Closing escrow is a big, important and essential step along the road to buying a home in Austin. For those who have never bought a home, closing is often viewed by many as an unexplained and overwhelming experience. It’s the final step in the process of transferring title (ownership) to the buyer. Become Familiar with […]
Austin Home Buyer Tips
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5 Essential Questions to Answer Before Starting Your Home Search
The Holidays are over and you’re ready to start looking for your next Austin home. But, are you really ready to buy a home? Lots of folks forget to get their ducks in a row before embarking on their Austin home search and it can make things really hard for them. Sometimes ignoring simple things […]
Why I Tell All My Buyers to Ignore Square Footage
Square footage is one of the metrics most buyers focus on when buying a home in Austin. They think about the places they’ve lived, how big they were, and come up with an arbitrary number as to the minimum square footage they can live in. Though this works to a point, it is not a […]
What Does Backup or Contingent Listing Mean?
In our Austin Home Search tool, you’ll sometimes come across “Backup or Contingent Listing” written in blue underneath the address of a home for sale. Just what does backup or contingent listing mean? Backup or Contingent Listing Status When a property is in “Backup or Contingent Listing Status”, it could be either in Backup Status […]
How Much are HOA Dues in Austin
HOA’s are becoming more and more popular in Austin. In the 1980s and 1990s, few new single family home developments belonged to mandatory HOA’s. Today, virtually every new development has a mandatory membership in an HOA. Which usually begs the question from most buyers, how much are HOA dues in Austin? HOA Dues Vary by […]
Why Do Buyers Need a New Survey?
Those of you relocating from other parts of the country – particularly from California like we did – are generally unfamiliar with the idea of getting a survey before purchasing a home in Austin. Buyers often ask: Why do buyers need a new survey? Well, here’s why. What is the Purpose of a Survey? A […]
What is the Termination Option?
The process of buying a home in Austin is a bit different than buying a home in other parts of the country. In most states, the purchase contract gives the buyer a free look at the property and allows them to cancel the contract for any reason during a negotiated period of time. If the […]
How Do I Find My Mailbox and Keys?
Finding your mailbox and how to get access to the mailbox is not the most self explanatory thing in Austin. When we bought our first home in Austin, we had no idea how to get our mail. If you’re one of the lucky homeowners who have a mailbox at the edge of their driveway, this […]
Buying REOs (Foreclosures) – Fact vs Fiction
Foreclosures have presented a lure of a deal for years as the real estate market has had its ups and downs. Over the past few months, we’ve been hearing a lot of buyers with some incorrect ideas about how buying foreclosures in Austin works. Here are some foreclosure buying facts and fiction to help set […]
When It Comes to Home Buying, My Dad Had The Best Negotiation Advice
Best Negotiation Advice While haggling may be commonplace around the world, save for country fairs, open markets and occasional trips abroad, it is a skill not commonly utilized by Americans. While it is true that during those trips to the Moroccan souk, we gleefully delight in bringing the cost of an item down to half […]