Buyer's Guide

A Step-by-Step First Time Buyer's Guide

Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by your agent will help reduce the stress of buying a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.

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Step 1: Research

Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods and help you when the time comes to make an offer.

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Step 2: Decide on Your Budget

Notice I said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. This likely includes doing a full household budget and taking into consideration what changes other than a mortgage payment will occur once you move into your new home. If you’ve lived in an apartment or with roommates, you may overlook new expenses like garbage, water, or HOA fees that could easily blow your budget.

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Step 3: Get Prequalified

Just because you think you can afford a certain payment every month doesn’t mean the mortgage company will agree. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can cause major problems when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a home, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify for. This will also be an advantage when you make an offer on a home, as some sellers won’t entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.

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Step 4: Choose a Real Estate Agent

Can you shop for, look at, and ultimately make an offer on a home without a real estate agent? Technically yes, but why would you when it costs you nothing for an agent like me to take much of the stress off your shoulders? Not only will I help identify properties you might be interested in, arrange showings, and ultimately handle the offer process, but I also have a knowledge of the market that you don’t possess. I may be able to steer you away from certain homes or neighborhoods, suggest hidden gems, or give you pointers that will help you find your dream home for the right price.

My goal is to provide you with the most personalized service that is designed to help you buy your dream home

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Step 5: Find the Right Home

This should be the most enjoyable step of the entire process (other than moving in!). I will arrange showings of homes you’re interested in that are within your price range. Take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. Turn light switches on and off, open and close doors, and run the faucets in various rooms. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, and how close it is to necessities like schools and grocery stores.

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Step 6: Make an Offer

Once you have selected the perfect home, work with your agent to craft a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes on the market. Depending on what the home is listed at and whether the current environment is a buyer’s or seller’s market, your offer may be below, at, or even above the asking price. I will be able to help you negotiate if you receive a counteroffer and reach an agreement. At this point, the house will go into escrow.

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Step 7: Have the Home Inspected

In most cases, your offer will be contingent on having the home inspected to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. I can help you arrange this, and you can schedule it within days of making an offer. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there is, you can renegotiate your offer based on what needs to be fixed, or you can withdraw it.

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Step 8: Select Your Loan

Now is the time to go back to the mortgage lender who pre-approved or pre-qualified you and choose your mortgage. You will be presented with various options based on your unique financial situation, including fixed-rate, variable-rate, 15-year, 30-year, or special programs such as VA loans or FHA loans. Work with your mortgage lender to select the option you feel the most comfortable with.

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Step 9: Get a Home Appraisal

Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.

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Step 10: Finish Paperwork

No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. Fortunately, everything will be arranged by your lender and title company and, when you’re finished, you’ll know you are the legal owner of your new home.

Congratulations!

After signing the final paperwork to complete the purchase, you are now the owner of a new house. It may take a few days for your loan to be funded once the paperwork has been returned to the lender, but once that check is delivered to the seller, you’ll be all set to move into the home of your dreams. 

Testimonials

Seller

Seller

We were very happy and lucky to have Michael selling our house recently. From the first phone contact, and the price listing to the final closing, his fast response, and highly efficient work were very impressive.
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Apustil

Apustil

Michael helped me find an awesome apartment in the downtown Austin area. He was responsive, and helpful and gave great insights into the area from his own experiences. From his own experiences living in the area, I was able to ...
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Buyer

Buyer

Michael is amazing! He is not only extremely knowledgeable, but he is also very kind, compassionate, and vested in finding the right home for his clients. He was careful to help us find the home that would be just perfect for u...
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Buyer

Buyer

As a first-time buyer going into it alone, I was a little intimidated. Since I was going to school and working full-time, I couldn't attend to a lot of details. I didn't have to. Michael accommodated my schedule and took care o...
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Julian P.

Julian P.

Can't recommend Michael enough! He's a professional, knowledgeable, hard worker, and really cares about his customers. We felt confident going through the process with Michael by our side. He was always available to answer any ...
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Valentin K.

Valentin K.

Michael is a rockstar! I work with him for over a year now and I always have very specific requirements which are hard to fulfill. The majority of other REALTORS just gave up, but Michael never gives up! What could mean "imposs...
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Michelle J.

Michelle J.

It is with delight and gratefulness that we share comments on our experience with Michael in the listing and sale of our home. While we have bought and sold a number of houses, we could not have asked for a better partner in th...
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Will L.

Will L.

Mechler was thoroughly supportive throughout our experience as first-time homebuyers. We were unfamiliar with the process, but Mechler was patient, and informative, and helped us navigate the waters successfully. He was availab...
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Jenna H.

Jenna H.

Michael is truly phenomenal. We began working with him a few years ago thinking we were ready to buy a house, but the funds just weren’t there at the time. Michael checked in with us every now and again until about 6 mo ago whe...
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Jc J.

Jc J.

Being a first-time homebuyer was stressful at times, our questions were endless. Michael Mechler was great during our home-buying process! He kept us informed and made this process smooth. He was reliable and available to show ...
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Work With Michael

Michael is a member of the National Association of Realtors® and holds a BBA degree in Marketing from the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University and received his real estate education from the University of Texas at Austin.