The Palmetto State is a fantastic place to live for many different reasons. Whether you’re raising a young family here or you’re a single, young professional searching for a new career, South Carolina could be the place you call home for the foreseeable future. No matter where you’re looking at moving to, you’ll have a few steps you’ll need to take to ensure everything goes smoothly. To help you, we’ve put together a short, essential guide about the process of finding your new home, including great places to consider moving to in South Carolina.
Buying Or Renting
First of all, you’ll need to decide on whether you’re looking at buying or renting your home. There are pros and cons to both, but more often than not, buying a property is going to be a much better use of your money as it serves as an investment. The benefit of renting, however, is increased flexibility as you have the ability to move quickly if you’re not ready to settle down yet. Of course, it’s harder to qualify for buying a home. Unless you have the money to buy a property outright, you’ll need a mortgage. This process can be time-consuming, and there is no guarantee you’ll qualify either, so make sure you’re certain when starting down this path.
Identify Your Budget
After receiving a mortgage offer, you’ll have a good idea as to how much you can afford to spend on a property. You’ll have to make a down payment which is a percentage of the total cost of the property. Often this is about 20% although you can pay more to reduce monthly costs. For example, if the property you’re looking at buying is $300k, you’ll pay $60k as a down payment. You’ll need to make sure you have the funds saved up for this purchase, as while you can borrow the money for a mortgage, you’ll have to make the down payment using your own funds. Identify your budget before you start searching for a property so that you can be certain that you can afford the homes you wish to make an offer on.
Working With An Agent
Real estate agents aren’t a necessity when buying a house. However, they are a great source of advice and can guide you towards finding the right property for you. Some also act as mortgage advisors, helping you to sort through this process. Once you’ve found a home you like, they’ll help to negotiate an offer on the property and manage the exchange. You’ll also be required by law to hire an attorney to oversee the process for you to ensure that everything is being done correctly and lawfully.
Where To Live?
When you’re searching for a home in South Carolina, there are many great places to consider, and it can be difficult to make a decision. Cities like Columbia, for example, have a variety of homes for sale. This city is a great choice when searching for a home and is perfect for small families or young professionals. It benefits from being relatively compact, presenting itself as a quaint town, but maintaining the perks and features of a high-quality city. If you’re searching for a more suburban space with the added benefit of being right on the beach, then consider somewhere like Sullivan’s Island. This Charleston suburb is said to be very safe and is a great example of living somewhere that boasts a vacation lifestyle mentality.
The Next Steps
Once you’ve had an offer accepted and have officially closed on the purchase, you’re ready to start planning your next steps. You’ll want to ensure you remember to change your address on your important accounts to ensure things aren’t being sent to your old residence. You’ll also want to ensure that you’ve set up your utilities in your new property. Planning ahead of time will ensure you don’t experience much downtime with things like internet connectivity, as being without this for prolonged periods of time can cause significant issues, especially if you work remotely from home and require a connection to work. Contact all your essential service providers before you move as well as some may not provide services to the area you’re moving to. Make a list of everything from electricity and gas providers, as well as home security and even your cable services too.
The Moving Process
Once it’s time to move to your new home, it can be stressful for everyone involved if not handled correctly. To ensure that everything goes as smoothly as possible, it’s worthwhile putting together a thorough moving checklist. This should include everything from giving notice to your landlord if you’re moving out of a rental, arranging removal services if you’re not handling it yourself, and packing each room one at a time. You’ll also want to clean the place before leaving too. When it comes to moving your things, especially if you’re moving from far away, it’s worth hiring a removal company to handle this for you as it’s incredibly time-consuming, and you’ll be surprised at just how much stuff you might have once it’s all in boxes.
