What is the very first step in buying a home?

Should you contact a real estate agent as your very first step in the process?

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

the very first step should be figuring out what you can afford

I would play around on line with a mortgage calulator and sit down with a mortgage banker to take about what you will need to get a loan

then once you know about how much you can spend- then meet with a real estate agent

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

1 - contact mortgage companies to determine the loan amount that you qualify for

2 - search for homes in your price range online and visit open houses

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

Make an appointment with the Long Island housing Partnership. It's a free service and they explain the home buying process and tell you what you can afford.

http://www.lihp.org/

ETA: The person we met with was Lynn Law

Message edited 3/30/2009 3:36:08 PM.

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

I am sure everyone has a different formula, but basically we

1) decided it was time
2) looked at our finances and saved
3) went online and did one of those "how much house can you afford" tests so see what they said
4) took that number and chopped about 1k off of it
5) started going to Open Houses, to see what was out there and feel out realtors.

we looked in a few different areas of NY before deciding on county. from there, we looked at a few different towns/nabes.

we picked the agent one of the Open Houses we went to (ended up being for the home we ended up purchases)

this worked for us. but really take the time to figure out how much you are willing to pay out every month towards you home. I would'nt even look before doing that.

happy hunting!

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

Everyone has given you good advice!

Determining what you can afford by looking at your own finances (rather than just shopping based on whatever the bank approves you for) is an important first step. We were approved for far more than we were comfortable spending!

Having a specific area in mind and figuring out any "must haves" will help narrow the search.

Starting out online and with open houses is a good idea too. I found that having a realtor was important though because often the houses were already in contract by the time we noticed them online, and with our house she knew it was going on the market before it even hit the websites, so we were the first ones in to see it!

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

Okay, so we have a ways to go. I'm still in grad school in MD, so this is after we move back to NY. The problem is, I have no idea what our household income will be then. DH will probably get a better paying job than he has now, and my next job will definitely be higher paying because grad school pays peanuts. So I guess we'll have to be settled in NY working for maybe a year or so and then check back with our finances.

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

apparently this website has been blanked out in my prior posts probably because of how it sheds light on information you otherwise have to pay for, but i feel it's great information and should be shared with the masses, so without the spaces it's

http://www.l o n g i s l a n d b u b b l e . c o m /sheeplesguide.html

great things to know when your first starting out in the home buying game.

Re: What is the very first step in buying a home?

Figure out how much income you have each month, then make a list of bills: student loans, car payments, cc debt, child support, etc. Discuss with your DH how much you're willing/able to spend monthly on housing expenses. Keep this # in mind.

I agree with the PP that told you to play with a mortgage calculator (the one on Prudential Doughlas Elliman is great!)

Get a free copy of your credit report, and see where you stand.

Meet with a bank to get preapproved. You may get preapproved for way more than you're willing to spend.

Start figuring out neighborhoods you'd like to live in. Go to open houses. Then call an RE.

Good luck!