5 Tips For A Great Home Search

ARE YOU READY TO START YOUR HOME SEARCH?

We Would Love to Help You!

Searching for your new home is one of the most important (if not the most important) part of the buying process. It's important to make sure that you understand the market and that you've explored all of your options. If you follow these 5 steps, you will feel very confident in your decision.

Set Your Price Range
Arguably the most important criteria for your home search is your price range. The best way to determine how much you would like to spend is to speak with a lender, who will tell you how much you can purchase based on how much you will put down and what you want your monthly mortgage payment to be. Once you know your price range, we recommend only viewing properties that you can realistically purchase at or under that price.
Define Your Home’s Criteria
We recommend creating a list of “must haves” and a list of “nice to haves”. When you look at homes online, only consider homes that have 100% of your “must haves” and find homes with as many of your “nice to haves” as you can. “Must Haves” are criteria like size, bedrooms, bathrooms, & year built. “Nice to Haves” are usually things that can be changed like type of flooring, paint colors, and other finish out.
Consider Different Areas & Neighborhoods
We like to cast a wide net at the beginning of your search and look at as many neighborhoods that fit your criteria as possible. We will usually set your geographic criteria based on commute, distance to entertainment, and/or schools. As your search progresses, we can usually take some areas/neighborhoods off of your list and focus only on your favorite neighborhoods.
Organize Your Search Online
It’s great for you to search online on your own, but we will also set up detailed searches for you through the MLS. The MLS is a central database of every listing any agent in Austin has on the market. It gives us a powerful search that allows us to set very detailed criteria and is the most accurate & current source for listings (and sold data) available. We will set up an online portal where you can save favorites & possibilities, make notes, and share all of this with us and/or your partner. This will help us organize your search and be as efficient as possible when we go out to physically look at properties.
Take as Much (or Little) Time as You Need
Most people spend 1-3 months searching for their home, but that’s not a hard rule. We’ve worked with buyers who have picked out their new home in a weekend, and we’ve worked with buyers who have taken 6+ months to find their new home. You want to make sure that you are confident that you understand the market and that you have explored all of your options. As soon as you feel that way, you will be ready to make an offer on the right home.

AFTER YOU’VE FOUND YOUR HOME, IT’S TIME TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE BUYING PROCESS.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BUYING PROCESS

WE WOULD LOVE TO HELP YOU WITH YOUR HOME PURCHASE!

Call 512-877-3648

Or please fill out the short form below & we will contact you via email or phone (however you’d prefer) to help you with your home purchase. We look forward to helping you!