Timing tends to be everything.
In so many facets of our daily lives, amongst many other nuances, timing ends up being the deciding factor. Relationships are completely dependent on timing. If you didn’t walk into that new restaurant looking for a job, then meeting that girl — who just happened to be working that very day — wouldn’t have happened. You wouldn’t have asked her out, fallen in love, got married, the whole deal. Jobs and opportunities are also based on time. Supply and demand for sure, but if you hadn’t been at the grocery store to help the elderly woman get those groceries into her car, she wouldn’t have seen how wonderful a person you were, and wouldn’t have been able to recommend you to her daughter who was looking to hire someone soon. Timing controls these things. There’s absolute truth to the saying “at the right place, at the right time.” Simply put, it all has to click.
Buying or selling a home is no different.
The most important thing potential homeowners can do is take the time to understand the process, the external factors, and personal factors that make up buying a home. Learning the entire process and having a Realtor® that you trust guide you at your pace is critical to a successful first step into home ownership.
Whether we see ourselves buying a home in the future or if the thought hasn’t even crossed our mind, time allows us the ability to do our homework and prepare. Time allows us to think of our future and explore our options. If time begins to get away from us or if our lease is up in a little over a month, we tend to rush into decisions or pick a path quickly, without full confidence. Or worse yet, we don’t have the time to prepare for better things and just sign another lease since we needed to do something quickly!
If you are currently renting or living in a situation where you are thinking of buying a home, if you take the time to know and understand your credit situation, no matter the score, you’ll be better off. Before the time comes to make any decisions, if you speak with a qualified lender to see where you currently stand, then you’ll have that research done. And by working with a trusted Realtor® who helps you watch the market allows you to have time on your side.
Buying a home is a fully attainable goal for so many people who don’t realize it. But buying a home is not always an easy process — there are so many important facets, legal requirements, and challenges that require attention and action. Navigating the transaction and guiding you along is the duty of your Realtor® and we understand the road we face together.
Your job is to gain information, ask questions, and then make informed decisions.
Time allows you peace and confidence to do so.
Allow yourself the time and ask questions even if you are renting now. Does it hurt anything to ask yourself the questions now that you’ll inevitably have to face when your lease or current living situation is nearing its completion? I really recommend looking at the long game and not worrying about a solid plan, but just embracing your options. You’ll know what’s best for you as you approach the forks in the road.
Here are some questions to ask at any point if you are looking to buy within 6 months, a year, or more:
How is my credit?
What can I afford?
What is available to me in this area?
What do I want?
Just knowing to ask yourself these questions puts you in a better position. They are very large questions that you deserve plenty of time to marinate. Having the answers to those questions give you goals and plans to live in this world on your terms, not someone else’s. Being a partner with time, rather than letting it sneak up on you, will allow you to confidently invest in yourself, rather than being in a hurry to pay someone else’s mortgage each year.
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