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Becoming a first time home buyer can make you feel overwhelmed by the process and complexity of buying a home of their own.  And, it’s no wonder with all the steps involved, many companies and people involved and the length and complexity of the whole process of being a first time home buyer, it’s easy to slip into feeling lost and confused.  That’s just the reason you want to work with a real estate professional who knows the process and knows it well.

The First Steps to Home Ownership

The early first step being a first time home buyer is not getting pre-qualified with a lender.  Actually, you must start a few years back with getting your finances in order.  Making sure your credit is as good as you can get it and reducing your debt as much as you can while at the same time saving for a down payment.  Then you can start getting ready to get your paycheck stubs, tax returns and bank statements in order for your visit to a lender.  Then you are ready for the first step to being a homeowner.

Home Buying 101

Once you have completed your visit with your chosen lender, you will soon find out what monthly payment and maximum purchase price you qualify for, couples qualify with combined income, but they look at both credit reports, job stability etc.

1. Your appointment with a mortgage lender will help you find out what you are qualified for, monthly mortgage payments and maximum purchase price.
2. One of our professional real estate agents will have a sit-down consultation with you to discover what you want for your first home, things like preferred city, location, type of house, the number of bedrooms etc.  Some things are “Must haves” for buyer’s and some are “Like to haves”, meaning it’s not realistic to start out thinking you will find a house that has every feature you are looking for and within your price range.  However, that is simply good judgment, not a guarantee.  It all depends on how particular you start your search.
3. Ofter after looking at a few home that meet your criteria, you may find the one you want to buy.  At this point, you will again consult with your real estate professional about submitting an offer to the seller.  You will discuss the offer terms, price, timeline for closing, what will be included and other important details before your agent can put together the official Contract to Buy.
4. Once your offer is accepted by the seller, this is not the finish line, it’s actually hte starting line of the transaction.  Don’t be concerned about how everything works, your team of real estate professional, mortgage lender, home inspector, title company all know their individual roles in helping you to successfully becoming a first time home buyer.
5. After the process is completed then the closing will be scheduled and everyone meets at the title company to sign the final documents.  Then congratulations are in order as you are now a first time homeowner!

This is a brief summary not intended to be a complete list but it will help you understand the basic steps involved.  With all the professional support you have, you can be assured a happy closing and a very exciting experience becoming a homeowner.

Parties To Your Home Buying Process:

As mentioned there are many people involved in helping to make sure your first time home buying process is a smooth and exciting experience.

Remember, you as the buyer is not really expected to know the in’s and out’s of this process, that’s why you work with a team of professionals.  Your professional real estate agent, mortgage broker, title company, home inspector, appraiser and title company will all work together as a team to make sure you successfully become a home owner.

Your Real Estate Professional will be your liaison between all the other parties.  And it’s important to not do anything without your agent involved.  They are the key person to communicate with all the other parties.  The majority of your communications will be with your agent and your mortgage lender.  Your agent will handle most if not all communications with the other parties involved up until closing when everyone meets together to sign the final documents.  

You will be instructed by your agent what you need to do, where you need to be and what you need to bring with you.  So with that, you can comfortably rely on your agent to guide you through the whole process of becoming a first time home buyer.  Please keep in mind you are always recommended to seek legal council when working with legal documents, this is at your discretion and if you choose to use an attorney they will also become part of the overall team working for you.  

Moving into your new home!

After the closing then it’s time to make the actual move.  It’s a good idea to plan on a successful closing but you don’t want to move prior to the closing.  It’s best to get ready to move once the closing is completed and as soon as the closing is completed you are confirmed to make all moving plans.  It is often the case that the seller will have a few days after closing to move out of your new home.  It’s common for the seller to not move out until after the closing is completed.  Therefore, they will need a few days to complete their move and you will then receive the keys to move in.  All these dates and deadlines are written into the Contract to Buy way back in the beginning of the process.    

This is a very big investment, for many people it’s the biggest investment of their lives, take it serious and make it a well taken care of home for many years to come.

Congratulations!