At Eric Craig Real Estate Team, finding homes for sale in the Kansas City Northland can be made easy! It’s our priority to make sure our clients come first. Ultimately, we want to work for you to make your home buying experience a great one.
Buying a home is one of the best long-term investments you can ever make. Whether you’re looking for a property for investment or a home for your family, you should do your homework. Here are some critical steps to follow when finding homes for sale in Kansas City.
Call Eric Craig Real Estate Team at (816) 726-8565 for all of your real estate needs.
Know your buying power
How much can you afford to pay for a home? Unless you’re a cash buyer, you may want to use the service of a mortgage company. But first, you should determine the amount of down payment which ranges between 5% and 20% of the offer price. This will affect the total monthly mortgage payment Additionally, some other costs include:
- Title insurance
- Inspection fees
- Closing fees
- Legal service fees (optional)
It’s sensible to talk to a real estate professional or a mortgage lender to assess the amount of mortgage for which you qualify for financing. Preferably, your monthly mortgage obligation should be 30-40% of your gross monthly income. And before you go to a lender for pre-loan approval, you should verify your credit score. A good credit score should be 720 and above. If necessary, a professional can help you do some credit cleanup.
Start looking for a suitable property
Do you want your home location to be near a specific area, school, or workplace? List all the things you want in a dream property. Maybe you want an off-street parking space or a two-car garage. Be sure to identify a location that fits your lifestyle. But no matter where you are looking, you should work with a real estate agent. The easiest way to evaluate the market is to do a market analysis of various homes.
A real estate agent will help you search for houses in specific neighborhoods and within a price range that accommodates your budget. Your home search can also meet any specific items you are looking to have in your new home. Just be sure to let your real estate agent know your wants and needs.
Sorting the list
In a matter of days, you’ll have several properties with details to look at. At this point, it’s time to set up some showings to see what’s available. Give yourself plenty of leeway on the scheduled times. Ordinarily, you’ll want some time at each property to feel comfortable you’ve seen it all.
You should plan for a second viewing for homes that meet your criteria. This time, schedule your appointment at a different time of the day. Your goal is to look for things that you may have not seen the first round. Once you confirm everything is to your satisfaction, you can work with your agent on an offer. Additionally, you may want to work with a third-party home inspector to verify the integrity of the home.
Offer accepted
After the negotiations are complete, you’ll have an accepted offer. Now for the excitement, you can plan how to move to your new home.
When looking for a home in Kansas City, you should work closely with a real estate agent. A professional can help you find the right home at the right price.