Buyer's Guide

A Step-by-Step First Time Buyer's Guide

Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by your agent will help reduce the stress of buying a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.

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Step 1: Research

Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods and help you when the time comes to make an offer.

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Step 2: Decide on Your Budget

Notice I said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. This likely includes doing a full household budget and taking into consideration what changes other than a mortgage payment will occur once you move into your new home. If you’ve lived in an apartment or with roommates, you may overlook new expenses like garbage, water, or HOA fees that could easily blow your budget.

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Step 3: Get Prequalified

Just because you think you can afford a certain payment every month doesn’t mean the mortgage company will agree. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can cause major problems when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a home, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify for. This will also be an advantage when you make an offer on a home, as some sellers won’t entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.

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Step 4: Choose a Real Estate Agent

Can you shop for, look at, and ultimately make an offer on a home without a real estate agent? Technically yes, but why would you when it costs you nothing for an agent like me to take much of the stress off your shoulders? Not only will I help identify properties you might be interested in, arrange showings, and ultimately handle the offer process, but I also have a knowledge of the market that you don’t possess. I may be able to suggest hidden gems, or give you pointers that will help you find your dream home for the right price.

My goal is to provide you with the most personalized service that is designed to help you buy your dream home.

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Step 5: Find the Right Home

This should be the most enjoyable step of the entire process (other than moving in!). I will arrange showings of homes you’re interested in that are within your price range. Take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. Turn light switches on and off, open and close doors, and run the faucets in various rooms. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, and how close it is to necessities like schools and grocery stores.

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Step 6: Make an Offer

Once you have selected the perfect home, work with your agent to craft a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes on the market. Depending on what the home is listed at and whether the current environment is a buyer’s or seller’s market, your offer may be below, at, or even above the asking price. I will be able to help you negotiate if you receive a counteroffer and reach an agreement. At this point, the house will go under contract.

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Step 7: Have the Home Inspected

In most cases, your offer will be contingent on having the home inspected to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. I can help you arrange this, and you can schedule it within days of making an offer. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there is, you can renegotiate your offer based on what needs to be fixed, or you can withdraw it.

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Step 8: Select Your Loan

Now is the time to go back to the mortgage lender who pre-approved or pre-qualified you and choose your mortgage. You will be presented with various options based on your unique financial situation, including fixed-rate, variable-rate, 15-year, 30-year, or special programs such as VA loans or FHA loans. Work with your mortgage lender to select the option you feel the most comfortable with.

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Step 9: Get a Home Appraisal

Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.

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Step 10: Finish Paperwork

No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. Fortunately, everything will be arranged by your lender and title company and, when you’re finished, you’ll know you are the legal owner of your new home.

To request a detailed Buyer’s Guide on things to consider when buying a home, click below

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Aleyamma Jacob

We had a fantastic experience with Alex and Amy Vastardis and Adam Gibbs. They were very helpful, professional and extremely knowledgable about the Orlando housing market. As out of state homeowners, it was important to us to w...
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Alex, Amy and their "team" are true professionals. My husband and I sat back and they did all the work. We thought we would need to sell our home without new outside paint (it needed painting desperately), and the inside needed...
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Honestly, The Vastardis Team is 5 stars across the board. I have high standards for knowledge, honesty, responsiveness, and attention to detail - and Amy, Alex, and Adam exceeded my expectations. I am very happy with their serv...
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My wife and I have been hiring Alex and Amy Vastardis team a few times. They helped us find a new home. At the same time, they helped us rent out our old property. Finally, they helped us with selling the latter. Every time the...
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The Vastardis Team is top notch. They helped us sell our home in Central Florida. I recommend contacting their team to get your house sold. Here is why: Top notch photography and professionalism They are responsive to any and a...
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There are no words that can explain the unmatched level of dedication Amy had to turning our house back in to a home. Having worked with her to get the home listed for rent, find the right tenant and then getting the home ready...
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Loyda

Loyda

This was our first home buying experience in 30 years and Alex and his team made it an amazing one. My husband and I were anxious about the process but Alex helped us understand the process and eased our stress. With their help...
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Buyer & Seller

Buyer & Seller

We have had the best possible experiences both buying a home and selling a home with Amy and Alex. They really know their stuff about the Orlando market, neighborhood specifics, and how to help you maximize your home search or ...
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Deo

Deo

It was absolutely delightful to work with you very fine folks. Your effective communication skills, experience and all round professionalism were there throughout the selling process, to me, that made a world of difference! A s...
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Andrew

Andrew

Alex and the team we’re absolutely phenomenal from start to finish. Professional, aggressive, responsive, and understanding, they set a new high bar for our expectations of real estate professionals. We would unequivocally reco...
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Katelyn

Katelyn

Alex and Adam were great to work with. They were very responsive: returning calls, emails, and answering questions right away. They kept the buying process on track, especially as we got close to closing during the craziness of...
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Tashia

Tashia

We worked with Alex and Adam. They were truly amazing. From the beginning to the end of the process, they were with us every step of the way. They taught us so much throughout the process. I am so thankful to have had them help...
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Lillian & Casey

Lillian & Casey

This couple run a very professional office. They have extensive knowledge about the real estate market in the area. All our dealings with both them and their office personnel were very pleasant and helpful. We highly recommend ...
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Koumbari G. & Katerina

Koumbari G. & Katerina

If it wasn’t for Amy and Alex we wouldn’t be in our new place! Helped us know exactly how to put our offer in so that we wouldn’t lose this amazing property. Can’t thank them enough for their expertise and all their hard work!
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Amy

Amy

Amy and Alex were wonderful to work with. They went above and beyond to sell our house once we moved out of state. They were very responsive and kept us informed throughout the whole process. They make a great team!
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Randolph

Randolph

Amy and Alex are great, easy to recommend this team to anyone looking to sell or buy a property. They helped me prepare my property, outstanding marketing, and a very easy closing processing. Thanks again!
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Cliff

Cliff

The Vastardis Team are a '10'. From our first appointment to list our house for sale to final closing was 59 days! The Vastardis Team was awesome every step of the process, thank you so much.
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Chris

Amy and Alex are great to work with and I look forward to working with them again. They are knowledgeable, responsive, honest, and go the extra mile to make sure everything works smoothly.
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Debbie

Alex and Amy, along with their transaction coordinator, Adam Gibbs, were a pleasure to work with. They made the entire selling process stress-free and closing went smoothly.
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