I have wanted to buy a home of my very own for quite some time. That is why I jumped on the chance to share this post from Erin King Jax Historic Realty, and their 5 tips for buying your first home . While this post is sponsored, it is loaded with great information. I hope you will enjoy it!

Buying your first home can be a very exciting experience, but it can also be stressful if you do not know what to look for or what steps to take. Finding a great real estate agent to help you find that perfect home can eliminate a lot of this stress, along with other things you can do to make the process as easy as possible. Below are some tips to help you through the experience of buying your first home:

Get Pre-Approved Before Looking At Homes

Getting pre-approved is essential before looking at homes. Getting pre-approved not only helps you figure out your budget when it comes to buying a home, but it can also point out any obstacles when it comes to getting approved, before you fall in love with a home. The housing market is fast-paced and if you are not pre-approved, you might end up losing a home that you love to another individual or couple that is pre-approved to secure a loan. Being pre-approved when making an offer on a home shows the sellers that you are serious about the purchase.

Make Sure Your Real Estate Agent Is Knowledgeable When It Comes to The Location

You need a real estate agent that is knowledgeable when it comes to the location that you are wanting to buy in, especially if you are not very informed about the area yourself. This will not only help you focus on homes that are located within the best areas of the city, but your real estate agent will know details that can help you make a smart financial decision when it comes to buying a home in a certain area of the town.

For example, Erin King Jax Historic Realty has years of experience in the Jacksonville housing market. He knows how crucial it is for you to find relevant and up-to-date information on not only the housing market, but also the area, in general. That is why his website (and overall goal) is to be your one-stop shop for all of your real estate needs in Jacksonville.

Erin King is here to make your home buying experience smooth and stress-free. He is a Best of Zillow® REALTOR® who specializes in Jacksonville’s historic neighborhoods. “Erin, who previously worked in financial services and holds an MBA with an economics focus, brings a deep understanding of buying and selling historic homes.

He enjoys sharing that knowledge with clients, from how to fit a 21st century lifestyle into a historic home and where to seek financing for renovation with a home purchase, to accurately pricing homes in Historic Districts such as Riverside, Avondale, Ortega, Springfield, Murray Hill, and San Marco. Erin, who prides himself on close attention to detail and quick response to clients, has put together a support team of contractors and other professionals who help transactions go smoothly.”

Deciding to buy your first home is a huge life step and in order to make it less stressful for you, Erin King offers a first-time home buyer coaching session where he will educate and prepare you for making a successful transaction. The session is free with no obligations at all! Check out his website today for more information on the coaching session and how he can help you find your first home.

Know The Difference Between Your Wants And Needs

We could all describe our dream house and all of the features that it would have. However, it is not always smart to only consider houses with all of these features that we want. When buying a house, particularly if you are on a budget, it is critical to assess what you want in a house, and what you actually need. Knowing the difference between your wants and needs can same you some money while still leaving you with a house that you love.

For example, if you want a basement for entertaining guests and storing those boxes of Christmas decorations, but you find a less expensive house without a basement but with a great living room for entertaining and plenty of storage space in the attic, it might be a better decision to go with the house without the basement and save some money. In this situation, the basement is a want, not a need. Remember, you have plenty of life to own your dream home. Your very first home doesn’t have to be your last!

Keep An Open Mind

Buying your first home is just that: a first home. If you go into the process with an idea of what you will buy in your head, you might just end up disappointed by what is out there for you. Of course, as I already mentioned, it is important to know what you need and you should not sacrifice needs, but keeping an open mind throughout the process can help you not only find a new home, but love it even more!

Do Not Make Any Large Purchases

This is a mistake that people commonly make. After getting pre-approved, you cannot make any large purchases on your credit cards! Wait until after you leave the closing table to make any large purchases such as appliances or furniture. What a lot of people do not know is that they can lose the purchase if they are willy nilly with their finances during the home buying process, so be very careful.

In accordance with FTC guidelines, this post is sponsored. To learn more about my disclosure policy, click here.

Did you just purchase a home and are feeling a bit overwhelmed in the process of trying to fix it up yourself? If you’re looking at a home remodel or just attempting to fix that annoying light flicker in your closet, you’ll want to hire a professional electrician to the job right.

You’ll come to find out how much electricians charge, and why they might cost a little more than you think for what they do.

There are also some great tips to keep your project on the lower end of your budget while also having an idea of what projects electricians work on, and why you may need to hire a specialist rather than attempting to do this on your own.

The most important thing is to determine what type of questions you’ll want to ask your contractor before the project begins, and then to have follow up questions ready to ask for  when your project is over.

One of the things you’ll want to get checked off your list when hiring an electrician is perhaps one of the most important ones – how much do they cost? That’s a fair and reasonable question to ask. Generally the per hour rate they charge runs between roughly $50-$100.

Asking how much they charge per hour is a fair and reasonable question when hiring an electrician.

It’ll vary depending on where you live as well as what type of professional you are thinking of hiring. Usually if you live in a nicer area, you’ll expect to pay on that higher scale.

Also the licensing level may also increase your price as well. Typically you pay higher for the first hour and their cost covers their travel and time expense.

If you have an emergency situation in the middle of the night, they may up their fee for a higher rate on weekends or after hours. A truly skilled well equipped professional with a truck that is filled with a lot of parts, may charge a higher fee as well, but it may be a much smarter choice than someone who is inexperienced and has various tools that might not get the job done.

Bottom line – you’ll want someone who is professional, accommodating, reasonably priced, and will get the job done quickly and efficiently.

Before the electrician comes you’ll want to think of a few preparation tips to make sure you touch base on with them before you hire. This means you want to be as detailed in describing your needs of your contractor as possible.

The more they know ahead of time, the better and quicker the job will be done to your satisfaction. Even before they arrive at your home, I would prepare a very detailed list of items you want serviced. They have a budget of their time for a service call so you want to make sure you hit every point while you have their time and attention.

Make sure that the electrical panel box is also easily accessible. After all, you’ll pay for the time it takes to access it. Also, clear away and furniture or items that may be difficult to get too if you need them to work in a specific area.

This saves you time again when they are there with you. I also would ask any questions you have about the project before they start. In fact, to save time and money, ask before they arrive to get to work.

The last thing you want is for them to not have the right tool for the job, and end up charging you the fee it takes to drive and retrieve it!

Most are happy to run through the problem and the process of how they will go about fixing it. Ask them about issues after the work is complete too, and how to prevent problems in the future.

In some cases, you’ll be able to pay either at the time of service or a bill will be mailed to you to pay at a later date. Make sure you have the fee in writing before they leave if they will be mailing you a bill, however.

American Electric – Your Top Choice For Hiring an Electrician in Jacksonville

Are you thinking that you need to find someone to do all of these things for you may be overwhelming? Not to worry if you live in the Florida area.

Along with their credentials, you also want to find an individual who has a business understanding and a great up to date knowledge of the best products, tools and device as well as someone who has very good interpersonal skills.

If you live in the Jacksonville, Florida area, one such electrician company that you’ll need to check out that encompasses all of these qualities are the friendly staff at American Electric.

Started with Master Electrician, Mike Murphy who shared this simple idea to provide the highest quality electrical contracting service with the best talent in business with a can do attitude to the city of Jacksonville.

Mike began manning the phones from his home office when he first began and then began on a military electrical contracting jobs with a small team of dedicated electrical technicians.

They respond extremely quickly with your call  and with an experienced electrician right at your doorstep, they are there to help complete the job to your immediate satisfaction.

They are fully licensed, have 5 star ratings on their google page and come highly recommended with all their qualifications and experience that you are looking for!

The customers at American Electric also have a 24/7 number you can call for all your emergency needs day or night so you get an answer right away!

Now that is great customer service and one that you’ll recommend and feel comfortable using again and again. Truly, an excellent electrician company is a phone call away.

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