Barriers to Buying Southern NH Real Estate

Buying a new home takes a lot of preparation. Without knowing what you are walking in to, you are bound to run into road blocks. A good Southern New Hampshire real estate agent can help you understand the intricacies involved in purchasing your new home. Some of the most common problems that buyers run into are avoidable.

Buying the Best is Nice… but

If you’re looking at the most expensive house in the neighborhood, in the city or in the state, you’re asking for problems.  The risks involved for your lender make it more difficult to get a mortgage: It's harder for appraisers to justify the sales price for the most expensive home; if it's already been over-improved, there's no room to increase the value aside from just a general increase in market value over time; and therefore, if anything changes in your lifestyle within the first 5 to 7 years of ownership, it's likely to be hard to sell or refinance to avoid foreclosure.

If you must have the most expensive home, pay the most you can as a down payment.  That will lower the risk and make it more likely your loan will be approved.  If you can't afford a big down payment, you’re probably looking at a formidable roadblock to a loan.

Being Unprepared

Walking into a mortgage lender unprepared is like shooting yourself in the foot - it's going to take you a lot longer to get where you want to go! So have your financial information in hand. If there are any problems with your credit, be prepared to explain them. Have a good budget including the estimated new mortgage to show you can handle the loan.  Don't make the kind of mistakes that got other buyers in trouble when the real estate 'bubble' deflated.  Think like a Boy Scout and be prepared.


Not Taking All Costs into Consideration

A big mistake many prospective home buyers make is not realizing there are many costs associated with buying Southern NH real estate besides just a new mortgage. There are closing costs, legal costs, insurance costs, property taxes and deed and recording fees.   All of these have an impact on your wallet and most need to be paid at closing, but there will also be some expenses during the purchasing process as well as move-in costs after closing.

Want to know more about how to prepare to purchase Southern New Hampshire real estate?  I’d be happy to walk you through the entire process.  Give me a call today at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.