Home
Buyers
Journey of
Home Buyers
When you’re ready to start house shopping, the first step is to decide how much you want to spend and if you will need mortgage financing. If you are a cash buyer, you may still want to get mortgage pre-approval to have the option of utilizing a mortgage and preserving your cash. Besides knowing the amount of money you have set aside to purchase, you also need additional monies set aside for closing costs. Your real estate agent will review these costs with you in detail.
A mortgage pre-approval letter is issued after a loan officer has reviewed your income, savings and credit status. This pre-approval letter will advise you on the maximum loan you qualify for and how much home you can afford.
The Home Buying
Process
Securing
financING
When you’re ready to start house shopping, the first step is to decide how much you want to spend and if you will need mortgage financing. If you are a cash buyer, you may still want to get mortgage pre-approval to have the option of utilizing a mortgage and preserving your cash. Besides knowing the amount of money you have set aside to purchase, you also need additional monies set aside for closing costs. Your real estate agent will review these costs with you in detail.
A mortgage pre-approval letter is issued after a loan officer has reviewed your income, savings and credit status. This pre-approval letter will advise you on the maximum loan you qualify for and how much home you can afford.
TIME TO GO
HOUSE SHOPPING
Once you have your mortgage pre-approval in hand, you can begin house shopping! At McGeehan Realty Group LLC, we will schedule an initial consultation with you to discuss the type of home, location and amenities you desire in your new home. Your real estate agent will create a listing search in the MLS (multiple listing service) to alert you when a property hits the market that meets your criteria. Your real estate agent will set up home showing appointments, advise you on open houses, research the properties and provide you with all the information at their disposal to help you decide on THE ONE!
Apply for a
MORTGAGE
A pre-approval is not a mortgage commitment. A mortgage commitment is secured after you have found a property, completed the mortgage application, verified income/assets and obtained an appraisal of the property. As long as all required documentation is verified, a mortgage commitment will be issued. You will need all your financial documents easily available when making the mortgage application. This includes your last 2 years of income tax returns, last 2 months of ALL bank and financial account statements and last month of paystubs from your employer. You will also be asked to verify any other income that you will rely on when purchasing a home.
It’s important that you work with a mortgage loan officer to guide you through the process. At McGeehan Realty Group, LLC we work with a variety of mortgage brokers and are happy to connect you with one of our trusted lenders.
Have the property
Inspected
Congratulations! Your offer to purchase has been accepted! The next step is to get the home inspected. The purpose of the home inspection is two-fold. First, you want to make sure that there are no major structural, safety, environmental or mechanical defects. The second reason is so that you get to know the home you are buying more intimately. Your home inspector will provide you with a detailed, written report concerning the house that you will refer to long after you purchased the home. It will not only point out major defects, if any, but give you direction on maintenance items you will want to address once you purchase the house or if you will need to budget to replace an aging system or appliance. If a major defect is discovered, your real estate agent will work with you to notify the seller and request that the defect be addressed.
In addition to the home inspection, this is also the time for any other inspection you may want to have performed. Some examples include wood destroying insect, radon, tank scans, chimney inspection, lead based paint, sewer line, septic, swimming pool and/or dock/bulkhead. We will go over these inspection options with you in detail so you can decide what inspections you would like performed. All inspections are paid by the buyer at the time of the inspection.
Close, move into
Your new Home
Free/No Obligation Home Buyer’s Guide
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Meet Your
Agent
Ready to make the most significant financial decision of your life?
Speak to a savvy real estate agent now!
Rosemarie McGeehan
READY, SET, MOVE
When your move in date is near, you’ll want to make sure to collect the proper information for the home to make your transition as smooth as possible.