Once all of the dust clears, settling down into your very first home is a dream come true. However, you must make sure all your ducks are in a row before you can kick back and enjoy the product of your hard work. As a first-time home buyer, you may not know all the ins and outs of the Alexander real estate market and purchasing a home. We’ll make sure you understand the most crucial aspects of buying a home in
Alexander and give you the tools to find your dream home while meeting your budget.
First-time home buyer checklist
Understand your finances
Sometimes we can get ahead of ourselves window shopping for homes and fall in love with something way out of our price range. Give yourself a reality check and thoughtfully consider what works best for your finances. This will help you choose a home that won’t just give you butterflies in the beginning but will serve you well for years to come, either as an investment opportunity or a long-term family home.
Organize your current finances and make sure you have an ideal debt-to-income to comfortably afford the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, HOA fees, etc. Examine your spending relative to your projected budget – will you be able to maintain your current lifestyle, or will this home cut into your regular expenses? Leave room in your budget for unexpected events or repairs, as they can be common occurrences for first-time buyers.
Find a mortgage lender
Examine your credit score and available cash funds to figure out what loan is feasible for your situation prior to talking to banks and lenders. Many lenders have a pre-approval option, where they will perform a soft credit check and assess other factors, such as your income and assets, to determine the loan they are able to offer you. It is preferable to look around and compare offers so you do not get stuck with unsatisfactory interest rates that can bloat your monthly mortgage payment.
Choose your home type
Whether you’re enamored by a luxurious modern ranch or a Spanish Revival manor, it is crucial to decide which type of home fits your needs now and further along the road. Texas is home to many different architectural styles, ranging from eclectic Neoclassicals to quaint classic Vernacular homes. Luxury residential real estate in Alexander tends to reflect the Mission style, which embraces the grandiosity of Southern charm.
You should also figure out what is important to you in both a property and a neighborhood, like proximity to schools, a spacious garage, or maintaining distance from your neighbors. This will help you decide if the community and architectural styles in Alexander work well with your lifestyle.
Select a real estate agent
Picking the right real estate agent to guide you through Alexander will lead you to the home you belong in. Working with a real estate professional means you’ll have a pair of dedicated eyes on the market looking for a curated selection of homes for you to choose from. Choose an agent that is familiar with the Laredo area and has the connections to secure you a home that reflects your needs, interests, and personality. Having a real estate agent available to conduct the sale keeps negotiations fair and guarantees the transaction to be favorable for you and not just the seller.
Attend a showing
After creating a list of homes, you’d like to explore further, attend their open house or schedule a private showing to get a personalized tour of your potential home. Open houses are a unique opportunity to measure the interest of other local buyers. Private showings let you look at the property during specific times so you can observe things like traffic and evening curb appeal. Stats and features aren’t everything; getting a visual grasp of the home and physically experiencing the space can be what truly sells the home to you. This also gives you an opportunity to ask the listing agent all your burning questions about the property in one sitting.
Submit and negotiate an offer
Depending on the state of the market, you may be up against competing offers that want to move quickly. Therefore, if you think you’ve found the perfect home in Alexander, you should review your options and submit a fast offer. Usually, there will be a period of negotiation, which will be a breeze with the right real estate agent. At this point, you will want to decide which contingencies are non-negotiable for you, like appraisals and inspections. Keep offers reasonable yet enticing, but do not acquiesce to any counteroffers that will leave you in a financially tight spot, especially if those counteroffers exclude certain contingencies.
Close the deal
With a little bit of elbow grease, you and your real estate will come to terms with the seller on a bid that works for every party involved. After the buyer accepts your offer, you can finalize the mortgage agreement with your institution of choice and begin escrow proceedings. Closing the deal typically takes about a month due to appraisals, home inspections, and copious amounts of paperwork. Before signing the closing papers, take a final walk-through and make sure everything is up to par.
Begin your new life in Alexander
Alexander is a lovely community that is a stone’s throw away from downtown Laredo, offering interested buyers a chance to be close to trendy boutiques and shops while enjoying the privacy of a suburban community. Close to Texas A&M and gorgeous Alexander Park, you’ll have access to unmatched education and tranquil views each and every day.
