Thread: FIrst time home buyer

I think it's better if you have a realitor show you houses first so that you can decide what the exact amount to loan for..

Yes definitely I agree to righthome..

A realtor can suggest you in a more better way as he has experience in this field. In my opinion also you should ask a realtor first.

Do not look at houses until you know what you can afford. The worst thing you can do is look at houses you can't afford and then find out you have to buy something cheaper.

You will never be happy with the choice of cheaper houses available once you have seen the higher priced houses.

I would suggest meeting with and interviewing different real estate agents to find out who you would like to work with. A good agent should be able to suggest some loan officers you can talk with. Then get preapproved, if you find a home you want to make an offer on you are going to need that preapproval letter.

What you need to do is hire a real estate agent, just see to it that you are hiring the right. Ask for recommendation from your family or friends, other way is by using the internet in finding an agent. The agent will help you in seeking for the perfect loan quote for your current situation. If you are pre-approved for a loan, then you can start seeking for your dream home, again, with the help of your agent.

Depends.

Do you know a good agent? If so talk to them, and see who the recommend as a lender.
Do you know a good lender? If so talk to them first and see who they recommend as an agent.

Referrals are important in real estate because the person who you were referred to will go out of their way to do a great job, thus getting more referrals in the future. So you get taken care of, and get to work with a competent professional.

To answer your question directly: get pre-approved first and then have a realtor show you houses. Having a definite figure of how much you can afford (based on what a lender is willing to lend you), you can narrow your search to homes within that range. The last thing you want is to look at a home that you love, thinking that you can afford it, only to find out that you are unable to get financing. Furthermore, with a pre-approval letter, it gives you more credibility when you make an offer on a property. Best of luck.

Hopefully any Realtor that you talk to would have you get pre-approved prior to looking at homes. But I guess that not all agents know what they are doing.

I still recommend choosing your agent, and lender based on referrals.

Originally Posted by righthome

I think it's better if you have a realitor show you houses first so that you can decide what the exact amount to loan for..

Actually, the loan amount can always be lowered without a problem. It's better to know the maximum amount that a buyer is approved for, because things can always change in such a way that necessitates a larger loan amount. And without a conditional underwriting approval, there's no way to know what loan-related hurdles must be overcome, if any.