Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by our team will help reduce the stress of buying a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.
Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods and help you when the time comes to make an offer.
Notice we said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. This likely includes doing a full household budget and taking into consideration what changes other than a mortgage payment will occur once you move into your new home. If you’ve lived in an apartment or with roommates, you may overlook new expenses like garbage, water, or HOA fees that could easily blow your budget.
Just because you think you can afford a certain payment every month doesn’t mean the mortgage company will agree. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can cause major problems when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a home, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify for. This will also be an advantage when you make an offer on a home, as some sellers won’t entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.
Can you shop for, look at, and ultimately make an offer on a home without a real estate agent? Technically yes, but why would you when it costs you nothing for agents like us to take much of the stress off your shoulders? Not only will we help identify properties you might be interested in, arrange showings, and ultimately handle the offer process, but we also have knowledge of the market that you don’t possess. Finding the perfect home can be a daunting task, this is where our expertise and wealth of knowledge come into play. Let us show you around some homes that meet your dream home criteria so you can find the one that's right for you.
Our Goal is to Provide You With the Most Personalized Service that is Designed to Help You Buy Your Dream Home
This should be the most enjoyable step of the entire process (other than moving in!). We will arrange showings of homes you’re interested in that are within your price range. Take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. Turn light switches on and off, open and close doors, and run the faucets in various rooms. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, and how close it is to necessities like schools and grocery stores.
Once you have selected the perfect home, work with your agent to craft a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes on the market. Depending on what the home is listed at and whether the current environment is a buyer’s or seller’s market, your offer may be below, at, or even above the asking price. We will be able to help you negotiate if you receive a counteroffer and reach an agreement. At this point, the house will go into escrow.
In most cases, your offer will be contingent on having the home inspected to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. We can help you arrange this, and you can schedule it within days of making an offer. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there is, you can renegotiate your offer based on what needs to be fixed, or you can withdraw it.
Now is the time to go back to the mortgage lender who pre-approved or pre-qualified you and choose your mortgage. You will be presented with various options based on your unique financial situation, including fixed-rate, variable-rate, 15-year, 30-year, or special programs such as VA loans or FHA loans. Work with your mortgage lender to select the option you feel the most comfortable with.
Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.
No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. Fortunately, everything will be arranged by your lender and title company and, when you’re finished, you’ll know you are the legal owner of your new home.
After signing the final paperwork to complete the purchase, you are now the owner of a new house. It may take a few days for your loan to be funded once the paperwork has been returned to the lender, but once that check is delivered to the seller, you’ll be all set to move into the home of your dreams.
Monroe Herrington has been such an amazing agent! We have been so lucky to have found him. We had our home listed with another agent before and we were very frustrated with the whole process and just prior to speaking with Monr...
His immediate responsiveness to all our requests and inquiries was remarkable. He always made us feel like a top priority. His knowledge of the local market and current trends helped us tremendously to educate ourselves quickly...
Monroe’s expertise in the San Diego Market, professionalism, and attention to detail earned him five stars out of five. My family and I worked with Monroe to buy and sell several properties. He was always professional, and alwa...
We met Monroe at an open house and he was wonderful from our first meeting. My Husband and I were unsure about what we wanted and Monroe was very patient with us and helped us along the way. He ultimately found us the perfect h...
From start to finish of the home-buying process, Monroe was an absolute star! My husband and I were purchasing a home, but we were out of the country during the time of close. This, however, was not a problem due to Monroe's re...
We are very pleased with Monroe Herington's real estate expertise. His knowledge of the local market, combined with his responsiveness and sound advice is very impressive. Monroe is a real estate professional with strategic neg...
I was lucky enough to be outside when Monroe came through my neighborhood in Crown Point introducing himself. This was 2 years before I intended to sell but we kept in touch and when I was ready to list I knew Monroe was the ri...
Monroe helped us buy our first home, and when it was time to sell, there was no question as to who we would use as our real estate agent. He listened to what we were trying to accomplish with the sale and gave us his opinion an...
My husband and I worked with Monroe to buy our first home in Mission Beach, and I cannot express enough how grateful we are for his service! He is very knowledgeable about the area and he is also very well-connected. For exampl...
Monroe was an absolute pleasure to work with and we are ecstatic about our first purchase and the whole deal situation. Monroe is someone who’s honest, thorough, and responsive. At no point did we feel slowed down or stressed d...
We specialize in home sales with dedicated client services and comprehensive support. We’ll work closely with you to enhance your space, ease the selling process, maximize the value of your home, and create the positive real estate experience that you deserve.
