Buying a house in the heat of the moment or making an offer with no subjects and no time to reconsider can be very dangerous.
When you are a first time purchaser there can be a target on your back that you don't know about. The pressure of the moment, your agent slipping in suggestions of " it a good deal" or "get it before it's gone" or even "trust me, it's worth it" when all is said and done you are the person holding the bag.
It's ok to make an offer, it's even ok to bid up the price, just never forget to put some safety nets in place. When purchasing a house these safety nets are referred to as subjects. The one that I recommend above all others is "subject to getting the home approved by a professional home inspector"
I know that we have made available a free do it yourself home inspection report but the report we have provided is just a preliminary report to help you look beyond the glazed over look in your eyes that is telling you that this is the house of your dreams and to instead look at the house more closely to see if you are just jumping into a dive.
Once you have made an offer and the offer has been accepted you then need to line up your financing and remove all subjects. This is the time where you can search out a professional home inspector of your choosing and have the inspector walk you through the home and explain to you some of the nuances of the home that you may not be aware of.
Here are a few of the details that they can go over with you. They should be able to show you where the main shut off for the homes water supply is and how to shut off the water, they can also do the same for the gas and the electricity.
When you purchase a home and especially your first home it probably will not come with any sort of instruction manual. So you should run your home inspector through the gears and have him explain everything to you so that you are not left in the dark after the home closes and you are left in charge.
Always use a home inspector and make sure they do a thorough walk through with you .
