We are continuing with our ‘Buyer’ video and blog series today!
At this point we’re assuming you’ve decided you’re ready to buy, you’ve picked your REALTOR®, and you’ve started looking at houses online! NOW, it’s time to get out there and see some in person!
The first step is to identify the homes you want to see. Now is a good time to sit down with your REALTOR®, review the homes you like and pick 6 you’d like to see. Your agent may have some suggestions and they may even have knowledge of some ‘pocket listings’ that you wouldn’t otherwise know about (this means that there is a willing seller, but the home is not on the market yet). We recommend that you don’t see more than 6 homes on any given tour, so that you don’t burn out and they don’t all blur together! ‘Cause you’ll be like, ‘Which one had that green shag carpet we hated?’
Looking at homes can be tiring so you will likely want to block off the better part of a day for it. That way you have ample time to tour the homes AND debrief about them with your family afterwards. Plus, you will deserve a glass of wine or a cocktail after all that house hunting!
Your REALTOR® will schedule time for you to see each of the homes on the tour and you can decide if you want to ride with them or if you want to follow them to each of the homes. The benefit of riding with your REALTOR® is:
- You can see more of the neighborhood if you’re not focused on driving,
- Your REALTOR® may share some tips, tricks and market insights with you as they chauffeur you around, and
- Well, we just have so much fun driving around with our clients! That’s right, we love hearing about your kids, grandkids, and even your fur babies!
A few other tips we’d like to share before you head out there:
- Wear comfy clothes and comfy shoes. We’re in Anthem, Arizona and it gets hot here, like REALLY HOT, and sometimes the air conditioning in vacant houses isn’t on as much as we’d like, so bring layers – that way you’re not burning up in one house and then freezing in the next.
- You may want to take a video or voice recording on your phone of the homes as you walk through them! That way you can listen to them afterwards and remember what your initial thoughts were. Your REALTOR® can even help with this!
- If voice notes and videos aren’t your thing, bring a notepad and take time to write down your thoughts/feelings during or after each home. That way you can remember the differences when you’re sitting at home that night.
- Tour the area! If you’re looking in a new area we always suggest that you tour the area. For example, here in Anthem we love to take out-of-town clients to the clubhouses, Community Centre, show them where the shopping is, and we might even stop for lunch at one of the local restaurants!
- Unless you absolutely must, don’t make any BIG decisions that day! We always recommend that our clients go home and talk about the houses without us and sleep on it. Then, the next morning connect with your REALTOR® and let them know how you’re feeling. If you’ve found the one, that’s great they can get to work writing the offer. If you haven’t they can get to work putting another tour together for you!
Hopefully this helps prepare you to get out there and start looking at houses! We’d absolutely love to show you around Anthem, so give us a call or text at 623.738.8049.
Carolynn will cover what the next steps are in our next blog & video so make sure you subscribe to our YouTube Channel or follow us on Facebook to stay up to date.
Do you have a question you would like us to answer? We want to hear from you; leave us a note in the form below.
Remember, if you or anyone you know is looking to buy or sell their home, please give us a call! It’s always the right time to make a wise move with the Wise Move AZ Team.
