Calgary Resale Home Buyers: Ask Lots of Questions!

Make Sure to Ask Lots of Questions When Buying a Resale Home!

When buying a Calgary home there are so many factors to consider and variables to plan for.

This is why it is so important to use a dedicated professional real estate agent and REALTOR® in Calgary to represent you and look after your best interests throughout every aspect of the purchasing process.

One important thing you can do as a buyer is to prepare a list of questions to ask any home seller.

Having a set of questions and finding out the answers either from the seller or your agent can really give you peace of mind when making such a large purchase like buying a home. Don't miss these ones:

Why have you decided to sell your home?

People relocate for a whole bunch of different reasons including upsizing / downsizing, life events, job relocation, retirement and marriage to name a few.

While you may not find out he exact details, asking why the seller is relocating could help determine how much room you have to negotiate.

If the seller needs to be out of the home soon, they may be willing to accept a lower offer. But then and again if the seller doesn't need to move quickly, that may leave little room for negotiating a better price.

See more at our Calgary Home Buyers Guide to Understanding Offers.

What do you enjoy the most about your home and why?

In most real estate transactions the buyer and seller may never even meet.

Most of the work in today's market are done by the real estate agents of the parties involved, but that doesn't mean you can't ask your agent to ask the seller what it was that they enjoyed about living in their home and why?

It's an important question a lot of us don't ask, but it can get the home seller to begin talking about their property and community.

You may learn something about the home that's good or about the neighbourhood which you otherwise would not have known pre-sale such as the friendly neighbours or how tight-knit the community is. It never asks to hurt!

Are you aware of any health or safety issues affecting the property?

I have heard of instances where a buyer made a purchase only to discover months after move-in that there was a large amount of radon in the rock underneath the house. This caused complications because of the buyers sensitivity to the radioactive material.

This is just one of countless examples of what kind of health or safety issues could be associated with a property.

Are you aware of any structural concerns?

I have seen instances where a buyer bought a property and found out that the basement concrete had a large crack in it at the worst possible time - in the middle of a rainstorm. The basement flooded and the buyer had to spend countless hours and dollars fixing the issue.

Avoid this all together and ask, or better yet, get a thorough home inspection! Why Are Home Inspections So Important Anyways?

Have you obtained the necessary permits and licenses required by all levels of government for building / zoning / bylaw compliance?

There have been other instances where electrician work, for example, was performed on a home without the proper permits being pulled. That means that the city was not aware of the work done to the home and that the work could have been performed by anybody. Don't risk it!

At the end of the day this is a huge red flag as wiring could not have been installed properly and as a worst-case-scenario example end up causing an electrical fire down the road.

These are only five of dozens upon dozens of questions, factors and variables that you must consider and weigh before finalizing your purchase decision. See more of our Calgary home buyer and seller tips below:

More Home Buyer Tips

• See our complete list of Calgary Home Buyers Tips via our blog section and make the best decisions!

• Buying a home for the first time? Check out our Calgary First Time Home Buyers Guide today for the best advice!

• Search All Calgary Resale Homes for Sale now!

Questions About Buying a Resale Home in Calgary?

As a top-producing REMAX real estate professional in Canada (2013, 2014), I promise to deliver only the best level of service and advice the industry has to offer while discerning all of your real estate needs.

Call me anytime at 403-370-4180 or message me below. I am looking forward to helping you accomplish your real estate goals!

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