Buying Process

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Buying Process

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Buying Process

Tips for Homebuying

1- Before you look, figure out what you can afford… you might be surprised! Use our calculators to see how much you can afford

2- Make a list of what you must have and what you'd just like to have… that will help you focus your search

3- Find yourself a good real estate agent…

4- Shop around for mortgages

5- Be prepared when you visit your lender! You'll need to bring with you several documents to get the ball rolling, including:

Your social security number;

Your most recent pay stub, showing your annual earnings;

Your W-2 tax forms for the past 2 years;

The names, addresses, and phone numbers of your employers for the past 2 years;

Account numbers and balances of your checking account, savings account, and any other accounts you have;

A list of any assets you have currently (such as bonds, stocks, etc.);

A list of all your creditors, including your current balance and your monthly payments; and Current and previous addresses you have used.

How can I buy a new home before selling the old one?

First-time tip: If you intend to have gift money make up a part of your down payment or closing funds, make sure you get pre-approved with a lender before you make an offer to buy a home. This is particularly important if you are in competition with other buyers. Sellers feel more confident accepting an offer that requires help from the folks if the parents have already agreed to the arrangement in writing and the lender has approved the buyer's financial package. Preapproval involves actually applying for the mortgage you'll need to complete the sale. All supporting financial documentation, including credit reports, verifications of income and emloyment and the source of funds to close, will need to be verified by the lender.

The closing: One irksome aspect of this process for many buyers is that lenders require parents who are making the gift to verify where the money is coming from. If the money is coming from a discount broker account, the lender will want proof that the gift money was actually withdrawn from this account in order to approve the loan.

Before The Home Inspection

1- Choose A Home Inspection Company With Top Credentials

Choosing a home inspection company that is licensed to practice engineering is a wise choice. If you want your home inspection conducted by a Licensed Professional Engineer (P.E), be sure that your home inspection report will be stamped with the home inspectors licensed P.E.seal. The practice of engineering is regulated in all States, whereas the business of home inspection is unregulated in almost all States (anybody can be a home inspector).

2- Don't pay Twice For A Home Inspection

Consumers who retain the services of a home inspector who is not a P.E., may be faced with paying a second home inspection fee if the home inspector uncovers a problem , such as structural defect, that requires the opinion of a Licensed Professional Engineer.

3- Be Sure To Obtain A Written Home Inspection Report

Be sure that your home inspection report will be a detailed written report, not a hand written checklist that is given to you at the conclusion of the home inspection. A checklist may be void of details and may not provide all of the information and engineering advice you need.

During The Home Inspection

1- Be Sure To Attend The Home Inspection

The inspection should take about two hours.

2- Be Sure That The Home Inspector Is Well Equipped

The home inspection engineer should be fully equipped with necessary engineering tools including electrical testers, a fuel gas and carbon monoxide detector, moisture meter, ladder, inspection mirror, flashlight, level, and other home inspection tools, etc.

3- Be Sure To Follow The Home Inspector And Ask Questions

4- Be Sure That All Of The Following Points Are Fully Covered

You need to know that the home you are purchasing is structurally sound. The physical, plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems should be thoroughly inspected and evaluated. The home inspection should include an inspection for wood destroying insects that will be accepted by your mortgage lender. If the home has a well and/or septic system, these systems should be evaluated as well by the home inspector. The home inspection engineer should look for materials that may be asbestos containing materials.

5- Be Sure To Consider Optional Tests

Where applicable, testing underground storage tanks, testing paint for lead, testing drinking water for lead, testing well supplied drinking water for bacteria, testing for radon gas in air, testing for urea formaldehyde foam insulation, etc.

6- Be Sure To Obtain A Full Verbal Report From The Home Inspector At The Time Of The Home Inspection

The home inspection engineering report should be available the next working day after the home inspection but a full verbal report should be obtained at the conclusion of the home inspection.

After The Home Inspection

1- You Should Know

You should know the condition of the home you are purchasing, including all positive and negative aspects.

You should know what repairs are need, as well as the urgency of the needed repairs, and the magnitude of the repair costs.

You should know a proper course of corrective repairs and whether alternatives are available.

You should know if there are any unsafe conditions, and whether there are any risks of hidden deterioration.

2- You Should Expect

You should expect an easy to understand detailed written home inspection report; look for the Licensed Professional Engineer's P.E. seal at the end of the home inspector's report.

You should expect the home inspection engineer to provide the answers to any questions you may have regarding the report.

You should expect the engineer's door to be open for answers to future questions.

3- You Should Not Expect

You should not expect the home inspector to offer to repair, for a fee, any uncovered defects (that would be a conflict of interest and may erode confidence you may have in the home inspector's findings).

A Consumer Home Inspection

The right home for you is affordable, comfortable and within your means to maintain for as long as choose to live in it.

Affording a home involves more than having enough money to cover the down payment, closing costs and monthly mortgage obligations. Maintaining the overall condition of the home while you live in it and the repairs and preventive measures needed to do so can be just as costly.

The consumer home inspection does not replace the professional home inspection. You do the consumer home inspection before making an offer to purchase a home. Once you conduct your own consumer home inspection and make a decision to buy a particular home, you will sign a contract and have the home you've selected professionally inspected.

Schedule your home inspection during day-light hours. You may want to bring along the following tools:

The Consumer Home Inspection Form

A powerful flashlight to use in basements and crawl spaces

A stepladder to look in the attic to check insulation, the underside of the roof and indirect lighting fixtures

A tape recorder to record any information too lengthy to note on the inspection form

A circuit tester to check the circuits

Plan to go through the home completely two times so you can do an overall analysis. Remember to consider the following when you conduct your home inspection so you can effectively evaluate the home:

The existing condition of all systems and equipment

Any unusual features that may increase or decrease the appeal of the home

Any problems or features you want your professional home inspector to check out

The quality and condition of the structure

Routine house cleaning and maintenance items: paint, furnace filters, gutters, caulking in bathrooms, landscaping, floors, appliances, walls, etc.

General Observations Throughout the Home

Floor Plans: When inspecting a home, consider its layout.

Walls & Ceilings

Windows

Doors

Closets: Note the number of closets, their condition and depth.

Fireplaces and WoodBurning Stoves: Fireplaces are a popular selling feature, but you should carefully examine them during your home inspection.

Look up the chimney to see whether the flue is lined with terra cotta. Ordinary brick lining is in violation of most codes.

The cost of relining a chimney with terra cotta is about $2,000.

Check to see if there is a working damper in the fireplace.

Ask the owners to have the chimneys cleaned before you buy the home.

Floors: If the floors are carpeted, check to see if the carpeting covers hardwood or plywood floors. In newer homes, plywood is typically used. Hardwood floors are better and usually considered to be a distinguishing feature.

Insulation: As fuel costs continue to rise, insulation is an increasingly important consideration in a home. It's usually difficult to tell whether insulation exists within the walls of a home. As a rule, if the home has little or no attic insulation, there is probably none in the walls. The Rfactor is the unit of measurement of insulating value in a home. The higher the Rfactor, the greater the insulating value. The recommended Rfactors are

R11 to R15, for walls

R19 to R30, for ceilings

Ventilation: Adequate ventilation in an attic is one square foot of ventilation for each 150 square feet of floor space.

Basements

It is important to inspect the basement carefully. All the major mechanical, plumbing and heating systems in a home are usually located in the basement. Foundation or structural problems may also be detected in the basement, and they typically affect the entire home.