HOW TO BUY A HOUSE
Your Guide Through a Quick and Easy Mortgage Process
Buying a home is a major investment, so before you start looking for a home and comparing mortgage rates, think about your current circumstances and how it might change in the future. Buying a home is likely to be one of the largest investments you’ll ever make, so be sure your financial house is in line first. To get a handle on how much money you’re making and spending each month, start by analyzing your bank accounts and billing records. We’ll take you step-by-step through the purchasing procedure.
STEP 1. Get Pre-Approved for a Mortgage
In most cases, this is the initial step in the mortgage process.
You should start your mortgage application here since it will offer you a better sense of your mortgage program and loan amount ahead of time.
You are requested to provide your lender with an overall picture of your creditworthiness.
STEP 2. Complete a Mortgage Loan Application
You’ll begin by filling out a loan application.
A mortgage loan application needs you to provide your financial information to a lender, who will use this information to evaluate the amount you may borrow.
If you want to complete your loan application in person, you can meet with your lender.
STEP 3. Getting Your Pre-Qualification
Your lender will check your income and request a copy of your credit record first.
A Pre-Qualification Letter will be issued by your lender if your application is accepted.
A Pre-Qualification letter indicates that you fulfill the minimum FICO credit criterion as well as the lending requirements for approval.
Give your Realtor® a copy of the pre-qualification letter as soon as you receive it so that they can determine how much you can afford to spend on a property.
A pre-qualification letter will help you narrow down your house search and persuade sellers to consider your offer more seriously.
What are the 6 pieces of information your lender NEEDS for a complete loan application?
NAME
INCOME
Social Security Number
Property address
An estimate of the property value
Mortgage Loan Amount
Ask your loan officer if you have any questions, and they will assist you in completing your mortgage loan application. Remember that your loan officer is always ready to assist you and will gladly answer any queries you may have. Your loan officer will also review your application to ensure that all of the information you submitted is accurate and valid. They’ll send your application through their organization’s channels to have you authorized once they’ve finished reviewing it.
STEP 4. Reviewing the Loan Estimate
The Loan Estimate is one of the forms that your lender must supply you with; it is one of the paperwork that is needed by law for your safety.
Within three business days after submitting a complete mortgage loan application, your lender will offer you a Loan Estimate.
The Loan Estimate contains key details about your loans, such as an estimated interest rate, monthly payment amount, and total closing expenses.
Check out the CFPB’s Loan Estimate Explainer to learn more about the Loan Estimate Form and become familiar with the definitions of key terminology.
Remember that the Loan Estimate is just that: an estimate.
You will get a Closing Disclosure at closing, which will detail the exact charges you will be responsible for.
NOT SURE WHICH PROGRAM IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
STEP 5. Hire a REALTOR ®
As a homebuyer, you are theoretically not required to use the services of a real estate agent to complete the transaction.
However, we always advise ALL potential purchasers to do their homework and engage a trustworthy Realtor® to represent their best interests going forward. A buyers’ agent is a real estate professional who has a fiduciary obligation to operate only on your behalf and in your best interests throughout the buying process.
A realtor may also assist you with information on houses and communities that isn’t readily available on the internet. Best of all, it’s completely free!
If you need assistance locating a reputable Realtor® to represent you, you can always contact your lender for a list of qualified agents.
STEP 6. Find a Home
Setting up a Multiple Listings Service (MLS) search with your Realtor® is the simplest approach to discover your new property.
The following are some of the advantages of using the Multiple Listing Service (MLS):
- It may be set up to run automatically and send emails up to 5 times each day.
- Allows you to speak with your agent directly about each property.
- Within the MLS, you may use search filters to narrow down your results by locations, zip codes, cities, subdivisions, streets, school districts, and much more!
- Has all of the information you’ll need to buy a house in one convenient location.
One of the biggest advantages of utilizing MLS to find a property is that it ALWAYS includes the most recent listings and market changes.
Keep in mind that if you search on Zillow or Redfin, it’s possible that the property you’re looking for is outdated and no longer available.
STEP 7. Negotiating and Having an Offer Accepted
Now that you’ve been to a few open houses and discovered a few properties that you like, and you’re ready to make an offer.
Negotiating and getting an offer approved may take some time.
Your broker will draft a purchase contract with the terms of the offer once you’ve negotiated a price for a house and the seller approves it.
If the sellers accept your offer, they will forward this to them to sign.
If the seller agrees to include any fixtures or appliances with the sale of the home, mention them in the purchase contract.
Don’t take their word for it, and don’t assume anything will be left behind if it isn’t specified in the contract.
Appraisal Contingency
Your lender will arrange an appraisal from a third-party appraisal business when your offer is approved, and you must pay the appraisal price up in advance. The assessment will verify that you are paying a fair price for the home to all parties involved in the transaction.
The contract includes an appraisal contingency to safeguard you if the home’s appraised worth is less than the agreed-upon purchase price. In this instance, you have a certain number of days to cancel the contract, complete the purchase, or bargain with the seller to bring the price down to the appraised value.
Financing Contingency
This allows you to apply for and secure mortgage finance to purchase a property. This is significant because it safeguards you if you are unable to secure financing and allows you to cancel the contract and receive your earnest money back.
You’ll have until a certain deadline to get mortgage funding for your house purchase. You will also have until this date to terminate or request an extension of the contract.
House Sale Contingency
This will not apply to you if you are purchasing your first house.
If you’re selling your current house and buying a new one, this is significant since it gives you a defined length of time to sell and pay off your old mortgage before you can get a new one.
This can be aggravating for sellers since they are obliged to reject other offers while waiting for the contingency to be resolved. You are covered by this contingency if you are unable to sell your house for at least the asking price, and you have until a specific deadline to pull out of the contract without legal penalties.
Inspection Contingency
Your agent will assist you in scheduling a home inspection within a few days of your offer being approved.
The home inspection contingency protects you by providing you a certain length of time following the inspection to renegotiate or withdraw your offer without incurring legal penalties if there are major damages to the house.
Before you close, there will be a final walk-through when you can check that the seller repaired any defects discovered during the inspection if they agreed to do so.
It’s time to acquire your financing when the seller accepts your offer.
STEP 8. Closing on Your Home Purchase!
