Many of our clients who move to the New Jersey suburbs are buying a home for the first time. We absolutely love working with first-time homebuyers!

If you’re getting ready to start your home search, it might feel like a bit of a daunting process. There’s a lot to consider as you move into this new chapter. As a first-time home buyer, here’s what you need to know:

1. Connect with a local real estate agent expert as soon as you’re thinking about buying a home.

We find that it’s best when first-time buyers reach out to us 6-12 months in advance of when they actually want to buy a home. There are so many things to figure out, and it’s really never too early to start planning. (We promise you’re not bothering us!)

2. Speak with a lender ASAP. Figure out your budget and price point.

We can help connect you with a trusted lender who will be able to help you figure out your budget, which will guide a lot of your home search. Our lender partners take great care of our first-time home buyers. Of course, the lender you end up working with is completely up to you, but we’re here to guide you if you need it.

Some people get concerned about running their credit too early, and that’s ok—at this point you can just tell your lender what you think your credit score is so they can get a ballpark estimate of what type of loan you might be qualified for.

3. Figure out how much you can afford AND how much money you actually want to spend.

Just because you can afford to spend a certain amount of money on a home might not mean you actually want to spend that much. Figure out what you’ll need for a down payment and how much your mortgage will be in addition to all of your other living expenses. Really honing in on your budget will help you make the best decision when you’re finally ready to make an offer on a house. We never want you to fall in love with a home you really can’t afford.

4. Narrow down the location you want to be in.

Location will depend a lot on your budget combined with your wish list, and once you’ve narrowed down the different New Jersey towns or neighborhoods you can afford, you can begin to look at other features. Consider how important schools are, what type of commute you want, and what different amenities you like to have close by, size of property, sensitivity to real estate property taxes and more!

5. We are firm believers in buying a home in a great location, even if it means your home might need a little work.

While you can update your home and put in a little sweat equity, your home’s location is something that you cannot change. You won’t be able to get rid of the highway noise, the busy road out front, or the unsightly utility lines on your street, but you CAN change things about your home.

Everyone wants a move-in ready house, so you’re competing for those homes alongside everyone else (including downsizers, move-up buyers, etc.). You can get a much better deal if you’re willing to do some updates while you build up your equity. We often see people are ready to “move up” after 3-5 years of living in a home—most first-time buyers don’t think they’re going to move in 3-5 years, but many people do!

6. What type of lifestyle do you desire?

If you want to live in a hip place where there are lots of good restaurants, you might want to live in a more “urban train town” like Cranford, Westfield, Morristown or Maplewood to name a few. Or maybe you want to live further out in the suburbs where you can have more space, more land, more value, and pay less in taxes. There seem to be always trade-offs at every price range.

7. Many of our first-time buyers are moving from Hoboken, Jersey City, or NYC.

That being the case, you might not have a car! You will definitely need a car to live in the New Jersey suburbs, so that’s something else to consider as you’re searching for a home.

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Tip: Many of our first-time home buyer clients love Berkeley Heights and choose to buy a home here. People also love Warren—it’s just the next town over and provides a lot of value for buyers.