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Buy Now to Get the Tax Credit!

Mar19
2010
Leave a Comment Written by Shanna

Home buyers, there’s still time to lock in a home purchase before the federal tax credit’s April 30 deadline. True, you won’t have several more months to look around, but you will have a pretty big incentive sweetening the deal if you don’t wait.

Here’s how to find and buy the home of your dreams fast.

1. GET PREQUALIFIED FOR A MORTGAGE.
No sense visiting homes if you can’t afford them. Getting prequalified for a mortgage lets you know exactly what you can or can’t afford to spend. Then you’re ready to search. Plus, this will make sellers more comfortable with accepting an offer from you, and it will make the process faster once your offer is accepted.

2. SEARCH ONLINE.
Hands down, the fastest way to find your next home is by researching listings online. Rather than spending days at a time touring different properties, you can point and click your way through hundreds of homes in one evening. Go to BuyOwner.com now to search for for-sale-by-owner residences in your price range!

3. NARROW DOWN RESULTS & GO VISIT.
After you’ve done your online research, looking at what’s available and comparing prices, narrow down the list of possibilities. Call Buy Owner sellers directly (eliminate the middle man by buying FSBO!) and schedule showings. When you visit, know what questions to ask, and know what you’re prepared to offer.

4. MAKE AN OFFER.
Because you’ve already been preapproved for a loan and because you’ve researched other for-sale properties, you are well-prepared to make an offer on a home. For more information on this step, see Buy Owner Blog article, “Making an Offer.”

And voila! Assuming the paperwork all goes through on time, you’re set to qualify for the tax credit, move into your new home and begin enjoying life in it!

Posted in Buying Tips, Tips and Ideas - Tagged federal tax credit, fsbo home buying, home buying, tax credit
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Top 10 Tips for Buying Vacant Land

Feb17
2009
Leave a Comment Written by Alicia

vacant-land

Thinking of building your dream home on vacant land? There are certain things that you must consider. More thought goes into the purchase of land than the purchase of a home. Here are 10 tips to know before buying land.

1. When looking for land, make sure you know what your plans are before purchasing it. This will help you imagine where you will put the house, barn, driveway, etc.

2. Know that you need permission to build on vacant land. Get your building permit and find out what rules you must follow, like how close you can build to a river.

3. If you plan on building a house on the land, check with utility companies to see if gas and electric are available for this land.

4. Find out if public water is available to this land. If not, you will need to fit a well system into your budget.

5. Also find out if public sewer lines can manage your land. If not, you will also need to fit a septic system into your budget.

6. Check the weather history in this area to find out if it deals with lots of flooding, tornados, etc. This will help you make smart building decisions.

7. Check with the local city government to find out what the future building plans are for this area. If a major expressway is in the works, you may decide not to purchase the land. It’s all about location!

8. Consider your everyday habits. Are you on a cell phone a lot? Find out if you get service in this area. You may need to adjust your lifestyle in numerous ways.

9. Add up all of the costs that you will face. Once you purchase the land, figure out how much it will cost to build your dream house. You don’t want to find yourself in a lifetime of debt.

10. After purchasing the land, consider fencing it, great for keeping animals, hosting parties or enjoying the privacy of your property!

Posted in Buying Tips, Tips and Ideas - Tagged buying buy owner, buying vacant land, how to buy vacant land, vacant land
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Newlywed Home-Buying 101

Aug05
2008
3 Comments Written by Alicia

newly married With wedding season coming to an end, many newly wedded couples are finding themselves with the question of where to live next. Whether they are coming from two separate homes or from a shared apartment, most couples want to make a significant improvement to correspond with the important change they just made in their lives. If you find yourself in this category, here are some tips in helping you find your very first home as a married couple.

DECIDING WHERE TO LIVE

First of all, you must decide, preferably before the wedding bells sound, what kind of home you want to move into. An apartment costs significantly less than a home, but you will be paying rent forever with no benefits. If you rent a house from landlords, you still have the luxury of living in a house without the hassle of dealing with problems that occur within the house. But again, you never have the chance to call it your own. (Link to buying first home) Depending on your annual income as a couple, your future plans and your monthly expenses, this is a decision you will need to reach together. Take your time. It’s a big one.

THINKING ABOUT BUYING A HOME

If you do decide to buy a home, there are steps that you may not be aware of. The obvious first step is to decide what area you would like to live in. Do you want to surround yourself with other young couples? Do you want children around incase you decide to start a family? If you don’t look into this major detail, you may accidentally find yourself living in a retirement community.

Also, check out the town. If you have to wake up early for work, chances are you don’t want to live by a loud airport or train track. If you commute to work, see how conveniently located the interstates are. If entertainment is what you seek, check your proximity to shopping malls, grocery stores, restaurants, golf courses, nature parks or whatever interests you most. If you plan on owning a pet someday, look to see if there are sidewalk paths. When starting a life together, you want to notice more than how impressive the house looks.

PREPARING TO BUY A HOME

Once you find the area you want to live in, start looking at the homes around there to see price ranges. Once you know what you’re dealing with, you can sit down together and talk finances. Hopefully you have already discussed the exact bills that you each pay per month, so you have an idea of the level of income you have coming in together. Take into account your phone bills, insurance costs, car payments, etc. Take a trip to the grocery store together to figure out what you both like to eat, so you can estimate how much these trips will cost. Though you’ve been dealing with groceries and bills for what seems like forever, it all might change when considering another person in your plans. Once you come up with a budget you’re willing to spend, look for houses close to that budget. If you need a loan to help you out, make sure you get preapproved for one.

FINDING A HOME TO BUY

Start looking around together by going through advertisements on BuyOwner.com. Take tours of homes. Look online. You’ll start realizing what’s most important for you two to have. Are tornadoes common in your area? You probably want to make sure your home provides a basement. Do you already have a lot to store? Look for a house with an attic. Have you grown up your whole life with a pool and cannot possibly imagine life without one? Okay, well now you know. It’s important to consider the little things too. Do you own a lot of high-tech electronics? Check to see how many electrical plugs are available. Try to think of what’s most important to you two. If you disagree, compromise. You may not find everything you dreamt of just yet.

BUYING A HOME

Once you find the affordable home that satisfies you, have it inspected. Don’t save the money to not have this done. You’ll be sorry down the road when you find something terribly, unexpectedly wrong. If the house still turns out okay, decide how much to put down on the house. Again, go over finances for the next several months so you don’t suddenly find your bank account empty. Then, pay a down payment. The house is yours!

After that, the to-do list is not quite completed. Decide what homeowners insurance to obtain. Consider casualties, such as fires, flooding and wind damage; liability, which protects you against lawsuits from people injure themselves on your property; and personal property, which includes the protection for the items inside your home. Decide exactly what you want, and make sure that is what you obtain.

MOVING TO YOUR NEW HOME

Make plans with a moving company. Know exactly when to have them show up, how much space you’ll need for your stuff and what time they can arrive at your new home. If they need to pick up from two separate homes, make sure they know that. Good communication with the moving company is vital. They have full responsibility of everything you own.

Arrange for when to turn on the utilities in your new home. Make address changes. Start packing. Don’t pack everything you’ve ever owned. Figure out what you each own and whose you’ll take with you. If you can’t decide whether you should bring something, try to imagine exactly where you’d put it in the house. Don’t think about what you need to buy yet. You’ll just end up flustered and more confused. Saying goodbye to sentimental objects will be hard, but unpacking at your new home will later be a breeze.

Congratulations! You did it! Now that the hardest part is over, work on sharing your space with the person you love.

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Posted in Tips and Ideas - Tagged buy owner, buying a fsbo home, buying a home, buying a home together, buying by owner, buying your first home, home buying, home ownership, newly married real estate, newlywed real estate, newlyweds, real estate 101, your first place
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Should You Buy a Second Home?

Jun20
2008
1 Comment Written by Shanna

We Have a Vacation Home!

Imagine. Summer vacations and weekend getaways to your home away from home, where you can come and go as you like, with anyone you’d like, whenever you’d like. Picture yourself escaping from it all to the peace and privacy of your second home, where you don’t deal with crowds or annoyances or no vacancies.

These are the dreams of [second] home ownership.

In today’s society, owning a second property, whether for investment or vacation purposes (or both) is growing more and more popular. There are a lot of benefits, from convenience and comfort to financial equity and savvy savings.

How can you know if you should take the plunge? And what issues are worth investigating before you dive into a new mortgage?

Step One: Be informed about the market.

Learn everything you can about the location of your potential purchase. Is it a tourist area? What are home sales like? Does the area tend to appreciate much? A good buyer is an informed buyer, so do your homework.

Also, if you’re looking to purchase mainly for the investment opportunity (aka, resale value), you’ll want to buy in a hot area, where there is strong demand. Be on the lookout in communities near popular attractions or with great vacation weather.

Step Two: Know what you can afford.

The same rules that apply to buying your first home come into play here. Talk with qualified mortgage professionals at Buy Owner’s authorized mortgage company, Guaranteed Rate. Then, armed with the knowledge of what you can spend, you’ll be able to decide what you want to spend.

Step Three: Evaluate your needs.

How often do you vacation, and what’s your typical vacation budget like for a given year? Will buying a second home prevent you from alternative trips, and is that OK? What do you want from this purchase–a weekend getaway, a summer cabin or a rental property? Crunching some numbers and working through different scenarios can make all the difference in how confident you feel about going forward.

After you’ve researched and evaluated the market and your needs, if you’re ready to buy, what should you do?

Head over to Buyowner.com to search through the best of the for-sale-by-owner listings available! Whether you want an oceanfront condo or a rural country estate, Buy Owner has it all!

Go browse advertisements now!

Posted in Buying Tips, General Information, Tips and Ideas - Tagged buying a new home, buying fsbo, home ownership, owning your own home, real estate investing, seasonal home, second home, vacation home
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About the BuyOwner.com Blog

Welcome to the BuyOwner.com Blog, your source for regularly updated market information!

Founded in 1984, BuyOwner.com® is the leading provider of real estate marketing services. We pioneered the "For Sale by Owner" (FSBO) market, which today represents over 20 percent of all residential real estate transactions.

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