Hello. Sam Pompeo here with Ideal SoCal Homes. How you doing? Today I’d like to talk about a few things that I think are really important, as you prepare to buy a home. Today, what are we going to talk about? We’re going to talk about what it takes to buy a house, especially in today’s market.

First, we’re going to take a 10,000 foot view of today’s market. Today’s market, incredibly ferocious. There are far too few homes for way too many buyers. That’s an inverted supply/demand model, where the supply is well below the demand. All right, so enough about that.

What does it take to buy a home in today’s market? First thing, you got to get pre-qualified. We have to know how much you can buy, and we have to get you connected with a loan program that best fits your finances, your income, and your lifestyle. Okay, great. We’ll keep it short and sweet.

Here is business card of my friend, Michele Stanisch. Here you go, back side of the card. Oops, sorry, I dropped it. There’s Michele’s contact information. Okay, you got to get pre-qualified. Michele is awesome. Call her. I’ve been working with Michele for 20 years, fantastic, so away we go.

Now you’re pre-qualified. You know exactly how much you can buy, how much you’re comfortable spending monthly on your mortgage debt, and which loan program best fits for your lifestyle, as stated earlier. Okay, now we’re ready to go. What’s the next thing?

Next thing is you have to get connected with a professional, somebody like myself, Sam Pompeo here at Ideal SoCal Homes. I’ve been selling real estate in the San Fernando Valley and the greater LA area for over 29 years. I’ve guided clients through nearly 2,000 transactions, so I have a tremendous amount of experience to offer. Best part, as a buyer, you get my services for free. The seller is going to pay me by way of commission when I sell their house. As a buyer, you can tap into 29 years of experience for absolutely zero dollars.

Speaking of experience and zero dollars, here’s a shameless plug of my book, “Go Ask Sam.” That book right there is available on my website, IdealSocalHomes. Go there, download my book for free. If you want a hard copy, shoot me an email. I’ll mail you a copy. Otherwise, you can get an ebook on my website. It’s basically a compilation of questions that people have asked me over, and over, and over throughout my 29-year career. I figured I’d take some time, answer the questions in print form, put them in a book. Hey, one more time, shameless plug, there it is, “Go Ask Sam.” Okay, so now you’re connected with a professional.

There’s a couple other reasons you want to connect with a professional. A lot of deals are done broker to broker, especially in this super low inventory market. A lot of brokers are just putting their stuff on Top Agent Network. We have another site called Share. We do LinkedIn. Brokers that have been in the business for a long time have zero problem going broker to broker. Properties never hit MLS.

Okay, but the properties that do hit MLS, even for those, you should have proper representation. I’ve had buyers walk into my open house and say, “Hey, I’d love for you to represent me. The reason I want you to represent me is because you’ll make twice the commission, and I’ll get a better deal.” Part of that story’s true. I will make double commission, but the buyer doesn’t always get the best deal. It’s a complicated equation, buying a home, and going directly to the listing agent isn’t always the greatest answer. The greatest answer is to have your own representation, somebody that knows the market, knows market values, knows how to play the game, knows how to deal with other realtors. That’s where you get the best traction.

Hey, speaking of dealing with other realtors, if you’re watching this, and you’re not necessarily in Southern Cal, or maybe you’re moving out of Southern Cal, I have a tremendous referral network available to me through Sotheby’s. And I belong to other broker to broker networks, like Buffini, and things like that. I could find you a qualified realtor, and have, for my clients all across the country and in other countries, if need be. In any event, connect yourself with a professional. You’re qualified. You’re connected with a professional.

We have to go at this diligently. We have to look on the internet every day. I know there’s tons of consumer websites out there. Excuse me, there’s tons of consumer websites that have huge value, because you may be up late at night, or super early in the morning, and the real estate market happens at a really quick pace. Home comes on the market, it’s posted instantly, it’s shared on the internet instantly. There’s thousands of buyers, remember, looking for hundreds of homes. That’s that upside down supply/demand model. You need to be looking all the time. Of course, I’m looking all the time. We’re communicating all the time. We’re making this a priority, because if you don’t, you’re simply sitting on the sidelines watching the real estate market pass you by.

Which brings me to the next point, which is, I like to tell my clients right up front, there are no dumb questions. There is so much to know about real estate, and the buying process, and so many questions, whether you’re a first time buyer, or this is your fifth home. It doesn’t matter. I deal with all types of buyers and sellers. There’s no dumb question, so you got to ask questions. I’m here to answer them, and that’s part of what I do. I don’t really have a product to sell. I’m the product. My 29 years of experience, all of my expertise, all of my relationships in the game, that’s the product. That’s what you get, and it has incredible value.

We’ve touched on getting pre-qualified. You’ve got to be ready. You’ve got to be willing. And you got to be able.

Here’s the final thought I’m going to leave you with. You have to have your expectations properly set. I have had so many clients say to me, “I’m looking for my forever home.” That’s great. I would love to find a home that you can stay in forever, but remember that we’re looking in an inventory that’s very small. If you have a very large list of things you want in your forever home, and you’re looking in a very small inventory to find it, chances are you’re never going to find it. Let’s set our expectations right up front, and I can promise you that I will find you a great home, one that you and your family will love, and one that you will build tons of great memories in.

Okay, so I’m going to leave it right there. My number’s at the bottom. Call me. I’ll have my marketing guy insert it, if it’s not in there. Call me, Sam Pompeo, Ideal SoCal Homes. Go to my website, and get my book. Okay, I’m going to cut this video off right here, because I got to bounce and go show property.

You be well. I’ll talk to you soon.