First time home buying. Lessons learned, tips, etc

[AWW$HEEET]

I would emphasize the most basic of tenants which is LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION.

 

Another good thing to check out is property millage rates by school district:

http://tax.ohio.gov/divisions/tax_analysis/tax_data_series/publications_tds_property.stm

 

Of course, school districts matter for your family, as well as anyone who may want to buy your house down the road. Dublin, UA, New Albany are always top performers in Columbus...

http://www.dispatch.com/content/pages/data/school-education/school-rankings/school-district-rankings.html?appSession=577322334197871&cbSearchAgain=true

 

kinda funny that no franklin county school is even in the top 40.

[Dharris89]

Split levels dont bother me that much, my day is filled with stairs. Although I would say split levels are not on my list of wants. However I probably wouldnt count a house out because of it if it had everything else I wanted.

 

 

I thought that too. We bought our house because it was in Worthington and had both an attached and detached garage. Now 6 years later I still love my garage but I hate the stairs. But that's me. Good luck with your search. The advice on here is great.

[Xyster101]

Bought a house 1.5 years ago. I made a list and did this at each house:

 

Tools to bring: Screw driver, flashlight, Outlet tester, tape measure, Camera

 

1. Ground slope from away from house:

2. Water damage in basement or attic?

3. Gutter/Roof shape? Good drainage? Shingles square?

4. Jump in rooms, do they move?

5. Water: Turn on. Brown or smells?

-How fast does it get hot?

-Pressure? Toilet fills?

-Water hammering when slam water off/on?

-Flush toilet with shower on, scalding?

6. Doors/Windows Open/close well. Calking around win? Double Pane?

7. Details: Moldings, trim, quality parts, fixtures installed with care?

8. Electrical: lots of outlets? installation? GFI in baths?

-100 amp service? Separate garage service?

9. Baths: New, old, easy to update. Access to wet wall

10. Furnace: Age, clean, type, all rooms heated? AC?

11. Insulation: Attic, walls, basement. At least 12”

12: Flooring. Type? What is under carpet? Hardwood type? Refinished?

13. Garage: Door works, insulated? Sloped for drainage? Outlets?

14. Handrails: needed on more then 2 steps and good shape? Banisters sturdy?

15. Decks: shape, footings, board shape, nails popping?

16. Exterior: Soffets, drainage, slope, masonry, landscape, sprinkler

17. Kitchen: hardware on doors, draws slide easy, counter top material, doors straight

18. Mold/Termites in basement. Bang hammer/screwdriver on joists to check for rotten wood.

[spectragod]

You know, when I bought my first house, the internet wasn't what it is today, so I had to wing it, and ended up suing my seller. My list goes like this...........

 

1) don't buy from anyone who says that they are a minister/preacher/clergyman etc.

2) don't sign for any inspections that you are not sure of what you are signing

3) get your own inspector, one that YOU trust

4) know the location and the area around it

5) make sure you can build on the lot

6) if you can build on it, make sure that YOU own the mineral rights, gas/water

7) have the property surveyed buy a surveyor of YOUR choice, not the land title company

8) you can pay you closing costs in cash, use $1 bills if they piss you off, I did

9) it's good to make sure the neighbors aren't assholes, knock on doors and talk to them before buying

10)make sure there are no HUD/low income rentals around your new house

11) what everyone else said

[BDHG940]

Bought a house 1.5 years ago. I made a list and did this at each house:

 

Tools to bring: Screw driver, flashlight, Outlet tester, tape measure, Camera

 

1. Ground slope from away from house:

 

Pay attention to the grade away from the house. Also, (*Xster Good post).

[TTQ B4U]

If you have a smart phone, install the Zillow app. Will provide you hours of fun looking through the lens of your maps app with housing sale prices and est. values on it.

[Brrcats]

I would emphasize the most basic of tenants which is LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION.

 

Another good thing to check out is property millage rates by school district:

http://tax.ohio.gov/divisions/tax_analysis/tax_data_series/publications_tds_property.stm

 

Of course, school districts matter for your family, as well as anyone who may want to buy your house down the road. Dublin, UA, New Albany are always top performers in Columbus...

http://www.dispatch.com/content/pages/data/school-education/school-rankings/school-district-rankings.html?appSession=577322334197871&cbSearchAgain=true

 

I love me some links, school districts may or may not matter. the boy is what you would call "gifted", I doubt he's going to go to regular school.

 

I thought that too. We bought our house because it was in Worthington and had both an attached and detached garage. Now 6 years later I still love my garage but I hate the stairs. But that's me. Good luck with your search. The advice on here is great.

 

On second thought, while I do go up stairs a lot everyday at work, I am lazy. Perhaps a mini-escalator can be installed.

 

Bought a house 1.5 years ago. I made a list and did this at each house:

 

Tools to bring: Screw driver, flashlight, Outlet tester, tape measure, Camera

 

1. Ground slope from away from house:

2. Water damage in basement or attic?

3. Gutter/Roof shape? Good drainage? Shingles square?

4. Jump in rooms, do they move?

5. Water: Turn on. Brown or smells?

-How fast does it get hot?

-Pressure? Toilet fills?

-Water hammering when slam water off/on?

-Flush toilet with shower on, scalding?

6. Doors/Windows Open/close well. Calking around win? Double Pane?

7. Details: Moldings, trim, quality parts, fixtures installed with care?

8. Electrical: lots of outlets? installation? GFI in baths?

-100 amp service? Separate garage service?

9. Baths: New, old, easy to update. Access to wet wall

10. Furnace: Age, clean, type, all rooms heated? AC?

11. Insulation: Attic, walls, basement. At least 12”

12: Flooring. Type? What is under carpet? Hardwood type? Refinished?

13. Garage: Door works, insulated? Sloped for drainage? Outlets?

14. Handrails: needed on more then 2 steps and good shape? Banisters sturdy?

15. Decks: shape, footings, board shape, nails popping?

16. Exterior: Soffets, drainage, slope, masonry, landscape, sprinkler

17. Kitchen: hardware on doors, draws slide easy, counter top material, doors straight

18. Mold/Termites in basement. Bang hammer/screwdriver on joists to check for rotten wood.

 

Great fuckin list, I also love lists

 

You know, when I bought my first house, the internet wasn't what it is today, so I had to wing it, and ended up suing my seller. My list goes like this...........

 

1) don't buy from anyone who says that they are a minister/preacher/clergyman etc.

2) don't sign for any inspections that you are not sure of what you are signing

3) get your own inspector, one that YOU trust

4) know the location and the area around it

5) make sure you can build on the lot

6) if you can build on it, make sure that YOU own the mineral rights, gas/water

7) have the property surveyed buy a surveyor of YOUR choice, not the land title company

8) you can pay you closing costs in cash, use $1 bills if they piss you off, I did

9) it's good to make sure the neighbors aren't assholes, knock on doors and talk to them before buying

10)make sure there are no HUD/low income rentals around your new house

11) what everyone else said

 

So what exactly is a HUD home. I"ve been seeing the designation a lot.

 

If you have a smart phone, install the Zillow app. Will provide you hours of fun looking through the lens of your maps app with housing sale prices and est. values on it.

 

Got it, browse it, love it

[BBQdDude]

So what exactly is a HUD home. I"ve been seeing the designation a lot.

 

 

Good writeup here.....

http://www.realtytrac.com/foreclosure/HUD/what-exactly-is-a-hud-home.html

[Brrcats]

Ok, so HUD homes are just forclosures whose loans were insured by the FHA, easy enough. Are HUD homes more likely to be in poorer areas or not as desireable areas? What causes the FHA to insure a loan in the first place?

[AngryBMW]

Ok, so HUD homes are just forclosures whose loans were insured by the FHA, easy enough. Are HUD homes more likely to be in poorer areas or not as desireable areas? What causes the FHA to insure a loan in the first place?

 

PM sent.

-Marc

[Erica]

Just pray the owner doesn't die two days before you close! Good luck!

[Trouble Maker]

So what does a realtor actually do for someone buying a home? I'm only buying what I need, I probably could swing a 300k house, but it would really be too nice and too much for what I really need at the moment.

 

If the seller is using a realtor they will give someone 6% of their sale price. If you don't use a buying realtor that 6% will go to their selling realtor and you have no one representing you. If you and they have a realtor that get's split between the buying and selling realtor, 3% for each. So as a buyer you literally pay nothing to your realtor AND they represent your interest. They will also do a lot of paperwork and guiding you through the process. A ton of stuff has to happen in a short amount of time when you are actually buying the house and a good realtor & loan officer are worth their weight in gold.

...

Speaking of loan officers, talk to Marc Stock on here. I can't say enough good things about how well our loan process went! :megusta:

[Trouble Maker]

Quite simply they have access to information you do not have. They get this through MLS and, more importantly, relationships with the other realtor.

 

Definitely +1 on these. MLS sees houses right away and they don't show up on the regular search engines for a few days to a few weeks. Our house was being rented and in between tenants they put the house up for sale for 2 weeks. We looked at it maybe the second day it was on the market and snatched it up! If we were just looking on realliving.com or wherever we may have never seen that it was for sale. Our realtor also had working relationships with the selling realtors for both of the houses we put offers in on (first one didn't work out), which was very nice.

 

Another point; ALWAYS be willing to walk away from a house. Try to think about this from as much of a business standpoint as possible. You will never be able to take emotion out of it, and shouldn't. But if you get over-emotional or to vested into a house it could lead to a poor decision. You have to always be willing to walk away from a deal, house or otherwise, if things go bad.

[Supplicium]

Taxes, PMI

[Brrcats]

If the seller is using a realtor they will give someone 6% of their sale price. If you don't use a buying realtor that 6% will go to their selling realtor and you have no one representing you. If you and they have a realtor that get's split between the buying and selling realtor, 3% for each. So as a buyer you literally pay nothing to your realtor AND they represent your interest. They will also do a lot of paperwork and guiding you through the process. A ton of stuff has to happen in a short amount of time when you are actually buying the house and a good realtor & loan officer are worth their weight in gold.

...

Speaking of loan officers, talk to Marc Stock on here. I can't say enough good things about how well our loan process went! :megusta:

 

 

This is essentially what Marc described over PM. Also good point about being able to walk away from a house. I think I should be able to handle that, I'm going to approach it the way I approach buying a car, if you're paying as much as you are, you should get what you want. Sometimes you gotta wait for what you want to come around.

[spectragod]

Ok, so HUD homes are just forclosures whose loans were insured by the FHA, easy enough. Are HUD homes more likely to be in poorer areas or not as desireable areas? What causes the FHA to insure a loan in the first place?

 

Not exactly, HUD = Housing and Urban Development, emphasis on "Urban", if you hate your neighbors, you can rent your house through your local HUD office, you will get paid every month, guaranteed, your house will need rebuilt when your stellar renters move out, guaranteed.

 

I was going to buy the house that was for sale between my city's mayor and the city's city managers house, then rent it through HUD, I didn't win any friends, but they understood my point when they got wind of what was getting ready to happen. Property values around a HUD home will decline, crime will go up, neighbors will be annoyed, the neighborhood will go to shit pretty quick if you let the riff raff move in.

[Brrcats]

but how does that happen? I mean the house will cost what it costs right? How can unsavory types get into a house that they cant pay for?

 

Or is it like a government assistance type program? welfare for homes kinda thing?

[spectragod]

but how does that happen? I mean the house will cost what it costs right? How can unsavory types get into a house that they cant pay for?

 

Or is it like a government assistance type program? welfare for homes kinda thing?

 

Somebody buys it and decides to make it a "rental property", they don't care who they rent to, because they don't live in that neighborhood.

 

I have 1 across the street from me, his last tenants were HUD renters, on welfare, 3 kids, no jobs, free gas & electric.......drove an Escalade. And hated the neighbors because we had so much more than them (I know this because the resident told my neighbor this), that and we were all racists because we didn't like them having sex in the back seat of said Cadillac during the day in the driveway.

 

Anyhow, just look at the neighborhood surrounding your potential purchase, 2 blocks, see if there is any undesirable things going on that could lower your property value. I got rid on my problem, you may not be so lucky to.

[Brrcats]

Good advice for sure. I'm definitely carefully picking the neighborhood and whats around it, and trying to take into account what it might turn to in the next 10-20-30 years.

[Trouble Maker]

... if you're paying as much as you are, you should get what you want. Sometimes you gotta wait for what you want to come around.

 

This is true to a certain extent, all considering your budget. Walk into the buying process with as open of a mind as possible. If you have some concrete idea that you can get a certain house in your budget, but when you start looking that's not realistic it can be disheartening. Try to walk away from every house with some better idea of what you like and what you don't like in houses. Then when you find the right one it will be easier to know it's the right one.

 

Of course I would have liked a huge garage but considering our budget and many other criteria it wasn't extremely likely. It turns out the house we got didn't have a huge garage, but enough for now (large 1 car, 16x24). No biggie, we will build a bigger one down the road. You can always change the house into what you want!

[Brrcats]

This is true to a certain extent, all considering your budget. Walk into the buying process with as open of a mind as possible. If you have some concrete idea that you can get a certain house in your budget, but when you start looking that's not realistic it can be disheartening. Try to walk away from every house with some better idea of what you like and what you don't like in houses. Then when you find the right one it will be easier to know it's the right one.

 

Of course I would have liked a huge garage but considering our budget and many other criteria it wasn't extremely likely. It turns out the house we got didn't have a huge garage, but enough for now (large 1 car, 16x24). No biggie, we will build a bigger one down the road. You can always change the house into what you want!

 

Yeah, after looking at what I can get in my price range, I'm probably going to have to wait on my dreams of having a huge garage space. However I've been checkin out the zillow set to my range and I'm pretty comfortable with what i'll be able to get for ~$200k.

 

I guess one of the biggest things for me is that I dont want to have to walk into a house and be transported to 1970. Its definitely a problem with a number of houses in my price range