One of the biggest decisions in life you will make is buying your first house. It's something that you really need to take seriously.
There are so many things you need to keep in mind that it can get pretty overwhelming. So I wanted to make it easier for you by rounding up some of the most important aspects of buying a new home, according to these folks on Reddit who have done it themselves.
"Don't buy a larger house than you really need. It's much cheaper to maintain a small house than a McMansion," one user said.
I think this is a biggie. So many people go overboard when they buy a house.
"If your realtor or real estate company recommends a home inspector, don't go for it. It's better to hire somebody independent so they can be honest with you about all the possible problems with the house," suggested one user.
This person learned the hard way when they didn't hire a plumber:
"In addition to the home inspection I had done, I should have had a plumber come do a camera inspection on the sewer main to check for roots."
"Pay attention to the grade of the yard. Where is the water going to flow or pool if it rains. Water issues are the worst," said one user.
I think this is such sound advice here.
"Just general maintenance. Bills and mortgage are known and predictable, but then there's broken boilers, washing machines, fridges, paint, random tools, and all sorts of other stuff that just adds up really quickly," another user said
Oh my, I bet it all adds up.
"The cost of furnishing a house can get out of control. Close the doors to the rooms you don't use, get stuff used and in phases. You don't need to fill every room upon move in," said another user.
"The bank will approve you for way more than you will be able to comfortably afford," this Redditor warned.
Did you know about that? I actually didn't, but it does make sense now that I think about it.
"I didn’t have much for a down payment at the time so I got an FHA loan. It really adds up. In hindsight, I would have saved for another year and avoided watching all that money go down the drain," another user said.
Amen to that!
"Have a cushion in your savings account to take care of unexpected expenses," said one user.
Living in a house gets expensive, and there are always emergencies that come up. You don't want to be short when that unexpected pipe bursts.
"In a subdivision, a dead-end road that leads to an empty field means it's possible you'll have 100 more neighbors living downstream from you in a few years," one user warned.
Yikes. Nobody likes those kinds of surprises, huh?
If it doesn't have it, you might get a huge surprise in winter when your heating bill goes up. The current house we live in has that problem. Thankfully, we're only renting.
"The down payment and mortgage is the cheap part, not the end goal. In an apartment, you generally never spend more than rent, utilities, etc. When owning a house, [the] mortgage is the bare minimum and the sky is the limit," one user said.
"Don’t be afraid to back out of a sale at any point. Losing the $1000 or so you spent on the inspection or appraisal can sting. None of that is as bad as being upside down on a house or feeling trapped in a house," one person said.
I agree with this Redditor.
I believe it's best to learn from those who have done things beforehand. They have the best first-hand knowledge of what can and will go wrong. Isn't that especially important when buying a house?
