10 STEPS TO BUYING A HOME

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Ask for a buyer's presentation, always meet your REALTOR®  in person to understand what he/she has to offer in order to find you a property at your best interest.  Share your own thoughts with the REALTOR® to see if he/she is a great fit to do business with.

Talk to a trusted lender to get pre-approved, a pre-approval letter must be provided when submitting an offer for any property.  This is also the time you will find out how much you can spend to stay within your comfort zone.  This step can also be done before finding a REALTOR®.

A cash buyer will need to provide proof of funds when making an offer.

Share your criteria with your REALTOR®, such as budget, preferred area(s), house size, lot size, year built and etc.  It is important for you and your REALTOR® to be on the same page at this point, tell your REALTOR® if certain items are absolute deal breakers, such as 100-year floodplain (AE zone), or no fireplace.

Note: If you are obtaining a mortgage, you are required to purchase flood insurance if the property is sitting on the 100-year floodplain (AE zone).

Your REALTOR® will send you listings according to the criteria you gave him/her.  Always ask your REALTOR® to see if the Seller's Disclosure Notice is attached on the listing, be aware of all disclosed problems or improvement before making the offer accordingly.

This step is critical, your REALTOR® should run a CMA report to determine what is the market value of the subject property, other factors are also important such as:

• Is the property already in multiple offers situation?

• What type of loan do you have?

• Is this property something you can afford to lose?

All the questions listed above should be part of the consideration when putting an offer together.

An inspection by a licensed home inspector is an optional common practice for most buyers.  Even if the property seems like perfect in photos or in person, it is important to spend the few hundred bucks for an inspection to ensure your money is well invested.

This step is likely to be the last round of negotiation.  Rather if it is something major or cosmetic, the buyer can either ask the seller to repair the problems, or ask for money and get the problems addressed by their trusted vendors after closing.  Buyer can also ask the seller to repair some items, and ask for money for the rest.

The agreed amount can be applied to the seller's contribution, the sale price, and sometimes to both.  You should also check with your lender to ensure the amount that is being applied to the seller's contribution does not exceed the amount allowed.

If the property does not appraise at/above sales price, this is the time to further negotiate; unless an appraisal waiver was signed.

It is extremely important for any buyer not to make any big purchases nor changing jobs prior to closing; not even the morning of closing day.  Remember that nothing is official until you get the notification from your lender stating that "THE LOAN IS FUNDED".

When the buyer gets a clear-to-close from their lender, both seller and buyer will schedule a time with the title company to sign.  And finally, once we get the "THE LOAN IS FUNDED" notification from the buyer's lender, then it becomes official.