The Top 5 Mistakes Home Buyer's Make

The Top 5 Mistakes Home Buyer's Make

This blog post is inspired by some of my previous experiences with people who have contacted me that want to buy a house.

These are 5 biggest and most common mistakes I've seen that ruin a buyer's chance to buy the home of their dreams.

1. Have sufficient income but claim part of it as a loss on your tax returns. The income that you've claimed as a loss will not count toward your qualifying income for a mortgage loan to buy a home in Florida. Most lenders will use the last 2 years of tax returns if you're self employed and your net income is traditionally the only income that will count.

2. Lack of knowledge about the area they think they want to buy or live in. Several buyers say they want to live in a certain area but they have no direct knowledge of the area, the schools, the shopping centers, the entertainment and most importantly of all-the prices of the homes in the area. I'm paying for a lead service for zip code 33024 in Cooper City Florida and you wouldn't believe the number of people looking to buy foreclosures and fixer uppers in Cooper City. Those home types in that area are few and far between, can we just say "looking for a needle in a haystack". If you want to buy a home in Cooper City Florida, the average home price is $465,000.

3. Uneducated on the price range in the area they're looking to buy a Florida home in. You cannot say you're looking to buy in an area where the median home price is $500,000 and want to find a home for $100,000. Either you would want to adjust your price range for the area you want to buy a home in or adjust the area you want to buy a home in to the price range you want.

4. Not using a licensed Real Estate Agent to buy their home. The market in South Florida is tricky because the "regular" home buyer has competition from investor buyers and it makes it difficult for an unlicensed person to know exactly what and how to negotiate the sale. Make the best home buying choice by selecting a licensed professional to help you. We're legally licensed and officially trained to help you find the home you want to buy anywhere in the state of Florida.

5. Not having enough saved for their closing costs. There are some ways to buy a home with no money down, but for the most part you'll need approximately 5-20% of the purchase price saved for a down payment, earnest money and your closing costs combined.

If you're in the market to buy a home in South Florida please take this advice to heart and make wise money moves that will ensure you have a pleasant and successful home buying experience.

Priscilla Hammond
Licensed Real Estate Agent
RE/MAX Consultants Realty 1
1625 SE 17th St. Causeway
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316 Office 954-767-4667
Direct 305-783-4269
Direct 770-875-4780