tied to Cancer
Earthtimes.org Aug 18 2008 6:35PM GMT
Somatic pharmacogenomics in cancer
Nature Aug 18 2008 6:35PM GMT
Spice-based compound may kill cancer cells
Political Gateway Aug 18 2008 6:26PM GMT
Prescription Sleeping Pill Use Tied to Cancer
Globe Investor Aug 18 2008 6:24PM GMT
Journalist Sievrers loses cancer fight
Political Gateway Aug 18 2008 6:23PM GMT
Prescription Sleeping Pill Use Tied to Cancer
Yahoo! Canada Aug 18 2008 6:23PM GMT
Moncton Hospital to get new equipment for breast cancer screening
CBC Aug 18 2008 6:19PM GMT
IU and Clarian Health to dedicate Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center Patient Care Facility
Indiana University Aug 18 2008 6:17PM GMT
AstraZeneca partners with Singapore based NCCSand NCCS for anti-cancer compounds
Quote.com Singapore Aug 18 2008 6:15PM GMT
Olympic Gold Medalist Inspires Cancer Patients Through Blog
Earthtimes.org Aug 18 2008 6:09PM GMT
Cancer battle could soon be spiced up
World Health Network Aug 18 2008 6:04PM GMT
Elderly breast cancer patients 'should not be excluded from quality of life therapy'
MedWire News Aug 18 2008 6:03PM GMT
Spice-based compound may kill cancer cells
UPI Aug 18 2008 6:03PM GMT
Thermo Fisher finds cancer cells with Toronto?s UHN
Mass High Tech Aug 18 2008 6:00PM GMT
Tongan girl loses cancer battle
Ein News Aug 18 2008 5:57PM GMT
06:55pm Tongan girl loses cancer battle
Ein News Aug 18 2008 5:57PM GMT
Olympic Gold Medalist Inspires Cancer Patients Through Blog
Yahoo! Canada Aug 18 2008 5:52PM GMT
Oncologix Announces Signing of Asset Purchase Agreement Pertaining to Selling Its Oncosphere Assets
TMC Net Aug 18 2008 5:48PM GMT
Olympic Gold Medalist Inspires Cancer Patients Through Blog
MarketWatch Aug 18 2008 5:45PM GMT
Diet Appears to Influence Colon Cancer Outcomes
Abstracts in Hematology and Oncology Aug 18 2008 5:42PM GMT
Dendreon Proceeds With Prostate Cancer Clinical Trials, AXI Gets Oil from Algae, PATH Prepares to Launch ?Ultra Rice,? & More Deals News
Xconomy Aug 18 2008 5:39PM GMT
Synthetic molecules to spice up fight against cancer
Webindia123 Aug 18 2008 5:34PM GMT
Laron dwarfs in South America may hold secrets to cancer cure
Webindia123 Aug 18 2008 5:33PM GMT
Cancer signatures uncovered
Innovations Report Aug 18 2008 5:33PM GMT
Biomedical foundation supports technology aimed at destroying cancer cells
Innovations Report Aug 18 2008 5:33PM GMT
Studies To Preempt Resistance To New Class Of Cancer Drugs
EMax Health Aug 18 2008 5:23PM GMT
Key To Treating Cancer May Be Finding Its Original Cell
EMax Health Aug 18 2008 5:21PM GMT
Older Cancer Survivors Should Heed Concerns About Dietary Supplements
EMax Health Aug 18 2008 5:21PM GMT
Despite cancer, Swayze's still lighting up
New York Daily News Aug 18 2008 5:18PM GMT
Standard approach 'unsuitable' for elderly ovarian cancer patients
MedWire News Aug 18 2008 5:17PM GMT

for my personal use and as part of the “due-diligence” I decide to meet the neighbors. I asked which house was the “bad house” on the street. I came to find out it was the home I was buying because the previous owners were noisy, rude, dirty, and didn’t care for their home. I changed that by buying the home and moving into it.

There you go; 10 simple steps to keep yourself, as a homebuyer, out of hot water. Violate any of these steps and you may end up losing a little or a lot of your hard earned money. Now go out and find the home of your dreams!

Article Source: http://www.articleblender.com

This content is provided by DonGlasgow.net and may be used or republished only in its entirety with all links included. More investing articles: www.stgeorgerealestate.info/RealEstateInvestingInformation. & www.stgeorge-mls.com