Purchasing A New Home: What You Need To Know

What do you need to know when purchasing a new home? I have learned a lot purchasing my third home, and I want to share some insights with you so you can thrive more and lead your family in the home-buying process:

Some things we will be discussing are:
What is your why for buying a home?
Praying for your new home.
Having good representation.
Communicating with your spouse.
Inspections, home insurance, and getting a mortgage.
Being prepared to close.
It will probably go differently than what you imagined at the beginning, but it will usually all work out in the end.

Also, If there is a topic you are interested in me talking about or have questions, please send it to knightbri@gmail.com. You can also check out my website at brianjknight.com. I am on Facebook and have a private group called Thriving Fatherhood. I would love to connect with you there. 

Also, if you would be interested in working with me or having me mentor you on your journey back from surviving to thriving in fatherhood, then send me an email or reach out to me through my website, and we can set up a call to see if I can help you to thrive more in your fatherhood journey. 

Transcript

Welcome to the Thriving Fatherhood Podcast, where we are living and working in the trenches to go from surviving to thriving in this mission field called fatherhood. 

My name is Brian Knight. I am a father of three, and my newest edition is just seven weeks old. How are you thriving fathers doing out there? This is one of the highlights of my week is to come on here and talk with you men about life. It’s funny, I have so much life happening right now that it is not very difficult to think of a podcast topic because there is something always going on in the Knight household that pertains to fathers. 

One thing that is happening is we are closing on a new home this Friday. This is a new build, and it will be Bethany’s first ever home she has bought, and my third, I believe.  It has been since 2008 since I bought my last home, so things are a little different now, and the market is much different than it was back then. I have learned a lot through this process I believe that can be part of you thriving as a father and leader in your home, and I want to share that with you today.

What is your why: Mother-in-law suite, neighborhood, more space, price, my mother is nearby. Be careful with your emotions (the first property we looked at). The end of the run-up.

Praying about your move – A move is huge; make sure you are consulting and praying for God's help and guidance. It is so easy to take everything on as ourselves and say we got it all. That may be true, but you may not, and God is there in case you fall.  I have used this opportunity to involve my spouse and our two oldest children. They are making the connection between prayer and our new home. 

Involving your spouse in the conversation – communication is big. My wife is not a numbers person, but I involve her in the conversation. 

Have good representation – the main people I have been dealing with are the builder’s sales agent, the construction manager for my home, my realtor, my home inspector, and my mortgage lender. You need people with expertise that are on your team and do this new home-buying stuff all the time. Otherwise, you will miss things. It pays to have good representation. 

Get it inspected – 450; it is worth it for peace of mind. Frame and new home inspection. Stuff will happen, but at least you know you did everything you could to prevent it. One small thing could make up for the cost of your inspection. Your inspector works for you and represents you on this major asset you are about to purchase and get locked into paying for a long time. 

Home Insurance – local agency for representation vs a big box.  Look at the coverages, especially the dwelling coverages, and the deductibles, amount to tear down and rebuild, flood, earthquake. You pay ahead of time, so when you sell, you will get your money back. You want a company to cover you that has a good track record with customer satisfaction. 

Mortgage Company – I went with the builder because they were efficient, provided a decent interest rate (talk more about that and anxiety), and they offered a 5K credit. I could not seem to get this matched from other mortgage companies locally. Story of how I applied with another lender, and after they approved me, they came back later and said I needed to pay my house off. Good thing I did not owe a lot of money. 

Being prepared to close – This is huge; make sure you address all your problems or issues with the property before you close, not after, because, for the most part, you will move from high priority to very low priority. My approach was to get to know the construction manager and let him know that I appreciated him, but I was keeping an eye on the property by getting it inspected and visiting it frequently. The last week before closing is critical (tell them what you are doing) 

It has all worked out very well – Timing with the baby, me being off, Bethany able to lift again, and my mom settled in so she can help with the kids. We will be settled by the time we start moving my mother-in-law. She will be paying us a modest rent because she basically can not afford to live on her own. 

That is what I have for you today; if you feel this show has been valuable to you, I encourage you to share it with other father who could gain some insight from it and wants more thriving in their lives. 

Also, if there is a topic you are interested in me talking about or have questions, please send it to knightbri@gmail.com. You can also check out my website at brianjknight.com, and the private Facebook group called Thriving Fatherhood. 

Also, if you would be interested in working with me or having me mentor you on your journey back from surviving to thriving in fatherhood, then send me an email or reach out to me through my website, and we can set up a call to see if I can help you to thrive more in your fatherhood journey. 

Thank you for listening, and until next week, continue thriving in fatherhood.