This is part two of my home buying series. In this article, I wanted to cover a few assorted ways that we were able to save during the actually purchasing and settlement process.
Basically after looking at many houses, we found the one we loved! It was a fixer upper, but it mostly needed cosmetic upgrades. It had a new central air unit, new roof, solid foundation, etc. We could deal with the pea green carpeting and dingy wallpaper because this home had a big lot and was located in an excellent school district.. If you are in the market for a fixer upper type house, you really have to try and visualize what it will look like when you are finished.
With fixer upper type homes, you have to walk a fine line. You might get the house cheap, but if it really needs a lot of work you may have to sink too much money into the house. Or maybe the home is beyond your home repair skill level. Lastly, you might be able to afford the house, but not be able to afford the repairs. Basically consider those factors when buying a fixer upper type home.
One of the things that really paid off for us was our home inspection. Because of the home inspection, the homeowners agreed to do some electrical work of installing GFCI outlets, repaired a basement window and hung new gutters in the front of the house. A home inspection costs money, but in some situations you can use it negotiate on the house, or have the sellers fix certain things.
We also saved money on our home purchase by using family as our realtors. The realtors were kind enough to give us back their selling commission. I know someone who recently sold their house and was able to negotiate a deal with the realtor. We also had a cousin who worked for a mortgage bank. Our cousin got the bank to wave some fees for our closing costs. Even if you don’t have friends or family connections, you can still negotiate on closing costs.
Lastly, on our settlement day we did our walk through and the owners had left the house dirty and had left some old stuff behind. We complained at settlement and were able to get money back to pay for a dumpster to remove this stuff. If something is wrong on the settlement day, don’t be afraid to speak up and you might be able to get some money back.
