Questions
The five we get before anyone books a viewing.
- How do I get pre-approved?
- Talk to a lender before you talk to us about specific houses — a pre-approval letter takes a day or two and changes what we can do for you in a competitive offer. We can introduce you to three local lenders and we take no referral fee from any of them.
- What are current closing costs?
- For buyers in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties, budget roughly 2% to 4% of the purchase price excluding your down payment, covering lender fees, title, recording, and prepaid taxes and insurance. Your lender's loan estimate is the number that matters and you should get one early.
- Which neighborhoods fit my needs?
- That depends on your commute, your school requirements, and — in this market more than most — your insurance tolerance. Our neighbourhood briefings set out the trade-off for each area, including the ones we would steer some buyers away from.
- How is a home's value estimated?
- From closed comparable sales in the same submarket, adjusted for size, condition, lot, and age, with the adjustments written down so you can argue with them. Automated estimates from listing portals are a starting point and are routinely wrong by six figures on older housing stock.
- Do you help out-of-state buyers?
- Yes, and a good portion of our work is exactly that. We do neighbourhood briefings by video before you fly in, then arrange viewings geographically across two days. We will also tell you honestly when a property you have found online is not what the photographs suggest.