But, why do I need a pre-approval letter?

I get this response all the time when I have potential clients call me for help in looking for a home. I get it because one of the first questions I ask (after, Are you working with now or have you worked with any other Realtors in your home search?) is "Have you spoken with a mortgage professional about a loan yet?". Almost inevitably the response is the same. "Why do I need to do that first, I just want to look at this house?". There are a few reasons why you want to have this done first. They involve the seller, the Realtor and yourself.

This is the point where you need to put yourself in the seller's shoes. You are trying to sell your home and whether it's vacant or occupied, you want to be sure that the persons entering it are there for a valid reason. A good Realtor will always make sure their clients are prepared to buy a house before they take them into other people's homes. Ask yourself this question, "If I was selling my home, would I want to open my doors to everyone or to the people who can actually buy it?" I bet you'd want the people ready to buy it to see it, right? This is the problem a lot of FSBO's face when selling their homes. They don't screen for pre-approval, allowing a lot of unqualified people into their home, which wastes a lot of time in the process.

The Realtor who is helping you find a home has a limited amount of time each day to get their job done. This time must be spent wisely in order to make a living. Once again, put yourself in the Realtor's shoes. Would you like to spend hours helping someone find a home, only to find out after all of your efforts that they aren't qualified to find the home they fell in love with? This spells certain disaster for a Realtor and costs more than the lost time. You see, the home search will never be the same after that point, because the houses that the buyer can afford won't compare to the one they fell in love with. The buyer usually feels that this is somehow the Realtor's fault and that relationship is broken as well. As a Realtor, where do you really want to spend your time?

Now, the buyer is affected by this as well. Not just in the way I have outlined above, but in other ways as well. By not being prepared for the home search before you get started, you are setting yourself up for a big disappointment and possibly a worse situation than you want to deal with. You see, once you get that dream house in your sights, you might just try anything to get it. This eagerness (dare I say need?) to own that house might just cloud your judgement when you do sit down with a mortgage professional who tells you that you can buy the house...at a cost that you won't be able to bear. Do yourself a favor, if you are looking for a house go talk to a mortgage professional before you even start your home search. This means before you click on the first site on the internet for over 80% of most buyers today.

You need to set a realistic price range for your new home and be prepared to pay for it before you call to see a home. That's the bottom line. You will save yourself, a few sellers and the Realtor you might be dealing with a lot of time and trouble. You will also be more prepared to take the next step toward home ownership. You might just thank me for warning you ahead of time!!

If you are looking to purchase a home in the Wilkes-Barre, PA area, I would love to talk to you and help you become prepared to buy your home. You can check out more info about this topic and many others on my website, www.wilkesbarrehomesales.com.

Until next time...