A Team and the Right Players
Home buying is a team sport. Your job is to lead and coach the team, not play every position. After you assemble a winning team, your players should give you solid advice so you can make well-informed decisions.
You need to determine which experts are necessary and which tasks you can handle yourself. You are the one who must determine how competent or challenged you feel with the various aspects of the home-buying process.
The players
Here's an overview of the possible players on your team:
- You: You are the most important player on your team.
- Real estate agent: Because the house that you're getting ready to buy is probably one of your largest investments, you want to protect your interests by having someone on your team who knows property values. Your agent's primary mission is to help you find your dream home, tell you what your home is worth and then negotiate on your behalf to get the best deal.
- Real estate brokerage: All states issue two different real estate licenses: one for salespeople (agents) and one for brokers. Real estate brokers must satisfy more stringent educational and experience standards than agents do. If your real estate agent is not an independent broker or the broker for a real estate office, the agent must be supervised by a broker who's responsible for everything that your agent does within the course and scope of the duties of a real estate sales professional. Your agent's broker will provide back-up support to ensure a successful transaction.
- Lender: A good lender offers competitively priced loans and may even be able to help you select the best type of loan from the financial minefield of loan programs available today.
- Property inspectors: A house's physical condition greatly affects its value. Your home should be thoroughly inspected from roof to foundation before you purchase it to ensure that you actually get what you're buying.
- Closing officer: You and the seller need a neutral third party, a closing officer, who'll handle funds and paperwork related to the transaction without playing favorites. The closing officer is the home-buying game's referee.
- Financial and tax advisors: Before you buy a home, you should understand how the purchase will fit into the context of your overall financial situation. You should address the issues of what your financial goals are and, given those goals, how much house you can afford.
Each player brings a different skill into the game. Assemble a great team, and they will guide you through any situation that may arise during your transaction. Good players act as advisors, and ultimately, the decision making is your job.
