8 STEPS TO BUY A HOME SUCCESSFULLY

Planning is one of the keys to buying a home successfully. It will help you to understand how much you can qualify for a loan. The price range of the home you are looking for is depending on your qualification for the loan. 

The more you understand the buying process, the less likely you make a big purchase mistake and home buyer remorse. Proper planning may help you uncover shortcuts that can be helpful in buying a home.

Below are the 8 steps to buying a home.

STEP NO 1: FINDING A REALTOR®️

Finding a realtor should be the first step when you are buying a home. Not all realtors are the same, therefore, it’s important that you find the right one to make your home buying a success. Here a what you should look for in finding a realtor.

• Look for experienced realtors. A real estate agent with many years of experience would enhance your chance of winding a bid or an offer when buying a home.
• Look for a track-record. A good realtor means you will have a better success rate at getting your dream home.  He or she would know what to do and hold your hand through the buying process.  Ask the realtor to provide some references before commit to buying.
• Look for reviews online. A good way to see how your realtor competes with others is by looking for their review online.  If they have a good rating, chances are, they will be good to you.

A professional REALTORS®️ will work hard for you and will walk you through all the tricks and traps of the home buying process.  Picking the right realtor will ensure that you will be able to buy your dream home during this market. 

STEP NO. 2: TRY TO GET PRE-APPROVAL FROM LENDER

Getting a pre-approval letter from your lender prior to shopping for a home is a good idea for the following reasons:

• Pre-approval meaning Seller is favor your offer.
• You will know what you qualify for so you can shop within your range and not waste time on property that you cannot afford or wasting time on property that under your budget.
• If you have a Solid Offer with a Strong Pre-Approval like a Desktop Underwriting (DU), then you will have a stronger stance to beat other offers.

A pre-approval is not a final loan approval but it can be presented to Sellers when bidding on a home. It indicates that you are financially strong and can buy a home.  This is a crucial part of any deal because every seller wants to know your financial status before selling any property.

Contact your loan officer or talk to your Realtor for a recommendation prior to shopping for a home is a great way to set yourself up for success.

STEP NO. 3 – SEARCH FOR GOOD HOME

What is a good home? In my opinion:  a good home is a home that you can afford.  I don’t think it’s a good idea to buy a cheap home. An affordable home is a good home because it is within your budget, and the building materials are good enough.

A home is something beyond the cosmetic or paint.  It’s a place where you will raise your children and grow old. So here is my suggestion:

• Find a home within your price range
• Find a home that is build in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Don’t worry, you will do home inspection to make sure the structure, electrical, and plumbing are in good condition.
• Find the worst looking home in a really good neighborhood. You can always re-paint the house. If it looks old but the structure is okay then a fresh coat of paint will make it looks brand-new again.  The best part is painting the house is really cheap: less than five thousand dollars.

Every one of us is different so it’s really up to you to pick the right home for you and your family.  Use our recommendation to find a good home and don’t forget to work with your realtor in all aspects.  If you complete Step 1 successfully, you should have an easier time finding a home.

STEP NO 4: SELECT A HOME AND PRESENTING YOUR OFFER

Did you found your home? Then you ask your Realtor to make an OFFER.  The offer can be under the asking price, over the asking price, or at the asking price.  The decision to do one of three is yours and your Realtor to discuss.

Once you submit your OFFER, this is where you also submit your Pre-Approval letter, Credit Report, Income Statement, or Tax Return.  Why?  To allow the Seller to see that you are a STRONG buyer and you will NOT fall out of Escrow once they accept your OFFER.

The Seller may Counter-OFFER you and you can either accept the Seller Counter or you can do a Buyer Counter.  Once everyone agrees then, the Seller opens Escrow, and the Buyer transfer Earnest Money Deposit.

Depending on your market, you may have to bid your OFFER up, above the asking price.  Why?  Because there are a lot of buyers and not enough sellers.  Be sure to discuss with your Realtor to see what kind of Market Condition in your area, Buyer market, or Seller market.

STEP NO 5. FUNDING IS IMPORTANT

Once your OFFER is accepted and you have deposit your money into Escrow, now it’s time you work with your Loan Officer to finish your financing and funding for your down-payment.   The loan for your home is call a “mortgage.”  Here are some qualification factors for your Mortgage:

• Are you a first-time home buyer?
• Is your FICO more than 680 points?
• What is your Debt-to-Income Ratio?
• Sourcing of your deposit. Make sure you don’t make any large cash deposit or any unknow source of deposit and withdraw. Underwriter will look at your bank account very stringently. 
• What is your Loan to Value ratio (LTV)? Most likely you will have to deposit 20 percent of the purchase amount to make your LTV.

STAGE NO 6: INSURANCE

No homeowner should sell the house without insurance. The insurance protects owners in the event of a disaster. There are different types of insurance for ownership, below-mentioned are some of the major types:

• Title insurance. One-time insurance that protects the owner in case the property is declared invalid.
• Homeowners’ insurance for protection against any kind of fire, theft, and liability coverage.
• Flood insurance is issued by the federal government in high-risk areas and covers $250,000 for a single-family home plus $100,000 for contents.
• Home warranties for anything that goes wrong after the builder completes the work.

Contact your Realtor and Loan Offer for more information regarding all your insurance needs for your home. Remember: Lender will not fund the loan if you don’t have fire insurance for your house.

STEP NO 7: closing THE DEAL

If the Seller have accepted the Buyer OFFER then closing the deal is simple.  Once the buyer’s lender approved the loan, it will automatically fund to the Escrow account and close out the transaction.

STEP NO. 8: YOU ARE ALL READY TO MOVE INTO YOUR NEW HOME

Once you have taken possession of the key to your new home, you are ready to move in.