How to Buy a Home: First-Time Homebuyer Tips

Are you thinking about purchasing your first home? We know the homebuying process can be overwhelming with many decisions to make and questions to answer, especially if you are a first-time homebuyer. At HHHunt, we believe it’s how you live that matters, and we’ve put together some quick tips to help you with the process. From answering questions about how much house you can afford to how the homebuying process works, we want to ensure you have everything you need to know about buying a new construction home or a resale home.

If you are looking for specific information on the HHHunt Homes process, we invite you to check out this helpful guide!

How Much House Can I Afford?

As a first-time homebuyer, one of the first things you should consider is how much home you can afford. The Home Affordability Calculator from Realtor.com is a great tool that takes your annual income, monthly debt and down payment into consideration. At HHHunt, our New Home Advisors can help you determine your buying power as well.  

How Do I Check My Credit Score?

It is a good idea to check your credit score in advance. Remember that you can check your credit scores for free! Major credit agencies like Experian and Equifax will try to sell you credit monitoring subscriptions. However, you are entitled to receive FREE copies of your credit score from these agencies. While general guidance is widely shared on how to improve your credit score, we encourage you to talk to your lender for the best advice before taking other recommendations.  

Should I Get Pre-Approved for a Mortgage?

At HHHunt, we build new construction homes, and the process for new construction is a bit different than resale. For our process, you do not need to get pre-approved before meeting with a New Home Advisor. We have a strong network of preferred lenders who work closely with our customers. Our relationship with these lenders is not based on referral fees. We selected these lenders because they offer our homebuyers the best programs and overall experience. Our New Home Advisors can share the current interest rates and help you discover your buying power through a quick appointment. We can also help you benefit from our lender relationships.

If you are in the market for a resale home, it is a good idea to consider getting pre-approved for a mortgage. Different banks offer different incentives, allowing you to shop around to find the best fit for you. A pre-approval will also show agents that you are serious about purchasing, and it can help you move fast if the right opportunity comes along.

Do I Need a Realtor?

Whether you need a realtor or not also depends on if you are looking for a new construction home or a resale home. You do not need a realtor for our new construction homes. Our New Home Advisors are here to help you every step of the way in your new home search. If you were already working with a realtor who helped you find us, of course, we are also happy to work with them.

Realtors are extremely helpful for first-time homebuyers looking to buy a resale home. They will outline all the steps to buying a home and guide you through the process. As a first-time homebuyer, you can tell a realtor what you are looking to spend, where you want to live, and the type of home you are looking to purchase. They will then be able to take that information and focus exactly on those parameters.  

Should I Purchase a New Home or a Resale Home?

That is a very personal question. There are many benefits to purchasing a new construction home, including lower maintenance costs, energy efficiency, and the comfort of knowing your home is under a comprehensive warranty if anything breaks. It all depends on your preferences.

How Long Does It Take to Buy Your First Home?

For our new construction homes, this depends on if the home is a completed home or a to-be-built home. If the home is completed, once you have put in a contract, you are normally able to close within 30-60 days. We recommend speaking to a New Home Advisor in the community you are interested in so they can share the various options for timelines in that community.

The process with a resale home can take several months, depending on the inventory in your market, but you can usually close within 30-90 days once you have a contract.

Is It Difficult to Buy a First Home?

The homebuying market has been highly active over the past two years, deterring many first-time homebuyers. At HHHunt, we are committed to making your experience enjoyable if you want to build your dream home with us. Our New Home Advisor will meet with you to help you discover a community that fits your lifestyle, discuss home options and finishes, find a move-in ready home or a new construction lot, and so much more.

On behalf of everyone at HHHunt, we wish you all the best on your homebuying journey. Buying your first home should be a fun, exciting and rewarding experience. We have been helping first-time homebuyers build their dream home for over 30 years. You can hear directly from recent first-time homebuyers, Shruti And Ravish, about our process in this video.

At HHHunt, we offer home choices designed for how you live – whether that’s an apartment home, townhome, condo or single-family home. We invite you to explore our new home communities in Richmond, Williamsburg, and Hampton Roads in Virginia or in Raleigh, North Carolina and its surrounding areas.