Buying a Home
Finding the Home of Your Dreams
The Homebuying Journey
When buying real estate, the journey is just as important as the destination. Understanding the homebuying process and the unique market dynamics of your target neighborhoods is key to making informed decisions. That’s why Kimberly Miller meticulously plans and guides every step, ensuring you feel confident and supported throughout the process.
With Kimberly’s expert guidance, up-to-date market insights, and quick access to sought-after properties, you can expect exceptional service at every turn. Partnering with Royalty Real Estate Boutique, she provides astute evaluations of real estate opportunities and exclusive access to premier listings.
Helping You Find Balance
Kimberly’s goal is to ensure a seamless and stress-free homebuying experience for her clients. She emphasizes clarity, efficiency, and professionalism at every stage of the process. With her strong negotiation skills and ability to collaborate with top brokers, Kimberly works to secure the best outcome, making sure you and your family get the keys to your new home with everyone feeling like a winner.
Securing Financing
Kimberly will connect you with leading mortgage brokers who are experts in the complexities of home financing. These professionals will work with you to navigate currency exchange if needed and structure loans that fit your specific needs. Additionally, they will partner with Kimberly to coordinate with your family lawyers or financial advisors, crafting the ideal strategy for acquiring your new home.
Finding Your New Home
Streamlining the Process
As your real estate agent, Kimberly brings a deep understanding of the local market and can quickly identify neighborhoods where you’re most likely to find a home within your desired price range. Her goal is to simplify the process by conducting thorough research, so you can focus on what truly matters—finding the perfect home.
Kimberly’s expertise allows her to anticipate market trends and guide you toward the best opportunities, ensuring you’re always one step ahead in a competitive market. Whether you're looking for a downtown condo, a family-friendly home in the suburbs, or a luxurious waterfront property, Kimberly is dedicated to helping you find a home that meets both your needs and your budget. From narrowing down the right areas to scheduling viewings and assisting with negotiations, she’s with you every step of the way to make the entire homebuying experience as seamless as possible.
Anticipating the Market
Kimberly’s expertise allows her to anticipate market trends and guide you toward the best opportunities, ensuring you’re always one step ahead in a competitive market. Whether you're looking for a downtown condo, a family-friendly home in the suburbs, or a luxurious waterfront property, Kimberly is dedicated to helping you find a home that meets both your needs and your budget.
A Comprehensive Evaluation
Determining a home’s fair market value and assessing whether it offers good value for its listed price or fits within your budget can be a complex task. Several factors influence a property's value, including its location, neighborhood amenities, proximity to essential services, lot size, views, construction quality, age, unique features, and current market conditions.
Shopping for Your Dream Home
What’s Your Top 10
This is just to get you thinking about what you really need in a home, and what you really want, as well. Let’s start with the basics:
The Actual Home
Need: ____Beds/_____Baths
Want: ____Beds/_____Baths
Is the date that the home was built important to you?
Are you looking for a dream home, or something to put some of your own heart and elbow grease into?
What type of home? (e.g., single-family, condo, town house, etc.)
What size house are you looking for (square footage)?
How many stories?
What architectural styles do you prefer?
Do you have an exterior siding preference?
Is your style Modern? Classic? Contemporary? Cozy?
Where do you want to live? Do you have a neighborhood in mind?
What’s the farthest that you are willing to travel on a daily commute?
Are local schools an important part of your decision?
What kind of local community are you looking for?
Is convenience to public transportation a high priority?
Lifestyle
Who will be living in the home that we are looking for?
Will you have regular guests to consider? (e.g., parents, stepkids, etc;)
Are there special needs to take into account? Pets?
When you look out of your window, what would be your ideal view?
What do you do for fun that you would like to be closer to?
Is there a color palette that tickles your fancy?
Kitchen/Dining
Do you have any “dream appliances” that you would like to have? (e.g., stainless steel appliances, Wolf Double Oven, etc.)
Do you want a breakfast nook?
What about a formal dining room?
How big of a kitchen do you want?
Do you want a galley kitchen? An “L” shape?
Do you want a peninsula or an island?
Do you want a pantry?
What are your ideal finishes? (e.g.; “I would love a farmhouse sink!” or “I adore tile backsplashes...”)
The Great Outdoors
What size lot would you like?
What kind of terrain? Do you need/want a garden area?
Are you looking for an outdoor entertaining space?
What about an outdoor kitchen?
Will you need an established shed or greenhouse?
Do you want a firepit?
Will you need a fenced yard?
What is your landscaping style?
Do you want a deck? Patio? Covered?
Do you want a swimming pool or hot tub?
Do you need a garden shed?
Living Spaces
Do you want a formal living room? A great room? Rec room? Do you want an open floor plan? (e.g., do you need a place for the kids to have their own space? Do you want a space for entertaining guests?)
How much space do you need in the living room?
Do you want a view from the living room? Access to the deck or patio from this space?
Do you want an open floor plan?
Does that includes the kitchen/dining area?
Do you want built-in cabinetry in the living space?
What kind of laundry room/space do you need?
What size garage do you need? What size do you want?
Do you want a shop? Separate or connected?
What kind of windows/lighting do you want?
Submitting an Offer
Protecting You and Your Dreams
After submitting an offer, negotiations often follow, covering more than just the asking price. Key factors such as the deposit amount, included items, completion and possession dates, and seller move-out deadlines all come into play. Kimberly will work closely with you to ensure you have a clear understanding of these elements, helping you craft an offer that aligns with your goals while keeping potential negotiation points in mind.
Kimberly also ensures you’re fully aware of your budget constraints before submitting any offer, so you’re not caught off guard by unexpected costs during negotiations. Her in-depth knowledge of the market and strong negotiation skills allow her to advocate for your best interests, whether it’s securing favorable terms or navigating multiple offers. With Kimberly by your side, you’ll enter negotiations confidently, knowing that every detail is covered, and your financial boundaries are protected.
Things to Consider
Don’t Let Emotions Run the Show
Remember, you are not the only one looking at homes. So many times you find a home you may think is perfect, only to contact an agent to find out it has gone pending. Using reliable websites and keeping in touch with Kimberly is key to making sure you don’t get your hopes up too high!
Managing Your Expectations
Being realistic about what you can get in your dream home for the amount of home you can afford will allow for you to enjoy the experience of home buying. If you are married or buying a home with someone else be sure to talk with your partner about your non-negotiable amenities. Identify what you’d be willing to compromise on so that your criteria falls within your budget and you’re looking at homes that suit both of your needs.
Lean on Your Real Estate Specialist
Kimberly will point out the positive and negative aspects of each home, helping to keep you grounded. Her job is to be less of a “salesperson” and more of an “advisor.”
Keep in mind that you are the ultimate decision-maker and have control over the entire buying process. At the same time, take advantage of Kimberly’s extensive experience by listening to her advice and using her insights to your advantage.
A Picture May Not be Worth a Thousand Words
In the same way that pictures can oversell a property, they can also undersell one as well. Many real estate agents are not tech savvy and some of them use terrible photography methods, omit staging advice, and their listings suffer for it.
If a property meets your criteria but doesn’t look great in the photos, it may still be worth checking out. You don’t want to miss the perfect home just because the listing is poorly created.
Patience is a Virtue
Once you get that pre-approval letter in hand, the desire to find a house can cause a sense of urgency for some home buyers. Try to resist the temptation to speed up the home buying process. Remember, buying a home is not like buying a pair of shoes; it’s a major life-altering decision.
Impulse shopping in real estate can have tremendously negative consequences. Get ready to invest time and energy to get the perfect place. It will be well worth it in the long run.
Budget for Home Maintenance
During the home inspection before you purchase, you’ll gain insight into when you might need to replace major systems, such as the HVAC or plumbing. In some cases, the seller may offer a home warranty that covers these costs for one to three years as part of the sale.
Beyond these initial considerations, a general rule of thumb for a home maintenance budget is to set aside 1% of the purchase price annually for a newer, well-constructed home. For older homes, you may need to budget more to cover basic upkeep and repairs.
And finally…
CELEBRATE!
