My Hattiesburg

Hattiesburg Apartments

Looking for an apartment in Hattiesburg can be a tough job if you live out of town. The Hattiesburg apartment market for renters can be very time consuming since there’s a lot out there, but not a lot of things available. I’ve compiled a few links to help out with this search.

Apartment Hunting Checklist – comprehensive checklist to narrow down your choices.

My Hattiesburg Rentals — Should be a good list to look over somewhere in the near future.

Listings at the Yellowpages.com — Nice place to start looking.

My Hattiesburg Classifieds — Finally, you can post a message on our forums asking about what is available. One of the real estate agents that frequent the site may be able to help.

10 Questions to ask your real estate agent

I found an excellent article that gives you 10 questions to ask your real estate agent when listing your Hattiesburg home for sale.

Q: How are you going to advertise my home?
A: Your home will be in newspapers, the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), our realty website, neighborhood postcards, open houses. In addition, our realty company is on billboards, sends mass mailings/emails so we are constantly driving traffic and eyes to your home.
TIP: How often are these things being done? Are we talking daily? Are you onsite for the open houses or is there some lackey standing in for you on the weekend? Where specifically am I going to be in the newspaper? What newspapers? What websites? Who specifically is following up on leads?

7 Steps in Buying a Hattiesburg Home

Step 1: Find out your price range.
I eluded to this in a earlier post but I will say it again for those who haven’t read that one. I have devised a formula to give you some kind of idea in how much of a home payment you can handle.

Gross Monthly Income * .28 = Projected Monthly Home Payment

For example: If I made $2000 a month the I would say 2000 * .28 = 560. So this means that I would be able to afford a house payment in the area of $560.

Step 2: Get a Loan Pre-Approval
You can do this by going to a direct lender such as a bank or to a mortgage broker. After the process is over they will give you a pre-approval letter in which states the certain size mortgage that you qualify for. This letter will be very helpful to prove to real estate agents and sellers that you are not just window shopping.

Step 3: Hiring an Agent (Buyers Agent)
Using a agent can be very advantageous to a buyer. Agents have access to a greater number of properties that other wise you may have never found. They also have different ways in searching for properties that the general public do not have. When signing with a agent make sure that it is a buyers agreement. On signing this agreement the agent is bound by law to look out for your best interest. Before signing the contract you will need to negotiate on their fees and the amount of service you will receive for those fees, and you can arrange for them to be paid out of the transaction, not out of your pocket. When using a agent you need to communicate clearly on what type of property, price range, and area you are interested in.

Step 4: Write a Offer Contract
When you find the house that meets the criteria of your likes and dislikes and you think that it is the one you want then you will have to make an offer. The offer contract can be made through your agent or your attorney. In your offer contract be sure to spell out what you are willing to pay for and what you are not, when you want to close, and when you want to take possession of the home. Your contract should be contingent upon getting an inspection and evaluating the results. Should the inspection reveal a big problem, you and the seller can renegotiate the purchase price if you are still interested in buying the home.

Step 5: Getting the Loan Going
As soon as the seller accepts your contract you should go ahead and start following through with your loan. You should take a copy of the offer contract to the lender so they can start the loan process in earnest. If you have already been pre-approved it will pay off big in this step because the loan process will go somewhat quicker.

Step 6: The Appraisal and Inspection
The lender will arrange for the appraisal of the home, which may affect the terms of the loan or if the loan is granted at all. The liklihood of a house selling for more than the appraisal is slim but in such a case you will need to go back to the seller and renegotiate the price.

You will have to get the inspection arranged. Your agent will probably know of an inspector that you could use but you may also want to shop around in the phone book. If the inspector finds any major problems you will want to make sure the seller fixes them before you buy the home.

Step 7: Closing
Just because your at the closing table doesn’t mean that your out of the woods yet. Many things could still happen to jeopredize you getting the house. Some situations may include: the appraisal comes back the day before and is to low, your credit report had a unexpected glitch, or a problem with the house that wasn’t fixed by the seller. These are just a few problems that could occur on the day of closing and it may take time to handle these problems. That is why it is so important to do steps 1-6 to help insure closing goes smoothly and you get your new Hattiesburg home.

FSBO, where you become the agent

FSBO is one of the fastest growing ways to sell your home today. Many people consider selling their Hattiesburg home FSBO (For sale by owner) to bypass the realtor fees that come with signing with an agent. Most shy away from it because they want to find the most buyers and get the best price for their house. FSBO doesn’t have to be a daunting task that is only for the marketing major. With the internet, almost anyone can sell their own home with a little work and a good housing market like Hattiesburg is experiencing.

55% of home buyers found their home through the internet.

23% of home buyers, purchased their home through FSBO.

That number will certainly grow in the coming years as more and more FSBO sellers advertise on the internet, and FSBO sites that help you sell your own home are popping up all over the U.S. Suddenly, instead of $3000-$5000 commissions, you spend $300-$500. Marketing your home yourself takes time, effort, and risk, in exchange, you save money. Want to learn more? We urge you to read articles and books on the subject before selling your own home. There are things everyone should know about the process before starting it. Here are some informative books on selling your own home that will walk you through the process step-by-step.

The For Sale By Owner Kit (For Sale By Owner Kit)

The For Sale By Owner Handbook: FSBO FAQs: From Pricing Your Home Right And Increasing Its Curb Appeal To Negotiating The Contract And Hassle-free Closing

We will continue to take deeper looks into the the topic of FSBO as time goes on. It’s a subject that is certainly getting attention in the national market, and we think will soon be a major factor in the Hattiesburg real estate market as well.

Property West of Hattiesburg May Become Oak Grove City Limits

The final meeting of the Oak Grove Property Owners Association is tonight May 23 at 6:30 p.m in the Oak Grove High School auditorium. During this meeting the association will be discussing efforts to turn Oak Grove into a city.

The plans for the city stretch from just north of Hwy 98 to just south of Richburg Road and from just east of Hedgwood Road to just west of Hwy 589. This area covers about 20 square miles and would contain about 10,000 voters.

In order for the Oak Grove area to be turned into a city the association must get 6,667 signatures for petitions to be turned in to the chancery court.

This will be interesting to see how this all works out from a real estate point of view and the effects that it has on the population.

Thinking of moving west?

Many home owners in Hattiesburg frequently decide they want to move west to the Oak Grove area or east to Petal and it’s growing number of subdivisions.  With the current real estate market the way it is now, it’s hard to judge what’s going on in the market.  The U.S. real estate market seems to be slowing down, with home sales dropping, but Hattiesburg seems to still be on the rise with hurricane evacuees and many new businesses moving in the area.  If you’ve purchased a home in Hattiesburg, when is the best time to sell?   The Real Estate Journal tries to answer this question in it’s current article.  Click the link below to read more.
Timing The Sale of a Home When Neighborhood Turns for the Worse

Does Uncle Sam need to know about your Hattiesburg home for sale?

MSN Real Estate has a nice article on when to report your home sale and when you don’t have to. With the prices of Hattiesburg homes for sale right now, it’s a great article to read to make sure squeeze every bit of tax-free profit out of your real estate. From the article:

You qualify for tax-free profit on your home sale if:

1. You owned and lived in the house for two of the five years leading up to the sale; and
2. You did not sell another house — and claim tax-free profit on the deal — in the two years leading up to the time you sold this house.

Read more

What to Look for in a Home Inspector

When looking for a home inspector you should make sure the inspector you choose has alteast the characteristics below. Choosing a bad inspector could make buying or selling a home a nightmare.

• As of 7/1/2002 all home inspectors in Mississippi are required to be licensed.
• Experienced in home inspections in the geographic area in which your property is located.
• Adhere to the MHIB Standard of Practice/Code of Ethics.
• Stays current in his/her profession by continued education.
• Is accessible to you for question and clarifications before, during, and after the inspection.
• Provides you with a written report.
• Carries Errors and Omissions Insurance.

To learn more about Inspectors in the state of Mississippi visit the Mississippi Home Inspector Board website.

The 10 Biggest Home Buying Mistakes: Mistake 6-10

Mistake #6: Not Having the Home Properly Inspected
Get an inspection from a qualified and respected professional. Unneeded surprises could cost you in the long run.

Mistake #7: Not Getting What You Want Because You are Impatient
This is a big decision in your life. Impatient decisions can lead to big mistakes.

Mistake #8: Not Checking a Builder’s Reputation When Building a New Home
Talk to several people that live in the builder’s houses and get their likes and dislikes.

Mistake #9: Waiting for a Better Market and Interest Rates
A man once said “The rear view mirror is always clearer than the windshield”

Mistake #10: Not Buying at All
If you can afford a home and don’t make the purchase then you will be missing out on tax deductions, home appreciation, and building home equity.

The 10 Biggest Home Buying Mistakes: Mistake 1-5

David Weekley, CEO of Houston-based David Weekley Homes, is one of the country’s largest home builders. He has compiled a list of the 10 biggest mistakes people make when buying a home.

Mistake #1: Not Doing Your Homework
The old saying “knowledge is power” is so true and with the rise of the Internet there is a ton of information available to help prepare you to buy a home. So, there is really no excuse for going out unprepared.

Mistake #2: Trying to Make a Savvy Investment
You need to buy a house that fits the needs of your family. Don’t try to guess what is going to happen to the market in 10 years.

Mistake #3: Choosing a Poor Location
Is you home on a busy street? Is there a retail center out your back window? Choosing a house around a lot of hustle and bustle may wear on your nerves down the road.

Mistake #4: Overlooking a Inferior Floor Plan for and Attractive Exterior
The house you look at may have tons of curb appeal but you don’t do all your living in your yard. No matter how good the outside of a home looks you still need the inside of the home to be livable.

Mistake #5: Overlooking How the Home will Function for Your Family
How does your family really live? If you eat-in a lot you may want a nice big kitchen. Do you entertain enough to constitute having a formal dining room? Could you do some of your office work at home if you had a home office? The bottom line is that the house you pick should be functional for your family.