Are you finally thinking about making that dream of purchasing your first home in Denver become a reality? The transition from renting to buying a house is one of the most exciting times in your life. You’re building equity, you’ve got freedom to remodel, and you can find a house that fits perfectly with you and your lifestyle.
However, despite the all the beauties of purchasing your first house, the whole experience can really be quite intimidating. But don’t let this discourage you. With a little help, you’ll be joining the league of Denver homeowners in no time.
Every new real estate purchase comes with its fair share of complexities, and you don’t need to know all of their ins and outs. In fact, since you’re looking into your first home, there is probably a whole lot that you don’t know. That’s okay. Your real estate agent is going to help you every step of the way.
That being said, there are plenty of essentials that you can start thinking about now. This guide will take you by the hand and walk you through four of the most essential steps to follow as a first-time home buyer in Denver.
Obtain Evidence of Real Estate Financing
To ensure you have a smooth home purchasing process in Denver, you want to show a prospective seller that you can afford the house. You will either need to prove that you have enough cash to buy the house (a rarity indeed!), or that you can easily get a mortgage loan.
To do this, you can acquire a letter from your bank confirming that you have enough funds in your account or present a loan pre-approval form from a respected lending agency. This will help you win the confidence of the home seller. It’s also great to roughly know the types of houses you can afford before you start searching for one. Wouldn’t it be disappointing if you spent weeks looking at $400,000 homes only to discover that you can only really manage a $250,000 loan?
List Your Housing Needs
Brainstorming exactly what type of home you want to live in is perhaps the most important step to buying a home in Denver. You’re making a decision that could last ten, twenty, thirty years, or more – depending on whether you’re looking for a starter home or a forever home.
Prepare a list that points out all those features you would love to have in a new home. Think of the things you didn’t like about past living arrangements (such as a cramped galley kitchen), and all of the elements of your favorite houses. By identifying your likes and dislikes, you can create a clear list of the types of homes you’ll want to look at. Here are a few examples of what might go on your list:
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Yard size
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Basement (finished or unfinished)
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Number of bedrooms
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Living room arrangement
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Open or closed floor plan
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Kitchen size
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Trees, shrubs, and other landscaping considerations.
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School district
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Garage needs
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Nearby shopping, playgrounds, etc.
Nowadays, homes are listed all over the internet on various sites like Zillow and Realtor.com just to name a few. Here at EZ Agents we specialize in working with buyers that prefer to search and find their own homes online. We help you as the buyer through all of the rest, and in turn provide you a 50% commission rebate! As far as we know, there is no better deal in Colorado for home buyers!
Work with an Experienced Full-time Real Estate Agent
If you would like to save yourself some money, and quite a few headaches, you should work with an experienced realtor when buying your first home in Denver. As a buyer’s agent, we receive our commission from the seller – not from you. In fact, in addition to providing a commission rebate to you EZ Agents has no hidden costs – it costs you as the buyer nothing to work with us! So, you’ve really got everything to gain and nothing to lose.
By working exclusively with buyers and focusing only on contract to close (rather than showing homes) our real estate agents know every step of the process like the back of their hand—from securing a loan to finding any special first-time homeowner credits you may be entitled to in the state of Denver.
Submit a Home Purchase Offer!
Once you have your pre-approval from a lender and have found the house you want to buy the next step is submitting the offer! For any first-time home buyer this can be quite exciting. The best thing to do is speak with your agent and determine a fair offer price. This can be determined by considering quite a few things: the recent selling price of comparable homes, competition (are there other offers on the table?), and of course the price that you are comfortable paying – just to name a few. A good agent will work through this with you.
Obtain Facilitate a Professional Property Inspection
To ensure that there are no hidden defects in the property, you must invest in a professional home inspection service. This will turn up potential issues with critical elements like electrical work, mold, plumbing, roofing, and insulation. If there are serious issues, an inspection might help you avoid buying a home that would be more hassle than it’s worth. Often times The inspection might turn up minor repairs that you can ask the seller to take care of before closing.
Navigate the Real Estate Deal
In addition to submitting and negotiating the terms the offer and getting an inspection, there are also numerous other moving parts, such as an appraisal, appraisal objection, conditional loan deadlines, and loads of other dates and deadlines to be met. Having an experienced buyer’s agent on your side will make sure the entire process is a smooth one from start to finish.
Time to Close
The process of searching for your home is full of ups and downs, as well as highs and lows. It’s exciting, intimidating, life changing, and stressful all at the same time. But nothing compares to sitting down at closing. Before you join the ranks of Denver homeowners, you and the seller will sign various documents, and every new signature or initialing brings you one step closer to finally purchasing your first home in Denver.
By following the essential steps listed in this guide, as well as the sage advice of your professional real estate agent, you’ll be closing on your new home in no time. If you’ve still got questions about the home buying process, or if you’re just looking for the easiest way to get started, feel free to give EZ Agents a call at (720) 687-3033 or fill out our easy online contact form. Consultations are always free, and we are here to help you no matter what stage of the home buying process you are at.