READY TO BUY? - Mesa Real Estate Arizona

8 Inside Tips Every Buyer Must Know To Win In Today's Market: So you've finally decided to buy your next home. Problem is, while you were making up your mind, other fence sitters jumped into the home market too. Now you may be facing some competition for the best properties. What to do? Just because there are other buyers in the market doesn't mean you can't come away with your dream home. But to be a successful buyer in today's real estate market, you're going to need help. Your first best move is to know a few inside tricks. As experienced real estate professionals, we have many more than eight ways to increase your chances of landing a prize property despite heavy competition. Still, the following eight tested tips will increase your market savvy and sharpen your competitive position. Then you'll be ready to act quickly the minute you see that perfect home you don't want to get away. 1. Get Pre-Approved: Getting pre-approved for a mortgage loan is your best first move. You will go through what amounts to a mini-application process (paperwork, credit check, etc.) prior to shopping for a home. Pre-approval is more effective than pre-qualification, which only gives you a rough idea of the amount a lender might lend you — not factoring in some of the details that could affect the loan amount. When you are pre-approved, however, it's like carrying around a suitcase full of money. In the eyes of sellers, pre-approval makes you a very desirable "cash" buyer. That's a real advantage over other buyers with uncertain financing. 2. Be First Getting To New Listings: Once we know your specific price range and tastes, we can regularly do a computerized market sweep for new listings. As your buyer's agent, we'll send you a hot list of attractive properties as they come on the market. That way you'll get a jump on other buyers before the new listings are advertised or held open. Timing can be everything today. 3. Do Your Homework: Make yourself a "value expert" by investigating local properties to get an idea of price points, listing-to-sales-price ratios, hottest areas and best places for a bargain. Once you know what your money will buy, as your buyer specialists, we'll add our up-to-the-minute knowledge of what comparable properties sell for in specific neighborhoods and what impact specific features have on price. Together we'll guarantee you the best price and terms. 4. Give Your Offer The Personal Touch: Nobody wants their offer languishing in an email inbox in the listing agent's office while other buyers are putting offers on the seller's kitchen table. When the situation calls for that personal touch, you'll gain an advantage by having us present your offer in person, plus we may pick up critical intelligence on any competing offers by being on the scene. 5. Prove You Mean Business: There are few better ways to show you are serious about buying a property than by including a substantial good-faith deposit along with your offer. A competitive deposit could be as much as 5% of your bid price to be sure it gets the seller's attention. 6. Don't Lose Your Head Over Price: Just because the market is active doesn't mean you should be willing to pay any amount to get your dream home. Sure, you may have to compromise on one point to gain another, such as offering something more on price or a settlement date that fits the seller's timetable in return for the seller helping on some costs such as paying for some or all points, inspections, closing costs or by conveying personal property. But don't go crazy. Remember, you may have to sell this home one day, and overpaying now will make it harder to get your investment back when you sell. 7. Keep Your Purchase Offer Simple: Make sure your contract is headache-free, not messy or overly cluttered with unnecessary contingencies, especially repairs. Keep contingencies to a minimum while still protecting your interests. Better yet, offer to be helpful, such as by ordering an inspection within 48 hours or be willing to take care of any required local certificates such as smoke detectors or water safety. Be flexible. A buyer who will accommodate a seller's needs is a smart buyer. 8. Don't Go It Alone: What you need most in today's market is experienced professional guidance. As your neighborhood real estate specialists, we can help you get pre-approved, find a prize property, and negotiate the best deal on your next home no matter how heated the competition. We'll help you win the home you dream about! For more information, please visit our website.