Buyer's Guide

This is our first meeting to discuss your real estate goals! If you have started to think about buying a new home we will talk about everything you are hoping to achieve in your new home purchase including the location, the condition and the budget. I will help educate you on the current market conditions and how that may affect your home search. Buying a home could be as fast as a couple of weeks or take a year to find the right home. The process is different for each person.

Preparing to buy is all about getting your financing in the best possible state to be able to make a strong offer when the right property comes along. This means building financial file you should include Financial Statements, Bank Statements, Credit Card debits, Auto Loans, Recent Pay Stubs, Tax Returns for the past two years, 401K Statements, life insurance and any investment statements you have. This is also the time to choose a lender to work with. Our recommended network of lenders will help tighten up your credit and determine how much you can afford for both a home and a down payment. The lender can ensure you are formally pre approved for a loan solidifying your position as a serious market contender.

Together we will identify available properties that you would like to tour. I will set up the appointments and gather all available information on the properties so that I can answer any questions that may come up during the walk through. Shopping for a home is fun, after you have seen a few you will have a good idea of what will fit you best and you'll know it when you see it.  Have fun with this part.

When you find "the one" I will contact the sellers agent to introduce myself and build rapport with them to find out as much information as possible about other potential offers and the best terms to present to be the winning offer. This often makes the difference in winning a contract in a multiple offer situation. I will then help you formulate a fair, data-driven purchase offer based on an in depth market analysis and draw up the purchase agreements. I will guide you through contingencies and ensure you don't spend more than you need to.

Once your offer is accepted you will select a licensed home inspector from our trusted vendor list. to fully check the home's condition. The inspection detects issues that aren't apparent on the walk-through. If issues arise we'll work with you to develop strategies to best proceed. A home inspection is a powerful negotiating tool and the best insurance you can ever get on a property. During this time you will deposit the escrow money or good faith money to an escrow account that will go towards your down payment. This money is fully refundable during the due diligence period. Once the due diligence period has passed the lender will order an appraisal to ensure the home is worth the money they are lending you to purchase it. If there is a discrepancy we will work together with the seller agent to come to an agreement on how to move forward.

While you are under contract on the property your lender will work through your financing to get your loan approved and clear to close. This is the time to keep all your finances in the same state as when you applied for the loan. Now is not the time to purchase a new car or change employment.

Congratulations, you have made it! A few final things to take care of. We will provide a list of utility providers to you several weeks prior to closing so that you can get the utilities switched to your name for the day of closing. Three days prior to the closing meeting the lender will supply you with a settlement statement which summarizes the financial transaction of the sale with each cost itemized. You'll review these documents and if you have any questions I will explain the item or get further information from the lender. The selected closing attorney will advise you on the process to wire the funds for your down payment to them to have for the closing. The wire should be initiated the day before closing. Also, the day of or before closing we will do a final walk through to ensure the property is in the same or better condition as the last time you saw it and to verify that all items agreed upon in the sale have remained in the property.  Should unwanted unforscene occur during the final stages we will be by your side to help resolve any issues. We have been through this before and are confident that most concerns can be worked through. At the closing meeting, you will have many documents to sign to finalize the sale. Once the last one is signed and the attorney submits it to the lender for final approval you are now a homeowner. Congratulations. The seller will bring the keys to hand off to closing and you can move into your new home!