Avoid the Most Common Buying Mistakes

Shopping for a new home is an emotional and time consuming experience. There are countless pit-falls for the unsuspecting, inexperienced buyers. Inexperienced buyers tend to get caught up in the excitement of buying a new home and overlook some important details of the home buying process.  Their home purchase turns into an expensive learning experience.  This doesn't have to be the case with you.  Read on to discover what the most common buyer errors are in the Boise area:

Placing an offer without sufficient information
What price do you offer a seller? How do you know a home is not over-priced?  Unless you have conducted research on the market and evaluated comparable homes, you could lose thousands of dollars.  Before you make any offer, be sure you have market data to back up your decision.  A home carries too big a price tag to rely on gut feelings.  A professional Realtor®, such as myself, can offer an unbiased opinion on the value of a home.  They can evaluate market and neighborhood conditions and search for comparable homes that have sold recently.  Remember, the market value of a home is determined by how much sellers are actually getting for comparable homes; not how much they are asking.  If you find a home that is priced below the rest of the homes in a neighborhood, it could mean that it is a bargain.  It could also just mean that all the other houses are overpriced.  A qualified Realtor® can help you make that call. 

Calling The Agent On The Yard Sign
When an inexperienced buyer sees a home with a "For Sale" sign in the front yard and they are interested, the typical response is to dial the phone number listed on the sign.  This seems reasonable.  After all, isn't that why the sign is there?  While it seems reasonable to dial the number on the sign, this is perhaps the single biggest mistake that inexperienced buyers make.   The phone number on the sign belongs to the listing agent and the listing agent represents the seller.  If you dial that number and ask the listing agent questions about the home, they are contractually bound to share (with the seller) any information they obtain from you.  For the very "talkative" types, this can be detrimental.  Buyers have a tendency to divulge information that could be used as leverage against them when negotiating the purchase of a home with a seller.  They typically divulge this information without even realizing it either.  It is much better to retain the services of a Realtor® to act as your representative and let them deal with the listing agent.  Besides, their services will typically not cost you anything!  They normally collect their commission from the seller, not the buyer.

Buying The Home Through The Listing Agent
This mistake is a continuation on calling the agent on the yard sign.  Far too many buyers believe that if they purchase a home through the agent that has it listed, they will save money.  If you purchase a home through the listing agent, there are two scenarios:  one is bad; the other is worse.  In the first scenario, the listing agent represents both the buyer and the seller.  This is known as a dual agency.  The problem with dual agency is that the agent can not favor one party over the other.  How can you get the seller the most possible money while at the same time get the buyer the best possible deal?  The two contradict each other.  In scenario #2, the buyer purchases the property through the listing agent, but has no representation at all.  The buyer basically signs a waiver on the purchase and sale agreement that acknowledges they are not being represented.  The real winner in either of these scenarios is the listing agent.  Since they procured the buyer in either scenario, they get to keep all of the commission.  This is commonly referred to as double dipping or double ending.  It's great for the listing agent, but not so good for the buyer.  A much wiser choice is to retain the services of a Realtor® to represent you and you alone.  Again, using a Realtor as your representative will not cost you anything. 

Not planning for additional purchase costs
The true purchase cost of a home is more than the sales price.  Besides the funds for the purchase of a home, you’ll need funds for items such as loan fees, insurance, legal fees, surveys, inspections, home owner association transfers, etc.  These closing costs can really add up.  A good Realtor® can negotiate some fees away and may be able to find creative ways to off-set the others.

Making an emotional purchase decision
It is one thing to make an emotional, impulsive purchase at the grocery store check-out counter.  It is quite another to make an emotional purchase decision about a home.  Unfortunately, if you are not careful, you can get caught up in the emotion of the home buying process.  Once, a buyer finds a home they like, they tend to fixate on that home and "rationalize" it.  They will rationalize the price, the location, the features, etc.  Remember, at any given time, there are literally thousands of homes for sale in the greater Boise area.  The odds are very good that there is more than one that will meet your needs!