Getting your Home Hunting Ducks in a Row

Say you're shopping for your first/next home. Ideally you are looking for the right property, in a fine neighbourhood and within the price range you can afford. Well, below are a few tips for tasks you should follow -minimum- to get started:

• A property wish list. What does your ideal home look like? How many bedrooms does it have to have? Do you require a spacious rec room? A large deck for entertaining? A pool? A view? Write your wish list down on paper.
• A neighbourhood wishlist. Where you live is just as important as what you live in. What qualities are you looking for in your ideal neighbourhood? Parks, Recreation facilities? Trails? Walking Distance to outstanding schools? Closer to work?
• A pre-approved mortgage. Getting the financing handled up front takes the guesswork out of what you can afford. Home sellers will also take any offer you make more seriously, especially when you instruct your agent to attach a pre-approval letter from the lender to the offer.
• Realistic expectations. 99.9% of homes sell at or near the current market value. So don't expect to find out of the ordinary bargains, that noone else noticed. Sure, markets, and therefore market values go up and down in prices, but at any given time a sale will happen at or near market value at that time.

Looking for more advice on findin your next home? Call our team today and we will be happy to lend you a hand.