Buying your new home is a serious venture. It can be an absolute pleasure or a massive headache. Your house is not just your home, it is a serious investment in the dwelling, the area and your future.

When buying a home - you're bound to have many questions. For example, "In what area can I find a home that suits my needs?", "How much money will I need to afford the monthly payments?" and "How long will the home buying process take?"

Below are some articles that you might find useful in the home buying process. Please feel free to click on one of the links below to read more.

• Advice for First-Time Buyers
• How to Negotiate with Sellers
• Types of Mortgages
• Getting the Best Mortgage Rates Online
• Surviving Escrows

As the premier real estate company in the Upstate of South Carolina, we are determined to make the home buying process truly a positive and rewarding experience. We are professionals. We know the industry. We know the area. We know the market. Whatever your real estate needs, we are here to help you. And we can provide buyer representation. When buying that perfect home we will help you…
 

 

• Schools
• Shopping
• Work

• Size, style & design
• Location
• Price
• View only homes which meet your criteria
• Multiple Listing service (MLS)
• Websites
• Understand current market conditions
• What is driving the market (Buyer/Seller/Balanced market) Local vs. regional, state and national markets

• Price and earnest money
• Terms of financing
• Possession date
• Contingencies of the sale (Loan approval, Inspection of the property and title, repairs)

• Coordinate the professionals involved in your purchase
  (Lender, Attorney, Accountant, Inspector, Appraiser, Insurance Agent, Listing Agent, Concierge)
• Schedule the time and place for all parties involved in the closing  
• Attend your closing with you to inspect the documents and answer any questions you may have

    Here are Mike's financial ABC's for home buying. There are also lots of personal reasons for choosing the right home such as the right neighborhood and using Mike as the right Real Estate agent. Click on the button to get more info. 
 

Always buy pre-owned !!!
                Mike specializes in selling pre-owned home even though most builders and developers (including the largest ones in this area) will pay 3% to bring a buyer to their properties. Let's say a builder gets $100,000 for a "Galaxy" model. Next year he builds the same Galaxy model, but to stay competitive, he uses a smaller sized lot. The following year he adds less "extras" and still only charges $100,000. The year after that he utilizes cheaper materials to keep prices down. The Galaxy model looks very attractive to the unsuspecting first-time buyer; a nice house for a reasonable cost. But what happens to RESALE VALUE when its time for you to sell? You now understand that the builder is your competitor and you can't compete. Why would someone want to buy your house when a new one is available at a smaller price? Not to mention your competition from other sellers who have to ask a discounted price. It's a vicious circle that you can't win at....

    The exception is when a builder is "closing-out", where there will be no future competition from this builder (or others in the immediate vicinity).
Of course, there are other advantages in buying pre-owned homes:

• A seller will often include personal property like window treatments, fans and fixtures, pool equipment, hurricane shutters, etc.
• Also, you are usually buying an "established" neighborhood that has community support, a proven school system, and larger, lusher landscaping.
• These items all add up to greater resale value!
• Keep in mind that single family homes (with yards!) appreciate at the best rate, town homes are next best, and condos are last.

Buy a home with the lowest down payment that you can! 
    There are many reasons for this, but the most important ones concern the "Boom or Bust" scenarios. In a Boom period of rapidly escalating prices, you are guaranteed greater profits by the principal of LEVERAGE. By using other people's money, your return on equity is much greater than had you paid cash. In a Bust period of declining prices, the answer is obvious; it's much easier to "walk-away" from a small down payment than it is from a larger deposit.
    Another important reason to consider is income taxes:

• The smaller the down payment, the larger the mortgage interest payments that are entirely tax-deductible It's really the only "good" deduction the average person has.
• Think about it...Uncle Sam is subsidizing the best investment you'll probably ever make!!.
• Another reason for using a small down payment is also pretty obvious - you'll have more money left for other investments.
• Maybe another house with even greater tax savings (depreciation and more!), or maybe mutual funds or IRA's or whatever you may consider for diversification.
• A total sum of $5000 can buy you a $100,000 home, especially if you're a first-time buyer. Many people rent a home not knowing they can own with just a little bit more than first, last, and security.

Choose a smaller to medium sized home in the best neighborhood that you can possibly afford. 
    In other words, NEVER buy the "biggest house on the block". Recall the age-old axiom of Real Estate that says your main consideration should be three things: location, location, location.
I agree with this, but I take it one step further; the better the area, the better the appreciation except for the largest homes in an "average" neighborhood. Your chance for profit is much better in a smaller to medium home in a good area!