14 Tips for First-Time Homebuyers, Straight From Reddit Homeowners

Buying your first home is a thrilling and often overwhelming process. Whether you’re buying a home in Seattle, WA or a house in Los Angeles, CA, there’s a lot to consider from the initial tour to signing the final paperwork. 

For a first-person perspective, Redfin reached out to homeowners on Reddit to ask the one thing they wish they’d known before buying their first home. From shopping around for the best mortgage rate to talking with neighbors to get the inside scoop on the area, these Reddit-sourced tips will help you feel more confident as you step into homeownership.

1. Shop aggressively for rates

It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of getting a loan, but make sure you shop around, as this Redditor advises.

bespoketranche1: “I wish I would’ve shopped for rates aggressively. We were so caught up on finding the right home, that we missed an opportunity to get a lower rate and save ourselves hundreds each month.”

2. Introduce yourself to the neighbors

Before putting an offer in, be a good future neighbor and knock on some doors in your neighborhood to get the insider scoop.

Rorschach_1: “Knock on all the neighbors’ doors and introduce yourself as a potential buyer as a way to ‘find out.’ Know traffic patterns, East, West, where the sun sets/rises, wind, etc.”

3. Set plans and boundaries for DIY renovations

If planning on doing maintenance yourself, talk with any other parties living in the house to confirm expectations and boundaries around the work.

Professional-Cap-822: “We bought an old, beautiful bungalow with plans to do a lot of updates. My husband wanted to do the work himself. I didn’t grow up in houses we owned, so I knew nothing of renovations. 

I wish I had known to talk through what he had planned, what it would cost, and how long he thought it would take. Folks should also really consider whether they are okay in living through the mess. And they should make agreements about boundaries around projects.”

4. Find joy in the process

Buying a home can be exciting and stressful. Try to find joy whenever you can, as this Redditor explains.

LongSupermarket2646: “I’m in the industry, and there’s a laundry list of what people should know before buying a home. It’s become one of the most stressful things you’ll do in your lifetime, and it can cause a divorce if you have a hard time finding the joy, happiness, and excitement of what you’re accomplishing – even when small delays may happen. It’ll be the best reward for everyone involved in your transaction.”

5. Know that an inspection might not catch everything

Although home inspections can catch a lot before you close on the house, be prepared that some things can sneak past a standard inspection.

Ykohn: “I wish I’d known how much can hide outside a standard inspection. Things like sewer lines, drainage, or an undersized electrical panel can cost a fortune later, but don’t always show up on the report.”

Another Reddit user agreed that they’d have extra inspections done if they could go back in time.

Magnificentbunny_: “I wish we’d listened to the inspector and gotten all those extra inspections like roof, plumbing, etc. We didn’t realize we could have just gotten people to come out and give us an estimate for fixing those things. You don’t necessarily have to ‘pay’ for more inspections.”

6. Understand your full monthly payment

When buying a home, your monthly housing expenses aren’t just limited to the mortgage. You’ll also be paying taxes, insurance, and HOA fees.

LetMany4907: “Understanding how mortgage rates and closing costs impact monthly payments would’ve saved me a headache. I focused on the sticker price but ignored the long-term payment picture. Running numbers multiple ways and factoring in taxes, insurance, and HOA fees is critical before signing.”

7. Hire an arborist if you have mature trees

It can get expensive quickly if you need to have an arborist out to look at your trees. Try to plan ahead before closing on the home.

LackVegetable3534: “If the property has a lot of mature trees OR any trees of heaven, have an arborist check everything out. The trees of heaven and any sick or diseased trees will need to be removed, and that is expensive and should be part of your negotiations.”

8. Expect the unexpected and work with people you trust

For this Reddit user, it doesn’t hurt to be overprepared and have a rainy day fund in case things come up during your first few months of owning a home.

Civil-Shelter9892: “I’ve been a realtor for 20+ years, and the first thing I would say is expect the unexpected. In my experience, things often come up that were not found in the inspection or not what the buyers were expecting. Make sure to have some remaining funds or a rainy day fund for the unexpected. Something will come up!!

Work with people who you trust and respect. This is often the most important financial decision you will make, usually up until that point. Work with people who have your back. Your mortgage broker, realtor, lawyer, and anyone else like an inspector or contractor are supposed to be there for you. Surround yourself with good people. Don’t just use someone because they are your cousin or because your mom used them; find someone who you feel will help you in what can be a stressful yet exciting time!”

Another Reddit user made sure to drive home the importance of being prepared for hidden costs.

Widelyesoteric: “Buying a house has a lot more hidden costs associated with it than you know. Governments can change laws. Increase taxes. Design requirements. Repairs. Weather damage. Theft. Bad neighbors.

You don’t just buy a house. You get the homeowner experience. Good and the bad.”

9. Consider fire and flood activity

With the increase in fires and floods in recent years, where you choose to purchase a home can also affect your insurance options and costs.

Poptart4u2: “If I had known that insurance companies could cancel based on new fire and flood activity, I would have been more careful in selecting the location of my new home. Lucky for me, so far so good, but I do live in a high-fire area in Southern California and that could change at any time. I know people close to my location who have had their insurance go up by thousands of dollars, which of course, made their mortgage go up too. Now their mortgages are too expensive for them to afford.”

10. Take your time to explore each step of the process

Although it’s exciting when you find a home you like, make sure you’re going through each step carefully, as this Redditor touches on.

Pale_Natural_7261: “I think that during the buying process – some are jumping really quickly because they found the right house. I think it’s really important to take time to understand the process. How long is it going to take from offer to closure? What type of issues come up if buying an old house vs new build? How do I build the right team to buy a house? Is a realtor enough? Should I use my brother to do the inspection (the answer is always no), etc. There are so many aspects of homeownership that are overlooked, and sometimes even with the best intentions forward, there is not enough time to explore all the aspects. I think one thing that is definitely doable: be curious, ask questions, not just about where and the price, but how!”

11. Question anything that looks out of the ordinary

When doing a walkthrough of the house, make sure to point out anything that looks strange. Don’t be afraid to ask questions.

skoltroll: “Do a detailed inspection yourself. Why is that ceiling cracked? Can you prove when the mechanicals were last serviced/upgraded? How old is the roof? What are these water stains? Does the insulation in the attic look good? Compare disclosure to what you see. Is it downplaying issues? Is the grading of the land outside going away from the foundation?

This may not change your mind on the purchase, but it should put you in a solid place to know what you’re buying, and know what you’re willing to accept as far as future maintenance.

tl;dr: Screw cosmetic updates. Prove the basics are solid.”

For one Reddit user, looking under a suspiciously placed dish towel could have saved a headache down the line.

FewTelevision3921: “To look under the decorative dish towel, laying lovingly over the edge of the countertop, that when not there after buying allowed me to see that there was a 3 inch chunk of laminate missing underneath.”

12. Buying early can help you build equity

If you can afford it, buying a home early can help you start building equity instead of paying rent instead of paying rent without a future return.

Simple-Airport1357: “I wish I had bought my first home years before I did. Instead, I spent my 20’s renting and paying someone else’s mortgage. When I did the math, I realized I paid over $500,000 in rent in that decade. That’s half a million dollars I’ll never get back.”

13. Make sure to include the little things in your inspection

Aside from the bigger systems getting checked, it’s easy to overlook the smaller things like windows not opening, as this Redditor explains.

ansibley: “Just sold my departed mother’s house. Her inspector had me repair a window that didn’t stay up correctly. So I just assumed when I found a new house this month that my inspector would do that, too. Nope. Don’t forget the little things amongst the big systems checked! The house I just closed on today I found out a few hours later had only 5 of 11 windows that I can open.”

14. Check any storage rooms or garages during the final walkthrough

Before closing, make sure you check any place where unwanted items could be stored. There might be something hiding in the garage you don’t want to deal with.

RTMichigan24: “Always check the garage & any storage rooms on the final walkthrough. People are lazy and put their old stuff there instead of the curb..”

Bottom line: you can’t be overprepared

When it comes to first-time homebuying, it’s always helpful to be overprepared. Don’t be afraid to ask questions during the process to ensure you’re getting correct information and nothing is getting swept under the rug. Homebuying can be stressful, but being prepared can help mitigate that stress and the chances of anything unexpected coming up in the future.

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