Ever make a purchase that just didn’t work out? With most retail items, you can return the product to the store for an exchange or refund. No problem. But when you buy a home, you’re making the most expensive purchase of your life, with no takebacks. (Except for selling the home, which may not be feasible early in your ownership.)
As homes and mortgages have become more expensive, buyer’s remorse has affected more home buyers. According to a 2024 survey by Clever, 82% of recent home buyers had regrets about their purchase. The top regrets included:
- Paying too much for the home
- Having too high of an interest rate
- Buying a home that needed more repair and maintenance than expected
- Having mortgage payments that caused financial strain
What the survey doesn’t tell us, is whether or not these buyers had their own real estate agents. Or how well-prepared they were for the market, or for home buying in general. At a glace, it appears many of them may have entered the market without having a mortgage pre-approval in hand.
A mortgage pre-approval is absolutely essential in today’s real estate market. Without it, you’re crossing your fingers for luck. Too many buyers skip the pre-approval and focus on the mortgage after finding their dream home and/or writing an offer. At that point, it’s difficult to step back and look at the numbers objectively. The time to figure out what you qualify for, and what payment amount would be comfortable, is before you look at homes for sale.
The same goes for finding your real estate agent. Too many buyers do the home search by themselves, and then contact the listing agent when they find a home they like. The listing agent’s job is to get the highest price and best possible terms for the seller. As a buyer, if you do not have an agent of your own, you will end up paying more than you need to. While possibly giving up important contingencies as well, such as the right to a home inspection.
A good buyer’s agent will educate you about the home buying process, and about the local market. They will refer you to local, reliable lenders who will explain your mortgage options. When you work with the right real estate agent, you get the benefit of their experience, plus access to their local network of professionals. You get someone on your side who will help you find the ideal home, and walk you through the process of making an offer, performing your due diligence, and preparing for closing.
This is what we’re all about at StartingPoint Realty!
StartingPoint Realty – serving Chicagoland home buyers since 2004!
StartingPoint Realty proudly serves home buyers throughout the entire Chicago area. We offer free, first-time home buyer seminars every month! Contact us for your free home buying consultation!
Ryan Gable Broker/CEO Starting Point Realty
Phone: 847.348.1154
Email: RyanGable@startingpointrealty.com
https://startingpointrealty.com/
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