5 Steps to Buying Your Dream Home With Abode’s Educated Homebuyer Plan
635 Delaney Avenue, 4,527 square feet of historic Downtown Orlando luxury
Whether you’re a first time buyer wondering “Where do I start looking for homes?” or you’re a luxury buyer who already owns multiple properties, buying a new home should be fun and exciting.
But as real estate agents, we’ve heard our fair share of home buying horror stories. Just this past month, we had different buyers encounter a $799,000 home that needed to be completely rewired and a $3.64 million dollar home that needed fresh paint and carpet throughout. Big or small, these issues could have created major hurdles.
Take a closer look, though, and you see that these hurdles were in fact home buying opportunities:
The first home: We secured a large closing credit of thousands of dollars to offset the cost during inspection negotiations for the buyers to rewire the home AFTER closing.
The second home: that same $3.64 million dollar house would have been $7 million dollars in the first neighborhood the buyers were looking at. But they slightly changed their neighborhood location and what’s a few thousand dollars to renovate compared to $3.3 million dollars in savings?
In both situations, what could have been a nightmare turned into a dream home thanks to agent experience and expertise.
You might think you know exactly what you want in your new home and exactly how to find it. Most buyers do. But you’ll learn quickly that without an expert real estate agent at your side, the home buying process can turn into a frustrating chore that you do NOT look forward to.
No matter how big of a budget, it’s highly unlikely that you’re going to find the “perfect house.” A house without need for repainting, remodeling, recarpeting, or rewiring. What you can find, with the help of a great agent, is a home that aligns with your highest priorities off the bat, and that you can transform into your dream home with a few small tweaks.
It starts with arming yourself as an educated home buyer. That’s what Abode is going to help with today. You’ll learn why you need a real estate agent who will educate you every step of the way (no matter how experienced you are) and the 5 steps to developing an Educated Home Buyer Plan to buy your dream Orlando home.
Eliminate Wasted Weekends of House Hunting by Sitting Down With an Agent Who Will Educate You as a Buyer
A home is one of the biggest assets you’ll ever own. Here at Abode, we think that merits serious thought and consideration from both the agent and the buyer. That’s why we sit down with every one of our new home buyers for an Educated Home Buyer Plan Consultation.
Our Educated Home Buyer Plan sets expectations around the home buying process to save a whole lot of time, effort, and heartbreak for the buyer. Without a plan, buyers tend to shoot from the hip without an understanding of what they truly want or need in or for their home. If you’ve ever watched an HGTV show like House Hunters, you know the disappointment buyers can experience when touring a home they think they want, but that’s not what they need.
We learned the need for a systematic plan early on as agents, after letting clients take the reins and watching them spend way too much time on houses we knew weren’t right for them.
For example, here’s a typical home buying scenario that would unfold here in Orlando. Without a plan, buyers might insist on starting a day of house hunting (on their own) in Clermont. They’d tour a house they’d looked at 500 times online, only to realize it was next to an offensive water treatment plant. Then they’d drive over to Downtown Orlando and Winter Park, a half hour away, only to realize they can’t afford homes there. They’d drive another half hour to Conway and then Sanford (another half hour) in their continued home search. After all that time spent house hunting, they’d end up with a horrendously stressful weekend and no potential homes to show for it.
Now, with the Educated Home Buyer Plan, we eliminate wasted weekends of house hunting. By sitting down before looking, we’re able to hone in on our home buyers’ budget, needs, and wants. From there, we lay out a time-efficient plan to show the best houses for them.
Remember you get out what you put in to the homebuying process. We understand most home buyers are busy people, but if you’re not willing to put in the time to sit down with your agent, you can expect a stressful buying experience and lackluster results. And if you haven’t found an agent who’s willing to sit down with you at the front end of the home buying process, you might need a new agent.
The 5 Steps to Becoming an Educated Home Buyer
A good buyer’s agent isn’t a salesperson. Here at Abode, we consider ourselves home consultants. We provide you with the information you need to navigate the complex housing market and make a well-informed decision. That’s why our Educated Home Buyer Plan Consultation is key to developing the best plan of action for finding your new home. It sets us up with a foundation of understanding using these 5 steps.
Step 1: Understand Your Financial Responsibilities and Verify Your Budget
Before any mention is made of custom finishes or schools in the area, we discuss finances. This includes an overview of the purchase process and verification of your budget for purchasing a new home.
Based on experience, we don’t take this step lightly. Early on in Steven’s career, he got to the point of closing with a first time home buyer and at that moment realized that closing costs hadn’t been discussed. The client only had a 20% down payment. When the additional $11K in closing costs for the home was requested, the client didn’t have it!
That’s why going over financial responsibilities during the home purchasing process is vital. These responsibilities include paying for a home inspection, appraisal, survey, lending fees, and more. Even if you’ve purchased a home before, this is always an essential review.
Then we get you pre-approved for a mortgage. While you can use any lender you’d like, we keep a list of recommendations (hint: Bank of America is NOT on that list!). Your homework is to receive a pre-approval letter. This is not to be mistaken with a pre-qualification letter which does not verify your eligibility for a mortgage. You can’t put an offer in without a pre-approval letter, which is why we put this logistical step in the front end.
And if you’re buying your home in cash? Your homework is to secure a Proof of Funds document from your financial institution.
An important consideration for the luxury housing market: larger, luxury homes can take more than an hour to prepare for showing. Because of this, a Pre-Approval Letter for what’s called a “jumbo loan” in the luxury market or a Proof of Funds document is often needed just to tour the home.
Once the finances are taken care of, we move onto Step 2.
Step 2: Prioritize Your “Must-Haves” and Know What You Need
Your “must-haves” in a home might seem obvious at first, but once you start diving in, you’ll realize a lot of your “must-haves” are actually “wants” and some of your “wants” are “must-haves”. This is your time to prioritize what you really need, and your agent will be able to help you consider all perspectives.
Some common must-haves for everyone to consider include:
Size (bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage, and lot size)
Location
Do you need a yard (for pets, children, entertaining, etc.)?
Do you need a garage?
On the luxury end, additional must-haves to consider include:
Do you need a lakefront? It’s a common Orlando request. And if so, do you need a lake to enjoy water-skiing, or to look at, or for non motorized boats?
Pool or spa
Garage count: Do you need a 1-2 car garage, or 4-5 car garage?
Home style (Tudor, Modern, Mediterranean, etc.)
In the multi-million dollar luxury home market, there tend to be more options on what can be categorized as “must-haves.”
Step 3: Prioritize Your “Wants” and Know What You’re Willing To Compromise On
11536 Lake Butler Blvd, The Jewel Of The Lake in Windermere, Florida
“Wants” are those items that you really want in a home, but that you could live without or compromise on to achieve your must-haves.
Common wants to consider include:
Private pool, HOA pool, or no pool
Wood floors, carpet, or tile
Specific location (especially with remote work popping up, this is becoming more of a want for some families)
On the luxury end, more unique “wants” to look out for include:
Custom finishes
A screen for the pool
Fireplace count
Smart home system
Climate controlled wine room
Home gym
Home Theatre/Media room
Wants should generally be items that you could install yourself if you really wanted to, and compromising on these items will lead you closer to a home you can make your own.
Step 4: Understand The Residential Contract Before You Need To
The contract process for your home is a multi-faceted, many-stepped process that can become unwieldy without guidance.
At Abode, we always review a blank Residential Contract at the Educated Home Buyer Plan Consultation. This way, you understand all general terms and conditions of the contract before you make an offer on a specific luxury property. Once that offer is made, things can move quickly.
The residential contract is legally binding and includes specific time frames. If you’re late with deadlines, you are in breach of contract. That’s why it’s so important to understand the expectations that will be made of you ahead of time.
The contract will include specific terms to be negotiated upon and decided between the homebuyer and the home seller. For example, will the washer and dryer be sold with the house or stay with the seller? Are there warranties included in the sale or credits to be provided for known repairs? This negotiation phase is key. This is how we secured the large closing credit (thousands of dollars) for one buyer in electrical repair, after closing! You’ll want a seasoned real estate agent by your side who isn’t afraid to negotiate.
After the contract is executed, homes close on average in 35-45 days. (Though we’ve seen a home close as quickly as 4 days with a cash offer!) Step 4 prepares you ahead of time.
Step 5: Trust Your Agent To Schedule The Best Home Tours For You
Now that your budget is solidified, your needs and your wants are ironed out, and you understand the contract process, it’s time to start looking at homes! As part of the Educated Home Buyer Plan, we outline the process of routing and scheduling home tours.
We set the expectation upfront that tours need to be scheduled in advance. It can take 24 hours notice to tour a home, so don't be surprised if you aren't able to tour the same day. The residents of an occupied home might need to schedule time to get out of the house or your agent might need to schedule time to show the home.
On the luxury end, it can take over an hour to view the home and over an hour to prepare the home. The listing agent typically joins as well to show off all the bells and whistles. With this in mind, it often takes longer than 24 hours to schedule a luxury house tour.
Another point about home touring, some agents just hand buyers a list and leave them alone to drive by homes before touring inside. Here at Abode, we’ll let you do that too but we recommend a different approach. Buyers may dismiss a home because of the street it’s on or other external features, even though we know that it’s the perfect home for them on the inside. We encourage you to find a buyer’s agent you trust to prioritize your needs and wants in a home, and that you trust them to show the best homes for you in the most time-efficient way possible.
Save Yourself Time, Effort, and Heartache by Investing Time into Becoming an Educated Home Buyer
Now that you’ve learned the 5 steps of our Educated Home Buyer Plan, we hope you see how important it is to approach the house buying process with a solid, informed plan under your belt. Your home is one of the biggest investments you’re going to make and it’s important to get it right.
Whether you’re a first-time home buyer or you’ve been around the block a few times, every home purchase requires thoughtful consideration and a dedicated sit-down conversation with your buying agent. Take the time to make sure your real estate agent fully understands your home priorities and that you understand your financial responsibilities and contract obligations.
By investing the time into educating yourself as a home buyer upfront, you’ll save yourself a lot of time, effort, and heartache. Your agent will be equipped to find the perfect new home for you and you’ll experience an easy, seamless homebuying process along the way.
Enjoyed these insights and looking forward to more?
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Steven Ritz, Buyer Specialist - Call 321-277-8271 or email here
Linda Sitek, Listing Specialist - Call 407-963-6544 or email here
