That’s right, we are buying another home and renting out our current house!
When I tell people we are buying another home they often say we have an advantage.
It’s true we do have an advantage but it’s not what you think. The advantage we had is we listened to our own advice. The same advice we give all our clients.
Here were the steps we took to buy a great home.
We were Pre-Approved
Before we started looking for a home we got pre-approved with a great local lender. Not pre-qualified but pre-approved.
We provided the lender with all our information including our tax returns. This is especially important for those of us who are self-employed and have a difficult time qualifying for financing.
An underwriter reviewed our information and pre-approved us for a loan amount and provided that approval in writing.
Given that we were pre-approved, we are able to present an offer with better terms and a shorter close time. The seller had more confident in our ability to "close" on a home because we had all our ducks in a row. If we had waited to speak with a mortgage company until after the home came on the market it would have been too late and someone else would be buying this home.
Know The Market And Where You Will Compromise
It’s rare when someone gets a home that is perfect for him or her.
That’s why it is important to start viewing homes as early as possible to know the difference between the good homes and the homes you don’t like.
Most people have to compromise including me.
For example the home we are buying doesn’t have a gas stub for the BBQ so I will have to buy propane for our next cook out. We will also be cramming 3 garage spaces of “stuff” accumulated over the years into 2 spaces.
But, the yard is beautiful and ¼ acre and the home has high ceilings, a game room and a bedroom and full bath downstairs for Joyce’s parents to stay when they visit.
Plus the home is 3 blocks from our current home in a neighborhood we love.
Overall it is a great house and we will love living there.
Have A Great Realtor
I’m lucky I’m married to a great Realtor.
This home came on the market Friday afternoon. Before we even saw the home in person I told Joyce to get started on the contract because I could tell it was a great home just from looking at the pictures.
The sellers were out of the country and Joyce negotiated with the listing agent until late at night.
At 1:30 AM Saturday morning Joyce had the home under contract for us.
The listing agent had an open house scheduled for Saturday afternoon. At that point the home was still listed for sale and the agent hosting the open house didn’t know the home was under contract.
I stopped by the open house to see what other people thought. It was raining outside. The cars were lined up along the street and when I went inside I heard other people asking the agent how they could make an offer.
After the home was under contract the listing agent received 4 other offers, 2 of which were cash. If Joyce didn’t get the home under contract for us so quickly we would not have had a chance to buy the home.

Many people spend time visiting open houses before they establish a relationship with a Realtor. If I didn’t have a great Realtor already representing us it would have been too late for me to visit the open house and be able to buy the home.
We will be moving into the home in mid June. I’m sure we will have a party after we move in and we hope you join us.
If you would like to give yourself the best chance to buy a great home call/text Eric Peterson at 512-791-7473 or email at eric@koparealestate.com
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