Want to buy a home? The home buying process is one of the most exciting, and frequently stressful, experiences you’ll ever go through. This holds true whether you’ve bought many homes or you’re looking to buy your first, whether you’re in the market for a new primary residence, an investment property or that perfect vacation getaway.

It’s important to enlist the help of a trusted real estate agent who will be able to provide expert guidance at each step of the home-buying process. Here is my guide to buying a home:

1) Define your goals

This means clearly determining your reasons for wanting to buy a home, what kind of home you’re looking for, and what area(s) you are open to.  It also means thinking through your current financial situation and estimating how much you think you can afford to pay and are comfortable paying toward a mortgage each month.

2) Contact your Realtor

There are many factors to consider when buying a home, and no two homes or transactions are exactly the same. When choosing a Realtor to guide you through the property search, financing, negotiation, and transaction processes, you should consider their local market knowledge, communication skills, track record, and online reviews! Check out my reviews from past clients.

3) Get pre-approved for a loan

Your Realtor (me!) will have referrals for you of trusted local mortgage loan officers that they have successfully worked with and that have consistently delivered positive experiences to their other clients.  A loan pre-approval is an absolute must before you start viewing homes.  The pre-approval process involves authorizing a licensed mortgage loan officer to examine your financial situation and credit history.  On the basis of this examination, the lender may provide you with a pre-approval letter detailing the amount you can borrow to buy a home.  Once pre-approved, my trusted loan officers will also be able to give you a fairly accurate monthly payment scenario based on the loan amount you are approved for, so that you will know how it actually compares with what you feel you can afford to pay and are comfortable paying each month before drooling over homes online or ever stepping foot inside a home for sale.  With this information, you may decide to shop at the amount you are approved at, or a lower amount based on your comfort level.  The information gained during the pre-approval, for most people, also helps to determine the area(s) we will hone in on. From there, I will start your home search!

The benefits of pre-approval include:

• You’ll know what you are eligible to borrow and be able to plan accordingly.
• As a qualified, motivated buyer you’ll be taken seriously when you make an offer.
• Lenders can tell you if you qualify for special programs that will help you afford a better home (particularly if you’re a first-time buyer).

4) View homes on the MLS and narrow down the list

The key to the home search process is knowing what you’re looking for.  Among other things, that means distinguishing between “must-haves” and “like-to-haves” while keeping your budget in mind.

There are many benefits to starting your home search on my website — you can view many homes and their details and read helpful blog posts. I will also set you up with MLS notifications so that you are notified as new homes are listed for sale in your desired area(s). The next step is to narrow down your list of potential homes and view these homes in-person! While the property details may seem similar online, homes can be very different in terms of layout, design, workmanship, and condition, among other aspects. When viewing homes, I may point out material facts or other things you might miss about a property or location, provide expert analysis, and act as an impartial sounding board to help you make an educated decision that’s right for you and your family.

5) Make an offer and negotiate with the seller(s)

When you find the one, it’s time to make an offer. After discussing the home with you and speaking with the listing agent (the seller’s agent) of the property you are interested in, I will advise you of the most favorable price and terms you could offer with a likelihood of having your offer accepted or having a counter-offer returned to us from the seller. Some of the other terms we will specify in the offer are: your financing, closing and possession dates, contingency timelines, your earnest money deposit amount, appraisal stipulations, and other conditions. You should carefully review these clauses and ask any questions you have to be sure that they accurately express your intended offer. Once you have reviewed and signed your offer, I will present it to the listing agent with your pre-approval letter, direct underwriting (provided by the loan officer), and proof of funds for your earnest money, down payment, and closing costs (if applicable). At that point, the process may vary somewhat. Generally speaking, the seller can accept your offer, reject it, or counter it to initiate the negotiation process. Successive counter-offers, with deadlines for responding and meeting conditions, may be exchanged between parties until a mutual pending agreement is reached or the negotiations breakdown. Negotiations to buy a home involve many factors relating to different market conditions, the home itself, any other offers received or anticipated, and the seller(s)’ needs — i.e., they may need to sell quickly, or they may need to be able to purchase a replacement property with a concurrent closing, etc.

6) Secure your financing

Once you have a pending agreement to buy a home, it’s time to return to your chosen lender to finalize mortgage details in order to close the deal. This means finalizing your down payment, locking your interest rate, regular payment schedule and all other financial conditions associated with the closing. As the saying goes, ‘let the buyer beware’. Unfortunately, too many buyers suffer negative consequences from not fully understanding their financing decisions. It is crucial for you to work with a trusted, licensed loan officer and to make sure you are fully pre-approved before viewing homes.

7) Escrow

Some key steps to a smooth closing that I manage during your escrow period include a property title report – you will need a historical review of all legal documents relating to ownership of the property to ensure that there are no claims against the title of the property, a natural hazard disclosure report, a successful review of the seller(s)’ disclosures, ensuring homeowner’s insurance is obtained, successful removal of your contingency periods when the appraisal, loan, and home inspection stipulations have been satisfied, as well as your final walkthrough – before you buy a home, you will be given the chance to look at the home one last time to make sure it’s in essentially the same condition that it was in at the time you signed the offer. I ensure you have correct wire instructions and that your earnest money deposit and final wire are received by the escrow company.

8) Close the deal

Did you know that in CA, buyer and seller do not actually meet at the closing table? In fact, almost all paperwork is signed electronically throughout your escrow period and in the days prior your closing day. Prior to closing, you will meet with a notary public for all documents that require notarized signatures. On closing day, your loan will be funded by the lender and property title will be updated to reflect the new owner(s)’ name(s). Once the new title is recorded on closing day, you will typically be able to receive your keys and take possession, unless an alternate arrangement was agreed upon in your offer (such as giving the seller extra days of possession or a rent-back period). I will provide you a copy of all of the documentation pertaining to the purchase of your home for your records. Then we will celebrate this huge achievement and I will take some photos for the gram! LOL!

Are you interested in the possibility of buying a new construction home? Visit my blog Buying a New Construction Home for crucial information you need to know before stepping foot onto any model home sites.  Once you’ve secured your agent (me!), been pre-approved, and are ready to visit some model homes, head over to my blog Tips For Touring Model Homes for some additional pointers!

Have Questions?

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