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5 Buyer Pitfalls Real Estate Agents Help You Avoid

Purchasing a home is an exhilarating and overwhelming experience. Challenges may pop up, but certain mistakes can be avoided with the help of an agent on top of their real estate agent license.

1) Not knowing how much house you can afford.

Most agents advise clients to get pre-approved before beginning a home search. Why? Because buyers need to be realistic and look for homes in a price range they can comfortably afford.

Liz Pullman Wagner, author of 8 Big Mortgage Mistakes and How to Avoid Them recommends, "Limiting your housing costs, which include mortgage, property taxes and homeowner's insurance, to 25% of your gross income."

2) Messing around with your credit.

Agents will warn you - never close a credit card, especially if you plan on applying for a home loan within six months. "The credit score looks at the amount of available credit you've used on each card, but the more important number is the total across all of your cards," says Kimberly Lankford, a writer with www.kiplinger.com. "This ratio goes up whenever you close any accounts." According to Lankford, the lower your ratio, the better shape you're in.

Keeping an old card open shows a good history of managing credit. You can't erase bad credit history by closing an old credit card account, but it can hurt your good history.

3) Buying when you're not ready.

Do you have a crystal ball to predict a change in your job status or unforeseen health problems? Probably not. That's why a real estate salesperson will advise a buyer to have a financial cushion to ensure the mortgage is always covered. Additionally, if you're planning on having kids soon, getting a divorce, moving in the next few years or have a low credit score, you may also want to hold off on buying.

4) Not knowing the neighborhood well enough.

Work with an agent who thoroughly knows the community you're interested in - it's even better if they live there! Talk to neighbors, drop by the area at different times of the day to see what it's like and enlist the services of a real estate appraiser that's on top of their appraisal license courses. What if the college kids down the street throw loud parties, the street is a favorite commuter short-cut or the empty lot behind you is the future home of a night club? Find out!

5) Not researching licensed home inspectors.

A licensed home inspector is there to represent YOUR best interests. Talk to your real estate agent about recommendations and do your own research too. That way, one of the biggest investments of your life won't turn out to be sliding down a hill, infested with mold or something worse.

Yahoo! Real Estate columnist Ilyce Glink encourages buyers to make sure their inspector is licensed, bonded and insured. She also suggests accompanying the inspector to see the issues first hand, if any, yourself.

By Danielle Macklin, Allied Schools,www.realestatelicense.com

Labels: Real Estate Agent, Real Estate Agent License, real estate agent training