Whether you’re buying your first home, a vacation or retirement condo, a beach getaway, or an investment rental property, there are 6 basic steps you’ll need to complete successfully. Some of the details may vary slightly from area to area within Florida, but the general steps and most of the details will remain statewide. This information comes from my experience as a buyer’s agent in the Tampa Bay area.
The six steps that I will cover in this article series are:
1. Select the general area.
2. Start of financial preparations.
3. Search and find the right property for you.
4. Negotiation of the contract.
5. Go from contract to closing.
6. Closing the deal.
In this first part of the article series, I’ll cover step 1: Select the general area.
1. Select the general area.
In some cases, this may already be done for you. If you are moving for work reasons to a specific area of Florida or if you are moving to be some distance from family members, you already know the general area you want to move to.
If this is not the case for you, you will need to decide where you want to be and this may involve doing research in different parts of the state. You will need to examine the factors that are important to you, such as the weather; schools; cost of living; distance to airports, beaches, major cities, etc .; and the job market, just to name a few. But you will need to know what is most important to you and I recommend that you write a clear and accurate description of the ideal location for you before beginning your research.
Review the following list to help reduce this:
- Climate: the further south, the hotter
- Near water or inland; how close to the beaches
- Large metropolitan area, more rural or smaller city near a large city
- Distance to the nearest main airport
- Availability of work in your field or activities for retirees.
- Pricing: upscale areas like Miami, Naples, West Palm, Sarasota; intermediate areas like Tampa / St. Pete / Clearwater, Orlando, Jacksonville
By deciding what you are looking for in relation to each of those points, and then comparing it to what each area of the state has to offer, you should be able to eliminate some areas of the state and narrow your options down to a few areas. I recommend continuing to reduce the areas until you have 1 or 2 left that suit all or most of your needs.
Much of the information you need to make your decision can now be obtained from the Internet. You can also get information from friends or family who live here, by contacting the appropriate city or county departments, or by local real estate agents. It would also be a good idea to visit the area or areas that you think might be best for you to review in person. Whichever way you choose to do it, make sure you don’t skimp on your research.
When you have the general area in mind, it is time to start with the next step, which is to begin financial preparations for your purchase. I’ll cover this step in detail in the next article in this series.
