Once you have found your new dream home, you are ready to submit an offer to the property’s owner.  Purchasing a new home is often the largest financial decision/obligation a person does in their lifetime. Although real estate agents are generally very knowledgable about your transaction, understanding all of the legal and financial terms of Florida real estate are overwhelming for even the most astute person.  As such, it is always a good idea to have a knowledgable real estate attorney review your offer before it is signed or have the offer subject to your attorney’s review.

Tip#3–Always Hire a Property Inspector

Another major mistake that many parties make in purchasing real estate is that fail to have a property inspection conducted. A property inspector can often find repair issues that are not visible to the naked eye.

Tip#4–Understand All of the Costs of Homeownership (a/k/a Don’t be House Poor)

In addition to our firm’s vibrant real estate practice, we represent many clients that are having difficulty paying their debts as they become due and many end up filing for bankruptcy.  Most of those clients fail behind on their obligations as a result of purchasing a home that utilize a good portion of their monthly income to maintain.  Consequently, we always recommend that our clients try to have their monthly housing payment (principal, interest, taxes, insurance and condo/hoa payment) not exceeds 28% of their income if possible.

The costs of owning a home exceed your mortgage payment (if any), real estate taxes, insurance and HOA/Condo fees.  This is even more important when you are purchasing a resale, do you know what the utility bills will be monthly?  Do you know what the monthly landscaping and other home maintenance costs will be?

Tip #5–Always purchase title insurance

Title insurance is available to purchasers of real estate at closing and extremely important. Title insurance protects the purchaser against any “clouds on title” (i.e. unpaid liens or mortgages, other people claiming ownership of the property, errors in deeds).

For any questions about real estate, please contact the experienced real estate attorneys at The Wallace Law Group with a convenient office location in Boynton Beach representing clients in Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, Greenacres, Wellington, Fort Lauderdale, Coral Springs, Deerfield Beach, Parkland, Hollywood, Weston, Aventura, Miami, Miami Beach.