If you’re like most Phoenix home buyers, you have two primary considerations in mind when you start looking for a home. First, you want to find a home that perfectly meets your needs and desires, and secondly, you want to purchase this North Phoenix home for the lowest possible price.

When you analyze those successful home buyers who have been able to purchase the home they want for thousands of dollars below a seller’s asking price, some common denominators emerge. Although your agent’s negotiating skills are important, there are three additional key factors that must come into play long before you ever submit an offer.

These Steps Will Help You Save Thousands When You Buy a Home in Phoenix

Make sure you know what you want . . .

As simple as this sounds, many home buyers don’t have a firm idea in their heads before they go out searching for a home. In fact, when you go shopping for a place to call home, there are actually two homes competing for your attention:

The one that meets your needs and the one that fulfills your desires.

Obviously, your goal is to find one home that does both. But in the real world, this situation doesn’t always occur.

When you’re looking at Phoenix homes, you’ll find that you will fall in love with one or another for entirely different reasons. Is it better to buy the 4-bedroom home with room for your family to grow, or the one with the big eat-in kitchen that romances you with thoughts of big weekend family brunches? What’s more important: a big backyard or proximity to your child’s school?

Far too often people buy a home for the wrong reasons and then regret their decision when the home doesn’t meet their needs.

Don’t shop with stars in your eyes: satisfy your needs first. If you’re lucky, you’ll find a home that does this and also fulfills your desires. The important thing is to understand the difference before you get caught up in the excitement of looking.

Find out if your Realtor offers a Buyer Profile System, which takes the guess work out of finding just the right home that matches your needs. This type of program will cross match your criteria with all available homes on the market and supply you with printed information on an on going basis. A program like this helps home buyers take off their rose colored glasses to assist them in moving into the home of their dreams.