First-Time Home Buyer’s

Buying a home can be an overwhelming process. From financing to negotiating to closing, there are a lot of moving pieces that can leave homebuyers bewildered.

One of our real estate agents here at Elite 5 Star Realty can help guide you through each step of the buying process, offering sound advice along the way. By working with a professional agent who knows the ins and outs of the real estate industry and the area, you’ll not only end up with a great home, but you’ll also walk away with a great experience. Below are some of the key areas that one of our agents with over ten years of experience can help you with. For more information, please stop by our location in Baytown, Texas, or call (281) 839-7938 for a free consultation.

Getting Pre-Approved By A Lender

Before you start looking for a home, you will need to know how much you can spend. The best way to do that is to get prequalified for a mortgage. Your real estate agent can assist you in getting pre-approved by a reputable lender. To get prequalified, you just need to provide some financial information to your mortgage lenders, such as your income and the amount of savings and investments you have. Your lender will review this information and tell you how much they can lend you. This will tell you the price range of the homes you should be looking at. Later, you can get pre-approved for credit, which involves providing your financial documents (W-2 statements, paycheck stubs, bank account statements, etc.) so your lender can verify your financial status and credit. The lender will then go over your financing options, what monthly payment amount you can afford, and what you can expect for down payment requirements and closing costs.

Choosing A Home

For most buyers, choosing a home is an emotional process. Start touring homes in your price range. It might be helpful to take notes on all the homes you visit. One of our experienced agents here at Elite 5 Star Realty will also assist you in this process by offering objective information about each property you look at. From local community information like schools and zoning to home-specific details like condition and amenities, an agent can help you find exactly what you’re looking for. You will see a lot of houses! It can be hard to remember everything about them, so you might want to take pictures or videos to help you remember each home.

Making An Offer

Once you’ve found the home of your dreams, an agent will research recent comparable sales of similar homes in the area to help determine a fair selling price. Based on those comparable sales, as well as other factors like inspections and repairs, an agent will then help you structure an offer and negotiate to get the very best deal possible.

Take as much time as you need to find the right home. Then work with your real estate agent to negotiate a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes in the same neighborhood. Once you and the seller have reached an agreement on a price, the house will go into escrow, which is the period of time it takes to complete all of the remaining steps in the home buying process.

Get A Home Inspection

Typically, purchase offers are contingent on a home inspection of the property to check for signs of structural damage or things that may need fixing. Your real estate agent usually will help you arrange to have this inspection conducted within a few days of the seller accepting your offer. This contingency protects you by giving you a chance to renegotiate your offer or withdraw it without penalty if the inspection reveals significant material damage.

Both you and the seller will receive a report on the home inspector’s findings. You can then decide if you want to ask the seller to fix anything on the property before closing the sale. Before the sale closes, you will have a walk-through of the house, which gives you the chance to confirm that any agreed-upon repairs have been made.

Have the Home Appraised

Lenders will arrange for an appraiser to provide an independent estimate of the value of the house you are buying. The appraiser is a member of a third-party company and is not directly associated with the lender. The appraisal will let all the parties involved know that you are paying a fair price for the home.

Coordinate the Paperwork

As you can imagine, there is a lot of paperwork involved in buying a house. Your lender will arrange for a title company to handle all the paperwork and ensure that the seller is the rightful owner of the home you are buying.

Closing

You will sign all the paperwork required to complete the purchase at closing, including your loan documents. In some areas, the escrow or title company handles the closing process, while an attorney handles it in other areas. Regardless of where you’re buying, a real estate agent can help ensure that everything goes smoothly. Once all the documents have been signed and received by the lender, the loan is funded, and you can move into your new home.

For further information about buying your first home, contact Elite 5 Star Realty in Baytown, Texas, at (281) 839-7938.