7 Steps To Buying A New Construction Home In Florida
Congratulations! You've decided that Florida is the place to buy your dream vacation home in the sun. Now all you've got to do is figure out how to go about turning that dream into a reality. Here's how?
1) Choose a location
There are many fantastic places in Florida to buy a vacation home. The south of the state, from the Keys to Miami, is a very popular location for second home purchases. The climate is at its warmest down here, the countryside is peaceful and the beaches of pure white sand are simply breathtaking. Unsurprisingly, it is also the area with the highest property prices.
If golf is your thing why not look to the Gulf coast between Naples and Fort Myers. Spectacular Florida homes abound in this region, many of them being located on the plethora of golf courses in the area. Northeast Florida (near Jacksonville) and Orlando in Central Florida are worthy of consideration too for golf enthusiasts. Where Orlando scores highly though is in its proximity to Florida's major theme parks. If you're looking to rent out your Florida home in the months that you are not there and make a sizeable rental income, Orlando is the place to be!
2) Choose a Florida home type
There are many types to choose from - villas, condos, family homes and townhomes being the most popular with second home buyers. The best vacation homes to buy are those that are located in self-contained gated communities. This is because everything you need for your vacation can be found 'on-site', including shops, restaurants and entertainment. Outside gated communities you'll typically have a wider choice of home types, but often won't have the benefit of the facilities that you want all being in one place.
3) Find a supplier of new construction Florida homes
In today's Internet-driven world it makes a lot of sense and saves time if you go online to find the Florida home of your dreams. Websites like http://www.1st-for-florida-property.com have a wide selection of new construction homes in Florida as well as a selection of resale properties. Some sites have 'alert systems' that you can sign up for too. Every time a new listing is added the alert system sends an e-mail informing you of the details.
4) Arrange viewings / inspection visits (optional)
Once you've found a home that you like the look of its time to contact the listing agent to get more information and to arrange a viewing or inspection visit. Remember, homes in the pre-construction phase won't be much to look at on the ground. Normally you'll visit the sales office to see artist impressions of the buildings.
5) Reserve your Florida home!
The first step in reserving your new construction Florida home is to complete an 'Intent to Purchase' document direct with the developer. To show you're serious you'll be asked to put down a refundable deposit of around $500 to $1000 to secure the lot. The document is not legally binding and if you don?t progress with the purchase you'll get a full refund. Most buyers choose to make this initial payment on a credit card.
6) Contract signature
On receiving your intent to purchase document and your initial lot security deposit, the developer will work up the sales contract. You'll receive this in the mail some two to six weeks following your lot reservation. It is strongly recommended that the contract be taken to your lawyer / solicitor before putting your signature to it. Remember, the sales contract is a legally binding document. Once your name is on there you're committed to buying the home as per the wording in the contract. If you need to obtain funding you should consider with your lawyer / solicitor adding clauses into the contract that subject it to you successfully raising funds through a mortgage or similar home loan.
On signing the contract the developer will require you to make a down payment equivalent to between 10% and 30% of the purchase price. The down payment can in general be made by any means.
7) Arrange your Purchase Funds and then Celebrate!
Once the contract is signed all that is left for you to do is to arrange the funds to pay for the balance of your purchase. US mortgages offer second homeowners very competitive rates of interest. In most cases the developer will be able to point you in the direction of a competitive mortgage broker.
New construction homes in Florida tend to be on a build schedule of between 9 and 12 months. The balance of the purchase price is paid to the developer at closing when the keys are handed over.
Seb Jay is a freelance writer and co-owner of http://www.1st-for-florida-property.com
Related Articles:
How to Make the Real Estate Market Work For You and Get The Most Money
How to make the Real Estate market work for you and get the most money.
Dad always said that Real estate is a good investment because they don't make it anymore.
Golf Fitness DVD: Improve Your Game In Your Living Room
Plugging in a golf fitness dvd is a great alternative to relying on yourself for motivation and consistency. The dvd craze has caught on with golfers of all ages and abilities.
Jack 9 Entertainment Inc. and www.Jack9.com, an IPTV for the 'Man's Man', Announce Their Corporate World Headquarters in West Palm Beach, Florida
After securing major funding, Jack9 and www.Jack9.com add to their infrastructure by securing their corporate world headquarters in West Palm Beach, Florida. The move comes on the heels of a major funding deal and the announcement of Production and Entertainment offices in Orange County, California and Tech offices in Denver, Colorado.
GreenCitizen™ Launches New Electronics & Computer Recycling Center in San Francisco, California
GreenCitizen, Inc., an electronics recycling company for end-of-life computers and electronics, today announced its expansion from Silicon Valley to San Francisco with the opening of its second educational and electronics recycling drop-off center, its first center in San Francisco.
How A Golf Fitness Book Can Transform Your Game
A golf fitness book that is written to give you ready-made golf fitness programs, exercises, step-by-step instructions and illustrations can quickly transform your golf game.There are so many "so-called" golf fitness books on the market; but when you open them up you see dozens of pictures of golf models sitting on exercise machines in the gym.
Find The Best Rates On Health Insurance In Arizona
Arizona residents who are unable to secure health insurance through a job as a result of unemployment or other reason, Arizona offers a program called Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS ). AHCCS is Arizona?s Medicaid program.
Celebrity High Rise Agent Sets Three Las Vegas Price Records as Hollywood's Elite Flock to The Harmon Residences
Las Vegas luxury real estate market continues to show strength as evidenced by celebrity high rise agent setting three new price-per-square-foot records for residential homes and residential high rise condos.
How To Realistically Get Started As A Real Estate Investor
When it comes to real estate investing, most beginners find themselves with plenty of desire, a little bit of knowledge (from books, seminars, online message boards or something like that) and in most cases they have little or no money to get started with. Does this sound like you? If so you are not alone.
Guides in Buying a New Home in Siesta Key Real Estate
Now youre decided to move from renting to owning a home in Siesta Key real estate. You might be so excited of shopping for your ideal home in the market and applying for a mortgage.
California Business Entities – How Long Does It Take To Get Approved?
You've done your research and have decided on a business entity. You're chomping at the bit to open a bank account and get moving.