It took us over 5 months to find a home and close(closed oct 11). For us it was incredibly competitive. The major reason for the move was our rent was going up to 2200 so we decided to look into buying.

We put 15 offers in before finally closing. Offers in columbia, Odenton, glen Bernie, ferndale, Severn, and severna park. We had to change where we were looking it was so competitive. We offered 20k over, no inspections, and 10K in gap coverage on a CONDO and someone still beat our offer…

I wish we would’ve started sooner so we didn’t feel as rushed to move before our lease was up. We didn’t know it was something we could afford being in our early 20’s. I LOVE our home, but it’s not in the area we wanted because we were basically priced out. We would’ve loved to stay in Odenton or columbia but to get a nice home it’s going to run you 450-600 for a 3 bed 2 ba home.

We are not from Maryland so it took a long time to learn the areas that we were “willing” to live in. The market has shifted a bit. We got our seller to pay all of our closing costs and things will sit on the market a little longer (1-2 weeks instead of gone in days)

Overall a very very time consuming and stressful endeavor. Our realtor and inspector were amazing!

My advice is be open to new areas. We ended up finding a beautiful row home in the Patterson park area. The neighborhood is amazing but driving to work is a pain now. We never thought we would live in a city and we were very nervous given Baltimore’s reputation. Be very patient in the process. If you have the time, take a year if you don’t find something you absolutely love! Be ready to spend money lol. Be prepared to be disappointed because unless you have Aton of cash on hand you might get outbid on your dream home. Happy to answer any other questions!