If you’re a first-time buyer, you’d be excused for looking for any market statistic that will offer a positive outlook.
Buying your first property is a wonderful time in your life, but it can come with the challenges of finding the right property and making sure you beat other buyers to the prize.
As we’ve seen across America in the past 12 months, the number of sellers in the market has fallen because they’re afraid mortgage costs have affected the value of their properties.
Keeping this in mind, it’s never been more important for America to keep building new homes to meet the burgeoning market of would-be home buyers.
The US Census Bureau has reported a rise in new housing starts, showing this sector of the market has turned the corner.
Single‐family housing starts in July came in at a rate of 983,000, which was 6.7% over the revised June figure of 921,000.
Single-family permits increased (+0.6%) to 930,000 in July, and multi-family permits came in at 464,000. This is encouraging news while much of America goes through a historic shortage of properties available on the market.
If you are looking to buy your first home, these tips may be helpful.
Keep it real
The shortage of supply in homes is pushing prices higher in some areas. That can be frustrating, but you need to stick to your budget. You should not forget to add to your calculation costs such as property taxes, insurance, maintenance and utilities.
Be ready
A pre-approved mortgage is essential when home-hunting for an apartment or house. It will give you a spending limit, enable you to respond to an opportunity and place an offer with confidence.
Shopping list
Know what you want. Determine the minimum number of bedrooms and space you will accept. This will focus your search and make you more confident about making an offer when a property ticks all your boxes.
Value equation
Check-out neighborhood price trends. You should purchase property that will increase in value over the medium to long term. The development of new roads, trains or other infrastructure can accelerate the value of your investment.
Street smart
Research the neighborhood. You want to be confident you’re moving into somewhere safe and with a good reputation for low crime rates. Your proximity to schools, employment and other services are important factors, too.
Noise pollution
Moving to a property that suffers traffic or aircraft noise can be stressful. Visit a target property at various times of the day to gauge whether you’ll be happy with outside noise levels. If you’re looking at apartments, ensure there’s good internal noise insulation because you don’t want to hear everything your neighbors do.
Expert advice
If you partner with an agent, they’ll help you avoid the traps and errors when buying a first property. And for property inspections, ensure you hire a reputable contractor.