Frequently Asked Buyer Question & Answers

Here are some answers for some of the frequently asked buyer questions. How often do you find the right house on the first day? It happens more than you think. A lot will depend on how specific you were when you gave your agent your search criteria. You also need to remember the 80/10/10 rule. If it meets 80 percent of your wants, you can change 10 percent & live with the other10 percent then it's a keeper. You will probable not find a perfect home unless you have it built for you. Is there anything I shouldn't do during the house hunting process? You should never talk directly to the seller, lose lips sink ships. Always ask your agent to find things out for you. How should I make an offer? One of the most imporant things is you don't want to burn the bridge between you & the seller. So when making a offer don't low ball your price so that it may make the seller upset enough that they won't counter your offer. If the market is dictating that the sellers are not helping with closing costs don't ask for them. Ask your agent for his opinion as to the best way to present your offer, his knowledge of the market will be priceless for you. How long does the buying process take? This depends on the type of transaction it is. If it is a cash sale it can be done in as little as 2 weeks. With a financed deal it generally takes 45 day or less to close. Short sales are a different story, each one is different. They can take anywhere from 90 days to over a year. What happens to our earnest money if our offer isn't accepted? Your money will be given back to you if your offer isn't accepted. What will happen to our earnest money deposit if the home inspection reveals an issue? If the issue is something that the seller won't fix then you have the right to cancell the contract & get your deposit back when you fill out the proper paperwork. Is the closing date on my contract guaranteed? It isn't, sometimes you will be able to close sooner if all things go smoothly. But sometimes things will come up in the process that will make it so that you have to ask the seller for an extention of the closing date. Can you recommend an attorney, home insector or lender? A good agent has a team of professionals that he will be able to recommend you to that he trustes. Do I need a home inspection? It isn't a required item for financing, but in my opinion a home inspection is a great peace of mind to the home buyer. Home inspectors have a checklist of different things to check for wear & tear. They also inspect things such as the roof, foundation, heating, cooling, plumbing to name a few. Then the home buyer has a good ideal of the general condition of the home and if it might need repairs before they purchase it. How long will the home inspection take? It will usually take between 2-4 hour depending on the size of the home along with things like does it have a pool or out buildings. What is the amount of money we'll need to close? Generally you will need the amount of your down payment plus somewhere between 3-5 percent of the purchase price for closing cost, unless you are getting help with the closing costs from the seller. What happen at the closing? You will get the final title report that should show that there is a clean title. If you are financing the title company will go over the paperwork from the lender & explain that to you. Be prepared to have to show your state ID & you will be signing your name quite a lot. These are a few of the things that go on. When will I get the keys? You will get the key once the property records at the county. If you close before noon & your funds are already at the title company you will generally get the keys that evening, but generally it will be the next day before you get your keys.