There's No Place Like Your Place Blog

Here are a few helpful things for buyers to remember to bring along in your "Buyer's Toolkit"

when shopping for a home:

•  Your Buyer's Agent:  In my opinion, nothing can be more valuable when shopping for your home than a great buyer's agent who is working on YOUR behalf. 

• A Notebook: To keep detailed notes of the properties you visit.  Trust me, if you start to see more than 4 that day, they will all start to run together!

• Measurements of any furniture that is definitely moving to the home with you:  OK...this applies to your baby grand piano, your heirloom hutch, your prized 56" plasma TV, your California King Size bed, or any other piece that just HAS to fit in the home.   It just makes sense to be able to measure while you are there on the first visit.

• Tape Measure:  For obvious reasons-see above:-)

• Flashlight:  Handy for crawl spaces or any dark areas and especially handy these days when there are so many foreclosure and bank owned properties that may have utilities turned off.

• Pre-Approval:  This should really be the first step for any well informed and serious buyer.  Not only does it help you in negotiations and assist you to act quickly when you find the right property, but it also forces you to plan, in advance, which price range is comfortable for you so you shop IN that range from the beginning.  Once you see higher priced properties than you are comfortable paying for, it is very difficult to go DOWN in price range.  Nothing looks as good then as those more expensive properties you were looking at and are now tempted to stretch your budget and buy.

• A Relative:  OK.....this is not a MUST, but it IS necessary if there is someone whose opinion you value and whom you definitely want to view the property before you put in an offer.  Sometimes we want the valued opinion of a friend or relative, which is completely understandable, but they should also see the properties that were eliminated, not just your favorite.  It is too easy to walk in the "best" house and start to point out all of the negatives if you have not seen the properties that were not chosen.  Shopping for a home is a process of elimination, of choosing the home that has the MOST of the features and qualities that are important to you.  This is especially important for first time buyers who may be in a lower price range where the properties may need some work.  I have seen the look of disappointment on buyer's faces too often where after we have looked at 10-15 homes and they have found one that is above the rest and has the most value in their price range, only to have a relative or friend come in to see it and just point out all of the negatives.  The other reason is that, even in this buyer's market, you sometimes have to move quickly for the best properties, and the delay in your offer so you can have somebody come back to see it first may be a big enough delay that another buyer beats you to it!

• A List:  Keep a list with you of what you MUST have and what you would LIKE TO have in a home.  Home shopping can be emotional and impulsive, and this can just help to keep you grounded enough to keep your eye on what is truly important to you in a property.

• An Open Mind:  This market has so many great opportunities for any buyer who is ready to purchase now.  It can almost even be too many choices that sometimes it is overwhelming! So besides referring to your MUST HAVE list, have an open mind for properties that have potential but may not look like a polished gem today.  Sometimes these homes can give you the greatest opportunity to build equity and appreciation a few years down the road, when you are ready to go out with your Buyer's Agent again to look for a bigger home!

• Your "Poker Face":  It's hard to contain your joy when you walk through a home that feels "just right".  It is a very exciting moment but it is best to keep that emotion between yourself and your Buyer's Agent, not the sellers!  So keep your "poker faces" on if they are home and listening or watching your reactions to their home.  Although having appreciation, consideration and respect for the sellers and their home goes without saying, you do not have to gush about how much you love it IN FRONT OF THEM!  It just may cost you some money when your Buyer's Agent is trying to negotiate the best offer for you if the seller's know you are "in love"!

Try not to "stalk" the house, either before or while negotiating an offer, either.  Although it may be prudent to drive through the area on some different dates and times, and maybe even talk to the neighbors if you have questions on the area, if you are driving by over and over, believe me...if the sellers do not see you themselves, the neighbors will tell them and they again will know you are "in love"!  It is OK to feel this way, of course, because it is so exciting to have found the right home, but just keep your "poker face" on until the negotiations are over.If you are not already working with a Buyer's Representative in Northern Illinois that is working in YOUR best interests, please feel free to contact me:-)

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If I can be of assistance to you, please do not hesitate to call or email me.  It will be my pleasure!  By the way, if you know of someone that could benefit from my high level of service, please call or email me with their name and daytime phone number and I will make sure to follow up and take great care of them.  I am grateful to you thar my business keeps growing from your referrals. 

My Direct Number At The Office Is 847.516.6760