How much does is Cost to Own a Home By John Biondolillo, BCK Real Estate Company Vermont

BCK Real Estate John Biondolillo

By John Biondolillo, BCK Real Estate Vermont

Many home buyers are often mistaken in calculating the costs of their homeownership. They figure that affording the mortgage, insurance, and real estate taxes means affording a home. Unfortunately, there are still many costs to be thrown into the equation.

For instance, the expenses that a home owner will be responsible for usually consist of the mortgage payments, real estate taxes, homeowner’s insurance, homeowner’s assessments, utilities (electricity, gas, satellite, etc.), garbage collection, water and sewage, repairs and maintenance of both the interior and exterior, landscaping and grounds maintenance, and perhaps even snow removal (depending on the climate).

Some of these payments are fixed and can be predicted monthly (for example, the mortgage payment), yet some like utilities and water will vary from month to month or season to season, and can not so easily be predicted. Property taxes are another matter to be dealt with; and, although may vary from state to state, a homeowner can generally anticipate their taxes to be anywhere from one to three percent of the homes market value.

Therefore, when determining whether a home can be afforded or not, all of these expenses must be taken into account, and it is never a bad idea to put away a few thousand dollars just for those surprise repairs that could not have been anticipated.  

Your real estate agent at BCK Real Estate can help you estimate the costs of home ownership to ensure that you are placed in a home that you can afford and enjoy for many years to come.

BCK Real Estate now has Vermont Realtors in six real estate offices in Vermont and if you are looking to buy or sell a home in Barre, Montpelier, Northfield, Waterbury, Rochester and Stowe, Vermont. We are your source for Vermont Real Estate. Email us at info@BCKrealestate.com.  This blog is provided for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed real estate professional.

You can also contact our individual offices:

BCK Barre VT   86 North Main Street  Barre, VT 05641   (802)479-3366

BCK Montpelier  15 State Street     Montpelier, VT 05602   (802)229-4242

BCK Northfield    17 East Street  Northfield, VT 05663  (802)485-7400

BCK Waterbury    21 North Main Street  Waterbury, VT 05676  (802)241-2000

BCK Rochester      42 North Main Street  Rochester, VT 05767  (802)767-9900

Stowe Realty/ BCK Real Estate  - 254 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT 05672  (802) 253-8484

5 Ways to make Home Buying Easier By John Biondolillo, BCK Real Estate Company Vermont

BCK Real Estate Vermont John Biondolillo

By John Biondolillo, BCK Real Estate Vermont

Buying a home can be difficult enough knowing everything there is to know about the process. However, there are some things that can help a home buying experience flow a little better.

First, getting pre-approved for a home loan is extremely helpful. It lets the buyer know exactly what price range they have to work with, and prevents them from wasting time looking at homes out of this range. Also, knowingly looking at a home out of a buyers price range, in hopes to talk down the cost to an affordable one is not the best of ideas, and often just creates false hope.

Second, always work with a buyer broker. A buyer often does not have to pay any money out of pocket to consult a broker, and there is really no reason to go about home buying on your own. A broker can inform a buyer about the home, the sales history of the surrounding neighborhood, the demographics, and may prevent a buyer from wasting money on the wrong home.

Third, when purchasing a home, you are also buying into the neighborhood surrounding it. It is important to get familiar with the neighborhood and town/city before making an offer on a house. What is the crime rate? How do the neighbors like living in the area?

Forth, buyers must make sure to protect themselves. Hire an attorney, make sure the contract carries the right contingencies, and buy enough homeowner’s insurance. As the value of a buyer’s home increases, so should the insurance on it.

Fifth, buyer’s expectations of a home should be kept reasonable. If investing in an older home, there are likely to be older problems, and more of them. Know going into the deal that all homes, even new, are at least on step away from perfection.     

BCK Real Estate now has Vermont Realtors in six real estate offices in Vermont and if you are looking to buy or sell a home in Barre, Montpelier, Northfield, Waterbury, Rochester and Stowe, Vermont. We are your source for Vermont Real Estate. Email us at info@BCKrealestate.com.  This blog is provided for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed real estate professional.

You can also contact our individual offices:

BCK Barre VT   86 North Main Street  Barre, VT 05641   (802)479-3366

BCK Montpelier  15 State Street     Montpelier, VT 05602   (802)229-4242

BCK Northfield    17 East Street  Northfield, VT 05663  (802)485-7400

BCK Waterbury    21 North Main Street  Waterbury, VT 05676  (802)241-2000

BCK Rochester      42 North Main Street  Rochester, VT 05767  (802)767-9900

Stowe Realty/ BCK Real Estate  - 254 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT 05672  (802) 253-8484