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Home Buyer Check List Free

Preparing to Buy

Preparing to Buy

  • Determine that you are ready to purchase a home and it’s the right decision
  • Understand the requirements for buying
  • Order a credit report from Five Stars Mortgage to review credit history
  • Resolve credit issues if necessary
  • Assemble the money you will need into one place
  • Picking the best Loan Program that fits your needs? FHA, VA, USDA, Conventional, Jumbo?
  • Get pre-approved for a mortgage
  • Decide to work with a real estate agent or by yourself or both

Finding a Home

  • Research neighborhoods
  • Drive around the interesting areas
  • Test commute by driving it
  • Talk with local merchants and neighbors about the area
  • Assess the schools in the area
  • Decide on neighborhoods to concentrate on

Understand the Real Estate Market

  • Read the Real Estate section of the paper for info
  • Visit open houses and talk with sellers and agents about the market
  • Psychologically prepare to move quickly if you are in a seller’s market and get pre-approved for your mortgage

Start to Shop

  • Make a list of amenities desired in a new home
  • Rank the amenities by most desired
  • See properties, both FSBO and those listed with agents
  • Assess each property against your list
  • Decide on a house that’s right and prepare to make an offer

Writing the Offer

  • Obtain contract forms from familymortgagega.com, your agent or another source
  • Know the typical elements of an offer and contract
  • Hire a real estate attorney to handle the contract if desired
  • Decide on an offer price
  • Compare the house to other houses on the market
  • Decide on the inspections you want to have and how you want to handle it if they are not satisfactory
  • Give the seller or agent a check for the earnest money deposit and make it clear in the offer when and where the check is to be deposited
  • Decide whether you want the seller to contribute to your closing costs
  • Decide on timeframes for inspections, financing and settlement

Negotiating the Offer

  • Offer is presented for consideration
  • Verify to the seller that you are pre-approved to purchase
  • Receive the seller’s response and respond
  • Accepted? Move on to handling the details
  • Declined? Walk away or re-offer
  • Counter-offer? Assess
  • Price is acceptable or counter-offer price is decided upon –
  • Make sure you still qualify at the new price – do you have enough cash and income?
  • Timeframes for inspections, financing and settlement acceptable or alternatives decided for a counter offer
  • Inspection, closing cost contribution and other contingencies are acceptable or alternatives decided on for counter-offer
  • Earnest money deposit is acceptable or an alternative decided on for the counteroffer
  • Accept the counteroffer, reject the counter offer or prepare a counter-offer in response to the contract
  • Put time-frame in the counteroffer for the seller’s response

Handling the Details

  • Home inspection completed if the contract requires
  • The home inspection followed up on
  • Home inspection issues resolved if necessary
  • Other inspections like Radon, WDO, etc completed if the location or contract requires
  • Other inspections followed up on
  • Other inspection issues resolved if necessary
  • Other inspections completed if required by contract
  • Roof Inspection
  • Electrical inspection
  • Other
  • Inspections followed up on
  • Inspection issues resolved if necessary
  • Property disclosures delivered, or condo documents if appropriate
  • Property disclosures approved
  • Property disclosure issues resolved if necessary
  • Apply for mortgage
  • Provide pre-approval letter to the seller if not already provided
  • Appraisal completed
  • Appraisal followed up on
  • Appraisal issues resolved if necessary
  • Mortgage is approved
  • Open escrow with your title company or another source
  • Deposit earnest money with the escrow company
  • Provide necessary documents to the escrow company
  • The survey is completed if necessary
  • The title search is completed
  • Issues with title search resolved if necessary
  • Title commitment completed (title work is done)
  • Termite inspection ordered if necessary
  • Termite inspection completed
  • Termite inspection followed up on
  • Termite inspection issues resolved if necessary
  • Obtain Homeowners Insurance
  • Pay for one year in advance
  • Provide paid receipt and insurance binder to the lender
  • Repairs required by contract or inspections completed
  • Settlement/Closing date and time scheduled
  • with the escrow officer or closing attorney
  • with the lender
  • with the seller
  • Final walk-through completed with seller
  • Satisfied with the walk-through?
  • Issues with walk-through resolved if necessary

Settlement/Closing

  • Review documents 24 -48 hours in advance
  • Resolve issues with documents if necessary
  • Make sure all lender’s requirements have been met
  • Determine the exact amount of money necessary for settlement
  • Obtain a certified check for settlement
  • Settle!

Buyers that want to learn more about loan programs and mortgage pre-approval can call us 7 days a week at the number above, or just fill out the Request Contact form on this page.

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Five Stars is now operated and a web asset of Coast2Coast Mortgage NMLS# 376205
9050 Cypress Green Dr. Suite #403 Jacksonville, FL 32256

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