There are many clocks in our house. From the digital ones on the DVR box, wall oven, under-cabinet radio, alarm clocks for for both Mr. Durango and me to the ones at the bottom of the three computers to the watch our oldest son left here after visiting this weekend – it started beeping at 6:30 this morning – to the grandfather clock in the front hall to the mantel top clock in the den to the cuckoo hanging in our kitchen (the cuckoo CLOCK is hanging, wiseguy) we are covered, clock-wise.
Even so, time can still manage to slip up on us. And it is slipping up on all the 1st time home buyers who haven’t stepped up to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit. As it is currently designed, the last day to close on a house and receive the credit is November 30th.
December 1st will be a day late and $8,000 short.
Let’s be clear. There is still time to find a home and go through the process and close by the deadline. But if you are hoping to take advantage of the credit, you might want to get going before the new seasons of “Lost” gets started as I understand that show can be quite the time suck.
There is a chance the deadline will be extended. And there’s a chance my youngest will become obsessive about his room being tidy as well. We can continue to have faith, but let’s not bank on either of things happening in a timely manner.
What should be your first step if you haven’t already started towards buying in time for the credit? Pretty much the same as always. Time is just really of the essence in this case.
So, my personal recommendation is to get thee to a good lender immediately. The loan process is what can take the longest in a real estate sales transaction and it can be started before you find the house which can save time. A lender can actually get your loan approved, contingent on whatever house you find appraising at the contract price, before you step foot into the first property on your search list. And the benefit is that the lender will have the information needed to finalize the loan once the house is found and you’ll know your perimeters, money-wise.
Once you’ve established the loan, get with a good agent and start looking at houses. Don’t mess around with looking with several agents. That’s not efficient, not effective and wastes time. You have to get to know each one, answer the same qualifying questions over and over and ultimately that doesn’t serve your purposes.
Find an agent you like and go for it.
Once you find the house, the negotiations will take as long as they take. Perhaps you and the seller will come to a meeting of the minds in a day. Maybe a week. That’s up to the parties. Try not to get bogged down in whether the seller will leave the 15 year old swing set or if the living room is intolerably orange. And if the seller gets bogged down in their own issues, consider moving on to another property.
It’s unpredictable but as a rule, when a buyer wants to buy a house that a seller wants to sell, things get worked out.
So, the countdown has started to November 30th. Here’s your “to do” list if you want to get that $8,000 tax credit:
- Communicate with a good lender and start the approval process
- Establish a relationship with a Realtor with whom you’re comfortable and start looking at homes that meet your needs and price range
- Eliminate those homes from your mind that won’t work. Try to compare no more than two houses at a time and eliminate all the rest. Otherwise, they start to run together and you can’t remember which one had the half bath off the kitchen that skeeved you out and which one had the killer deck.
- Stay on top of whatever your lender has told you she needs to get things completed
- Be prepared to get a bit freaked out. Nearly all 1st time buyer do. You’ll be glad you went through it all once your in your own place.
This is a rare, as in never before, opportunity to not only become a home owner but to receive massive coinage for the privilege of doing so.
It all adds up to this being the time to make that leap and reap the rewards, happiness-wise.
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The thoughts & opinions are mine. The quips that fall flat are someone else’s. Please feel free to shoot me an email with a question or a good joke.
And remember, real estate agents aren’t bad. We’re just drawn that way.
