We're lost!!!!!! We have been pre-approved for an amount over what we want to spend so we know we can find a house. We have a realtor that seems well experienced, almost to the point of moving faster than we are comfortable with. We found a couple of houses we like but we aren't 100% sure which one and what amount we want to offer. Our realtor is wanting to meet with the mortgage lady I've been talking to at the bank that our pre-approval is through. Is it normal for the realtor to want to talk with the mortgage lender before we even make an offer. It doesn't seem right to me!!!

As said before we're lost. Any insight would be grand!!!

Thanks,

 

Don't let the realtor push you and don't buy more than you can afford regardless of what you're approved for, trap, Economy is to shaky and housing value still may drop a little, don't want to get in over your head and not be able to sell if push comes to shove. It's a buyers market so don't be afraid to get carried away with the first offer, and I don't think the realtor speaking with the bank is a big deal. Hope this helps, Good luck.

 

If you have a letter of intent from your bank that you can show your agent, then why does he need to speak with your perspective lender?

I think the well established agents may get a kick back for pushing business in a certain lenders direction.

You should be 100% comfortable no matter the situation.

 

That's our thing we know what we want to spend and what our note should be, we want it to be about what we pay for rent right now. We are not going to go overboard. I'm not going to let him push me or sway me. I'm going to call him this evening and tell him I'm not meeting with them until we decide on a house and decide on an offer amount too.

Thanks guys!!!

 

Of all my dealings with a realtor, they've never asked to meet with a lender.

 

I think your realtor is putting the cart before the horse. Don't allow him to talk to your bank until you have an accepted offer in hand. How did you come across this realtor??? Perhaps it's time to switch to another who will better understand your situation and better serve you.

 

Remember one VERY IMPORTANT thing: YOU are in charge. If you have a mortgage committment letter from a bona fide lender that is all you need to show the realtor. If he continues to try to steer your mortgage to another lender, possibly he is getting a kickback from that lender. Either way, I suggest a new realtor, and don't be forced to rush to a decision that you'll be paying for for the next 20-30 years! Good luck!

 

Don't be affraid to put a lower offer than what you want to end up at..

Remember you can always go up a little, but you can't really drop from your first bid..

Also a realtors job is to move houses and get the commission.. They will try to distract your attention away from the problems and get you to sign as fast as possible..

Take your time and think it through.. It is a big decision and a long term committment..

Good luck..

 

I would also like to add that paying for an independent home inspection is money well spent, once you've settled on a home that you want.

Better yet, if you can get the seller to pay for a 1 year home warranty, then your really doing well.

 

Thanks for all the info, I really appreciate it. I emailed the realtor and my person at the bank that I've been talking with to say I don't want to sit down with them together right now because I felt there was no reason. I got a reply from the lady at the bank and she agreed we do not need to sit down and discuss anything until we decide on a house. The realtor guy seemed real nice at first, but I don't know now. The lady at the bank did give me our pre-approval letter to show the realtor, so I don't have any idea why he wanted to talk to her.

And we're definitely getting a home inspection and attending while the inspector does it.

I knew I could count on the folks on FTE for some good advice!!!!!


Thanks,

 

they are hard to deal with!

 

I'm not sure I'd let the realtor bother me to tell you the truth, they're hurting bad right now and maybe a little over-bearing because they're hungry for commissions. Many have gone under and had to find new jobs to feed their families. Anyways, there's a ton of good info in this thread and Tim mentioned getting the one year home warranty, something you should seriously consider on top of the home inspection. You can get the seller to pay for this and it's an excellent idea.

 

I'd suggest reading through this list as well for some things to keep in mind when "house browsing",

Complete Home Inspection Checklist for the People who Actually Have to Live There

 

I don't think it's necessary to be there while the inspection is being done. It sounds like a wasted afternoon to me. These guys' reputation IS their business. If they do shoddy work, or aren't completely honest on an inspection, they'll be out of work soon. Besides wasting your own time, you may find that the inspector is unable to do as good a job with you standing over his shoulder asking him tons of questions. You'er paying $300 or so for a good inspection, let the man do his job.

 

My wife and I purchased our first home a little over a year ago. Here's my take on what you've said:

Make sure to communicate this to your realtor. If he or she insists on moving faster on this that you'd like to, you may need to find a new realtor.

You could always offer on both. And my suggestion is to offer the asking price. The lender appraises houses once the two parties are in contract. If the house is over-priced, your loan won't be approved for that amount anyway (in other words, the lender won't approve a $250,000 loan for a house that only appraises for $175,000, for example). Offering way more than the asking price is pointless (unless you want to make up the difference with cash) and low-balling the sellers may just **** them off and ruin your chances of getting the home you want.

Our realtor talked to our lender. In fact, our first realtor sucked and the second one - the one who got us our house - was recommended by our mortgage lady. She talked to our agent, told him what our price range was, when we were available to look at homes, etc.

EDIT: Make sure you get a fixed interest rate on your loan. Don't mess with adjustable rate loans or any other crap like that.