Having a solid team on your side when purchasing or selling a home is so, so important and I cannot stress this enough.

Purchasing a home is one of the biggest financial decisions you will ever make in your life. Please do not go at it alone and please do not just automatically choose some random Joe Schmo or the person who happens to be on the other end of your calls to Zillow. (P.S. no offense to any realtors on Zillow - I am sometimes one of those lucky ones that you will get on the other end on the phone as well).

My point is - be sure to VET the team you are choosing thoroughly - ask people you know & trust for referrals, read reviews online, & do your research before selecting someone for the job. 

There are SO many important people you deal with when purchasing a home, but here's your top five "most important players" in my personal opinion...

1. Your lender - This is arguably the most important person in a real estate transaction, if you are financing your purchase. Your lender is responsible for the process of getting you that mortgage that you need to buy your home. You should NOT be out shopping for homes without knowing exactly how much you qualify for first. There's nothing worse than falling in love with homes that you can't even afford to purchase. 

A good lender will be able to point out the best mortgage products for you, let you know how much cash you need to bring to the closing table, and run numbers to show what your monthly payment will be like to make sure you are staying in a comfortable range. When you find a home you like, they will be able to tell you if you can actually afford it or not. Keep in mind that affordability depends on many other factors besides just purchase price - including taxes, insurance, etc. 

2. Your attorney - In New York State, only a licensed attorney has the right to legally sign off on contracts relating to the sale of a home. 9 out of 10 times, your realtor will write up your offer - but until BOTH the buyers attorney & sellers attorney sign off on approval of the contract, it ultimately means nothing. Keep this in mind!!

White it is absolutely wonderful to hear the words "offer accepted" on a home you love, just know that until you are officially through the Attorney Approval period, you are not really locked in. I have been in situations before where we get an offer accepted on a property just to have it pulled out from under us because the seller got a better offer before their attorney signed off. On the other hand, a buyer can also change their mind or get "cold feet" after getting their offer accepted, and back out without penalty during this time as well.

3. Your inspector - Having a great home inspector is absolutely ESSENTIAL! Please make sure that you are dealing with someone with experience, who is knowledgeable and can point out any major issues or minor maintenance items that you'll need to take care of when you purchase. My favorite inspectors are the ones that will TEACH you about the home, which is probably one of the biggest assets you will have in your life. You want to make sure that you know how to properly take care of this asset. 

4. Your insurance agent - Homeowner's insurance is usually only required if you are obtaining a mortgage on a home. When purchasing a property with cash or when your home mortgage is paid off, you can choose to skip out on insurance, which I would NEVER EVER recommend! Regardless if your home is paid off or not, it is absolutely necessary to protect your biggest asset. Especially with the uncertainty in the world right now including climate change, uncontrollable weather, natural disasters, and just crazy people in general... make sure that you are protected. Shop around for insurance and make sure your insurance agent sets you up with solid coverage and a policy that will deliver, should you ever need to use it. 

5. Last, but not least... Your Realtor! Having a great Realtor to help you navigate the homebuying process and to get you through hurdles will make your journey 100x easier. You want to have someone who has first hand experience dealing with challenges you may not be familiar with such as inspection issues, creative negotiating tactics, and most importantly, knowing solutions to problems and also knowing when it's time to walk away. 

Your Realtor should basically be your liaison of the transaction and be guiding you from start to finish on what you need to be doing, and when you need to do it. If you feel like you do not have any knowledge on what the heck is going on, you may have the wrong Realtor. 

Your Realtor should also have a large network of highly recommended individuals when you are choosing your team - from lenders and attorneys to inspectors and contractors. The list goes on and on but make sure to ask your Realtor for individuals that they have worked with, that they trust, and that they would use to buy their own home. 

Teamwork makes the dreams work! Please do not go through a real estate transaction without a solid, vetted team. Make sure you get references and look at reviews online for everyone you will be working with. Talk to people that you know and trust for referrals. 

We are only as strong as our weakest player. Even just one bad person on your team can make your whole transaction a nightmare, or make your deal completely fall apart. Don't let that happen! 

If you're looking for any referrals or recommendations for anyone that I mentioned above, please do not hesitate to reach out to me, even if I am not your designated Realtor. I am so happy to help and share my resources with any & everyone! 

See you next week when we dive a little deeper into each of the above "team players," and I will share some stories/experiences with you - and boy, do I have some good ones! So don't miss out - subscribe to my weekly newsletter or my blog posts below, or follow me on social media for my video series, Win with Huynh! :)