Not planning to buy a house rn but would like to research about process / things to know / any nitty gritties before purchasing your first home. Any recommendations - YouTube / articles / people to follow ? Feel it’s a 🕳 and reliant on your agent. TC: 200k
Shop around for agents before committing to one of those too. Really a lot of it is trial and error. There's a LOT of advice, good and bad, but most of it comes down to what are you willing to accept for flaws. There will ALWAYS be things that come up. Even if you buy new construction. But almost everything can be fixed for a price. For me, foundation issues were problems because contractors were card to get. So that was a turn off.
Get an agent with at least 20-years experience.
See if there are any incentives for areas you like (some lenders issue credits or have special rates), get pre-approved by your lender so you know how much you can spend and go for a fixed interest rate if you can swing it (adjustable rates could go way up over time). Follow local agents on Instagram to get advice on your immediate market and to see who you might want to work with. It was hard for me to find a buyers agent since it’s such a seller’s market earlier this year (just bought an investment property and have a house in LA). Oh and don’t make any other large purchases like a car if you’re about to buy a house, watch your spending since they will ask for bank statements.
Beware, agents always push you to make a higher offer bc they can get their commission and go to the next client. Don't do that, you will regret it. Do your own research, see lots of houses and then wait for them to be sold and look at their sold price and make your own calculations. Also, if you see a house that needs upgrade, whatever cost of remodeling is in your mind, multiply it by 2 or 3. Also, beware there's a shortage of labor and you can't find a contractor soon. The prices are also constantly going up . Your agent will tell you, you can upgrade a kitchen in a week, that's a lie, it will take a week to install the cabinets, etc. But it will take 6 months until your selected cabinets (not even custom made) will arrive. Talk to your friends, get their advice.
loan approval process is worth researching
ask your agent. great way to evaluate them