Archive for November, 2007

Steps in Buying a House

Thursday, November 15th, 2007

#1 Decide who is going on title of the house (important when you are purchasing a house with anyone other than your spouse or common law partner)

#2 Be pre-approved by a bank or a mobile mortgage specialist-online mortgage calculators can only do so much and a bank or other mortgage professional will be able to determine EXACTLY what you can afford to pay, so utilize their expertise…it is free after all!

#3 After you have met with a bank and have your limit, meet with me and I will go through the process and show you what is available in your range. We will discuss things such as what features you want in a property (what you can and can not live without), which area you would like to live in the city, importance of schools, and what price range you are comfortable with.

#4 Now that you know what you want and what you can spend, that is when it is time to start previewing properties and not until then. It is disheartening for people who think their credit is better than it actually is and they start looking at upper ranges of properties just to find out that they cannot afford this property. It is not a good use of time or energy, so don’t get ahead of yourself! Once you have your price limit I will start sending you listings and you can weed through those online or verbally and we can narrow it down from there and THEN get out and start looking.

#5 Start looking! But give yourself limits and guidelines and take notes as, after a couple of houses you will forget which one had which feature or special thing that stands out. Trust your gut and if it feels right, go for it! Remember, it may not have exactly everything that you like, even if you built your own home it could take you 3 or more times to get it completely right, but some things are quick cosmetic fixes and you have to decide what you can do and what you will not do.

#6 Now is the time to put in the offer. Your agent will help you determine if the asking price is fair or, if negotiating, how much is fair to negotiate and your agent should let you know that offering too low may offend the vendor and you don’t want to risk that as they will continue to think you are trying to take from them. Don’t wait a few days or a week, or even one day if you think it is the right property. Act fast as someone may beat you to the punch and you may be very disappointed and not find something you like again for a long time. The market generally goes up as well so you may even end up paying MORE than what the first one was listed for due to the market changes and having to wait to find something else.

As always if you have any questions please feel free to contact me at karicalder@sasktel.net or visit my Saskatoon real estate website.

Kari Calder
Saskatoon Real Estate Agent
Century 21 Conexus Realty Ltd.
www.karicalder.com

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Waiting Until Spring to Buy?

Wednesday, November 14th, 2007

I know most people don’t want to move in the winter, however your best chance of getting a house without going into a bidding war is to buy in the next few months. Sellers are more motivated as the market is a bit slower and they may be able to work with your possession date…or at least meet you half way. You are currently seeing houses selling for list price or marginally above or below and only small competitions if any (sometimes 2 offers will come in on the same property at a close enough time that gives the sellers the ability to counter offer one of them and to have a fall back option if possible). Some houses are over priced still therefore you do see a larger variation from list price to sale price, but this is generally not the case. Most people predict the Saskatoon real estate market will take off again in the spring, but most also doubt it will rise to the extent it did last year as our wages cannot sustain that big of a jump again. If you want to avoid multiple offers and try to get a good house before the competition, get started now! It may take awhile to find the right house, but you don’t want to wait yourself out of a great house so get going sooner than later. Many people had regrets due to last winter/early spring as they thought they would wait and now they can’t afford to buy a house at all.

If you have any questions about the Saskatoon real estate market please feel free to contact me at anytime!

Kari Calder
Saskatoon Real Estate Agent
Century 21 Conexus Realty Ltd.
www.karicalder.com

Posted in Buyers, Saskatoon, Saskatoon Real Estate | No Comments »