1. Pre-Approval For A Mortgage
A pre-approval involves talking to a bank or mortgage broker to determine the amount you can afford to spend on a home, this is where you also find the interest rate and estimated monthly payment you will be paying for your mortgage. We recommend going to a mortgage broker because they will search the big banks, credit unions and other lenders to make sure you get the best deal. If you don’t know of one we have a couple options of people that we trust and can recommend to you.
This needs to be done before the house search actually happens for a couple of reasons, you might think you can afford a price higher than your approval will be and this can cause you to waste your time looking at homes that you won’t be able to buy. Worse is you might fall in love with a house that is out of your budget and that can ruin all other homes you look at.
The last reason this is an important first step is that once we find your new home and it is time to make an offer, we usually only have about 5 business days to get the final financing approved. Without a pre-approval already in place 5 days is usually not enough time, meaning you could end up losing the deal.
2. Determining Your WHY, Along With Your Needs And Wants.
Some agents are so hungry for business they just start showing you houses hoping one will match before finding the real reasons you are looking for a new home. When we meet we will go through your WHY of wanting to move, this helps us understand your motivation and reasoning for wanting to move. We also go through your needs, wants and price range you would like to look at, this is where that pre-approval comes in handy.
3. Receiving Your Customized On Line Search.
Once we work together to determine the criteria of what you are looking for we will give you access to an exclusive real time search with the same results agents receive, so you will find out about a property that matches the same time we do. This is a time where we are in constant communication, be prepared to talk to us daily (we will make it enjoyable don’t worry!).
4. Viewing Homes
You will soon find out that some houses look a lot better in the pictures than in person, but thats ok, it’s part of the whole process. We are always available, so if you see the perfect house pop up and want to see it give us a call and we will get you in there right away.
5. Making An Offer!
Once we find THE house for you and you are ready to utter the big O word (Offer!), we will write it up for you and go through the whole document to make sure you understand everything that is written. Usually first time homebuyers go through it with a fine tooth comb and the seasoned home buyers just say “where do I sign?”. We love working with both so don’t be afraid to ask questions.
6. Finding A Lawyer
Once the offer is accepted and the conditions are fulfilled, now it is time to find a lawyer to handle all that legal stuff. If you have your own already we will send them all the documents they need, if you have no idea who to use we again have a list or Lawyers we have worked with an trust and would be happy to refer you.
7. Finally, Moving In!
Don’t worry, this isn’t goodbye, its more like….I’ll see you later. At this point we like to give you space to enjoy the excitement of moving in to your new home but we check up on the morning of move-in day to make sure everything is in order and you are scheduled to pick up your keys. Don’t be surprised if we “pop-in” to see how things are going in your new place. Even long after you move in and have a question, feel free to call anytime!