Buying a Home in San Francisco
First step: you should do is get a reputable realtor who has experience with San Francisco properties to represent you as a buyer's agent. The main reason you should do this is that it costs the you nothing and then you have someone to help you search, represent your interests and with negotiating the price for you.
Buyer's Agents are free to buyers. Why? Because the commission paid to the Buyer's Agent comes from the seller. Sellers when they list a property with a realtor (aka: Listing Agent), they agree to pay that Listing Agent a commission of usually between 5% -6% of the price the house sells for in San Francisco. The Listing Agent then in a separate agreement in order to find a buyer agrees to split a portion of that commission with the Buyer's Agent. If a person comes to the Listing Agent unrepresented then usually the Listing Agent will represent both the buyer and the seller and keep the whole 5% or 6% commission.
Second step: is to get yourself pre-approved from your bank or a mortgage broker so that you know how much you can afford to spend on purchasing a new house.
Third step: is to discuss with your spouse what both your wants and needs are in your new home. The reason to do this is that often one spouse wants to live in a quiet secluded area with no noise, meanwhile the husband may want the shortest commute next to a freeway, obviously someone is going to have to give and the sooner you both discuss your needs and come to an agreement the easier it will be for you to find the place you are looking. Here is a checklist that we give all my clients that may help you with this discussion.
Fourth step: search for properties. This can be done by going directly to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service for San Francisco), searching on the internet through sites like Trulia or Zillow, searching listings in the paper, or going to open houses. If you want just click on Properties and this will allow you to search the MLS. An agent can also be helpful at this step in helping you decide on neighborhoods, price points, unlisted properties, market trends, recent sales, and providing you with the most up to date properties.
Buyer's Agents are free to buyers. Why? Because the commission paid to the Buyer's Agent comes from the seller. Sellers when they list a property with a realtor (aka: Listing Agent), they agree to pay that Listing Agent a commission of usually between 5% -6% of the price the house sells for in San Francisco. The Listing Agent then in a separate agreement in order to find a buyer agrees to split a portion of that commission with the Buyer's Agent. If a person comes to the Listing Agent unrepresented then usually the Listing Agent will represent both the buyer and the seller and keep the whole 5% or 6% commission.
Second step: is to get yourself pre-approved from your bank or a mortgage broker so that you know how much you can afford to spend on purchasing a new house.
Third step: is to discuss with your spouse what both your wants and needs are in your new home. The reason to do this is that often one spouse wants to live in a quiet secluded area with no noise, meanwhile the husband may want the shortest commute next to a freeway, obviously someone is going to have to give and the sooner you both discuss your needs and come to an agreement the easier it will be for you to find the place you are looking. Here is a checklist that we give all my clients that may help you with this discussion.
Fourth step: search for properties. This can be done by going directly to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service for San Francisco), searching on the internet through sites like Trulia or Zillow, searching listings in the paper, or going to open houses. If you want just click on Properties and this will allow you to search the MLS. An agent can also be helpful at this step in helping you decide on neighborhoods, price points, unlisted properties, market trends, recent sales, and providing you with the most up to date properties.