What Should You Ask Your Estate Agent When Buying a New Home?
When buying a new home, it’s common for people to visit a local estate agent to see what’s available on the market. Most estate agents are easy to work with and their interests are usually aligned with yours because they get paid based on commissions. However, this can sometimes lead to estate agents trying to sell you a home like a salesman rather than an agent. If a situation like this occurs, then it’s easy to feel a bit of buyer’s remorse once you finally get the keys to your home and step inside.
So to avoid this, here are some of the most important questions you should ask when using an estate agent to buy a home.
Source: https://unsplash.com/photos/yXBeuNhmbNY (CC0)
How long has this property been available?
First, try to get a feel for how long the property has been available on the market. This question helps you determine how desirable the property and the location are. If the property has been around for several months or even a year, then there’s a good chance that many people have already taken a look at the property but found issues with it. Alternatively, they could have also changed their mind because of the local area or a lack of convenient amenities nearby.
Has the home recently been renovated?
Homeowners typically renovate their homes before they sell because it helps to increase the value. This can include changing the home decor to be more acceptable by modern standards, but it could also be to do with upgrading appliances and utilities to make them a bit more cost-effective to meet modern regulations. If the home has been renovated, ask why it was renovated and what was changed so you can get a better idea of the state of the home.
What’s the history of this property’s value?
Price history is also a good thing to ask for. There are always reasons why a property has dropped in value and real estate agents can often pinpoint them exactly. For example, one drop might be because the seller is looking to quickly get rid of it, and another reason could be because the local area has received planning permission for new transport lines. This could actually increase the value.
Is the price negotiable?
If you’re working with a mortgage broker then there’s a good chance that the price is actually negotiable. If this is the case, it’s not uncommon to spend weeks or even months making back-to-back offers to try and get the best price for the home. This can be a tiring process, but it’s important to ask in order to get a better deal.
Why is the seller putting their house on the market?
Lastly, ask why the seller has put their house on the market. There are usually good reasons why people sell their homes such as wanting to scale up or scale up, or even because the home is no longer needed such as the previous owner passing away. Once you learn about the reason, you’ll have more peace of mind knowing that the property doesn’t have any issues that the owner is trying to cover up.
*This is a collaborative post.
