I was referred to Dawna by a mutual friend when I started looking for my dream retirement beach house in Cayucos. Our journey together took three years with lots of looking and discussions to finally find me the perfect house. I can't thank Dawna and her amazing Executive Assistant Jodi for all of their patience, helpfulness and hard work on my quest to find the perfect home. Both Dawna and Jodi made me feel like they had all of the time in the world for me when I called with questions or concerns. Dawna is always cheerful and such a pleasure to work with. She is very responsive and extremely knowledgeable about the central coast. I highly recommend Davies Company Real Estate for all of your real estate needs. I wouldn't hesitate to use Dawna again and I did.... I used Dawna to sell my Paso Robles home after I purchased my new home. I once again found both Dawna and Jodi to be extremely professional and knowledgeable about the market. Dawna did a wonderful job of marketing my house and went above and beyond until it sold.
- Get prequalified for a loan.This is for two reasons. (1). You will get your finances in order and records current. (2). You’ll learn what you can spend. It is critical that this is done before house hunting. Buyers have a risk of being turned down for a loan, especially in non-salaried or self-employed situations.
- Confirm source of downpayment, and make sure you have ready access to it. You may need 20% or more of the price of the property, depending on the property type, loan, and your circumstances. You will also need to budget about 2% of the price of the property as a reserve for closing costs. If you plan to make improvements to the property like painting, landscaping, carpeting or flooring, have an additional 2-10% or more of the price of the property available. Ready access to the funds means you can personally control the release of the money to escrow, to the sellers, etc. If your downpayment source is a gift, discuss the method of the gift with your lender to determine how long you should hold it in your account and/or how you will need to document the gift.
- Determine the price you are willing to pay for a property, both at time of purchase, and for monthly expenses including taxes and insurance. While this may seem obvious, with financially prudent buyers, the amount you are willing to part with every month is often less than you can actually qualify for with a lender.
- Determine if you need to have additional income from the property to afford the ownership. Do you need tenants for all or part of the property? Income from a roommate to assist financially?
- Watch the property market inventory. This can be a disappointing experience in a tight market and an overwhelming experience in a slow market. We have seen both. Focus your search, stay grounded, get specific on your needs. Your REALTOR® can target the search and screen the listing inventory for you.