If you're just joining us, we're in a mini series educating everyone on how to buy a home. We have covered the prep work and now we're ready to get to the goods.
When you're set up online you'll be viewing homes on the multiple listing service, how fun! How the information is displayed varies from state to state, but my Arizona clients will be looking at something like this.
Now, to the untrained eye this is definitely a jumble of weird words, which may not mean a lot to anyone but contractors, real estate agents, and in time, you!
So here we are, MLS Info, 101. (to understand what I'm talking about make sure you have the link opened that was supplied above- click "this" above!)
Above the photo at the top, is the part you are probably going to want to know first. Address, duh, and the price it's currently listed at.
To the right of the photo, is all your most basic information. How many bed rooms, baths, what the square footage is (to really get a grasp of what this number means, find out the sq footage of where you currently live to get an idea of what the home you're viewing may be at). Go ahead and ignore encoded features, all the info in that weird combo of numbers and letters is included in what I'm teaching you. Taxes are also important and located here (Arizona has pretty low taxes, I've heard horror stories of some states where their $10,000 a year property tax can compare with a property at $1000 a year here). Talk to your lender about property taxes, and they can explain to you a PITI payment.
Next, the cross streets- This is going to tell you how to get to the home, and what cross street it's nearest.
Then, public remarks- Here you will find the agents description of the home. Take it with a grain of salt- some agents use a whole lot of "puffery" to explain a home. For example a home with "tons of potential" can be a fancy way of saying "needs work".
Features will have a lot to do with the exterior. Room Details is all about the inside. Construction and Utilities involves the bones of the home, and what services reach the home (for the greater Phoenix metro area utilities are pretty simple, it gets sticky when you're looking into less developed areas).
County, Tax, and Financing- Again, tax info is here, and what county you're going to be in. This section is most important when you get to "new financing". When you meet with a lender you'll find out what loans you qualify for, and you need to make sure your financing is listed here. In this example, VA and FHA loans are not acceptable (because of the lending and community requirements), so a buyer with that type of loan would waste their time viewing this home.
Fees and Homeowner Association Information- This is where you find out if there is an HOA, and what the payments are a month. There should also be info about what the HOA includes, but the agent doesn't always know this info (HOA's change, etc.). When you buy a home with an HOA they have to supply you with their CC&R's which are rules and regulations for the community. You'll learn all about the HOA in this time and if there is something that's a deal breaker, you still have the opportunity to walk away.
Lastly--
listing dates- These numbers tell you how long the home has been on the market
list price- what the home was originally listed for and what it's currently listed for (so you can see if there has been a price reducation
listing contract info- under special listing conditions it'll tell you the status of the home (N/A is a traditional sale, short sale, REO (bank owned), agent/owner (agent owns some or all of home), etc. Your agent can explain in better detail the difference between those in whatever market you are buying in.
There you have it, you're now a real estate expert (well almost). Check back in for the continued series on Buying a home!
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