Finding a home you want to buy is one of the most exciting feelings in the world. Finally, after weeks of shopping around, you’ve found a home that checks all the right boxes and can meet your needs. Unfortunately, finding the right home is only half the battle. You still must make an offer that gets accepted by the seller.
Making an offer on your first home can be nerve-wracking. But once you do it the first time, you’ll feel more confident moving forward. Below, we’ve shared some tips and advice that can help make the process easier.
Steps for Making an Offer on Your First Home
Making an offer on a home is a simple process in theory. But it can also cause a borrower to be flooded with feelings of anxiety. You may find yourself stressed out about the details or wondering if your offer is competitive enough. Below, we’ve shared some advice to help new home buyers who are struggling with this process.
Step 1: Get Prequalified
Before you even think about submitting an offer, you should take steps to get prequalified for a home loan. Often, new home buyers make the mistake of thinking they don’t need to get prequalified until later. They start shopping around and fall in love with a home only to find they can’t afford it. To avoid this messy situation, your very first step should be contacting a lender, getting your finances in order, and getting prequalified.
Step 2: Take a Deep Breath and Relax
Once you’ve got your pre-qualification letter in hand and you’ve found a home you want to buy, your next step is to submit an offer. It’s usually at this point that a borrower begins to experience feelings of anxiety. They’re worried that they’ll submit an offer that’s too high/too low or isn’t to the seller’s liking. Our best advice here is to take some deep breaths and try to relax. Try to keep things in perspective.
Sure, you found a nice home, but you were getting by just fine in life before. If the seller rejects your offer, you’ll be no worse off than you were before. You’ll simply move on and find a different home, maybe even one that you like more! Accepting that this is a normal part of the process will help put a good amount of your anxiety at ease.
Step 3: Make an Offer
We recommend working with an experienced real estate agent who can help you with this step of the process. A real estate agent will help you strategize, put together an offer letter, and submit it to the seller. A buyer’s agent can also help you with the negotiation process should the seller requests changes or makes a counteroffer.
Get Prequalified for a Home Loan
At Mortgage Solutions Financial, we love working with new home buyers. When you’re ready to apply for a loan, we’ll be here to help you with every step of the process and answer any questions you may have. Call today to begin your application.
