5 Home-Buying Myths to Ignore

Published On: April 10, 2022|Categories: Blog, Home Buyers|Tags: 5 Home-Buying Myths to Ignore, Home-Buying Myths to Ignore|

Real estate is full of myths, particularly when it comes to buying a home. Check out these five home-buying myths it’s safe to ignore in 2022.

5 Home-Buying Myths to Ignore

If you’re like many people, you don’t buy homes every day. that means you may not be incredibly familiar with all the ins and outs of the process, so check out these five common home-buying myths you should ignore:

Your credit score needs to be high to buy a home.
The highest offer always wins.
Waiving a home inspection might be a good idea.
It’s cheaper to rent than to own.
You need a 20 percent down payment.

Scroll down for a closer look at each.

$785,000

410 Riverside Drive Jasper, Indiana

7 Beds 6 Baths 5,132 SqFt 1.13 Acres

Listing courtesy of Brenda Welsh from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$524,700

3289 St. Charles Street Jasper, Indiana

4 Beds 4 Baths 3,906 SqFt 0.595 Acres

Listing courtesy of Brenda Welsh from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$479,000

282 Kaywood Lane Jasper, Indiana

4 Beds 4 Baths 3,627 SqFt 0.8 Acres

Listing courtesy of RyanCraig from RE/MAX Local.

$420,000

4298 W Beringer Drive Jasper, Indiana

4 Beds 3 Baths 1,636 SqFt 0.48 Acres

Listing courtesy of Opal Sermersheim from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$409,900

1479 Martha Drive Jasper, Indiana

3 Beds 4 Baths 3,087 SqFt 0.46 Acres

Listing courtesy of Gary Schnell from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$359,700

1735 W 5th Street Jasper, Indiana

3 Beds 3 Baths 2,719 SqFt 0.82 Acres

Listing courtesy of Brenda Welsh from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$354,700

464 Kluemper Road Jasper, Indiana

3 Beds 2 Baths 1,851 SqFt

Listing courtesy of Brenda Welsh from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$349,700

375 Daisy Lane Jasper, Indiana

4 Beds 4 Baths 3,274 SqFt 0.31 Acres

Listing courtesy of Brenda Welsh from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$329,700

391 Gardenia Lane Jasper, Indiana

3 Beds 3 Baths 2,977 SqFt 0.25 Acres

Listing courtesy of Brenda Welsh from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

$262,900

4020 N Portersville Road Jasper, Indiana

3 Beds 2 Baths 1,258 SqFt 0.47 Acres

Listing courtesy of Gary Schnell from SELL4FREE-WELSH REALTY CORPORATION.

Home-Buying Myth #1: Your Credit Score Needs to Be High to Buy a Home

You don’t need an exceptionally high credit score to buy a home. In fact, many people are approved with credit scores in the 640 range. However, you do need to know that the higher your credit score is, the lower your interest rates are likely to be. Lenders are typically more willing to offer favorable terms to people with higher credit scores.

Home-Buying Myth #2: The Highest Offer Always Wins

contrary to popular belief, the highest offer doesn’t always win. In fact, some sellers aren’t only interested in money; sometimes they simply want someone who can close according to their schedule or who will love and care for the home the way they did. Naturally, you should always put out your best offer – but don’t count yourself out if someone comes along and offers more.

Home-Buying Myth #3: Waiving a Home Inspection Might Be a Good Idea

Sometimes buyers believe that if they waive their right to a home inspection, a seller will be more likely to accept their offer. However, it’s almost always a mistake to waive your right to a home inspection. That’s because the inspection is your one chance to get a good look at everything that may be wrong with the home before you buy. If a home has issues, you can ask the seller to repair them, give you a credit so you can repair them, or lower the asking price. Without an inspection, though, you’ve lost any recourse you had – and you likely won’t find out about the home’s issues until you’re all settled in.

Home-Buying Myth #4: It’s Cheaper to Rent Than to Own

Although sometimes it’s cheaper to pay rent than to make a mortgage payment, over the long term, it’s usually better to buy. If you plan to live in a home for a couple years or more, you may be better off buying. You should talk to a real estate agent and a lender to find out how much house you can afford.

Home-Buying Myth #5: You Need a 20 Percent Down Payment

Although a 20 percent down payment is the gold standard, you don’t necessarily need that much to purchase a home. In fact, there are loan programs that allow you to buy with as little as 3 percent down – and some with nothing down (such as the VA loan program).

You do need to know, though, that if you put down less than 20 percent (outside some government-backed loan programs) your lender may require you to purchase private mortgage insurance.

Are You Thinking of Buying a Home in Dubois County?

Use our site to search homes for sale in Jasper, Dubois, Spencer, Martin and Davis counties, as well as all the surrounding communities. Unlike the “big name” sites out there, at Sell 4 Free Welsh Realty, our site is directly connected to our local MLS. We update it with new homes every hour.

Sign up for new listing alerts so you can stay on top of the newest homes for sale – and get price change alerts so you can stay ahead of other buyers and beat them to the hottest deals!