Home Buying Checklist: Reality Check Edition

House hunting? Read on for a helpful Home Buying Checklist: Reality Check Edition. Why am I offering a checklist when there are countless ones available all over the internet, on social media and likely in handouts from your REALTOR? Because most fail to talk about nuanced parts of the home buying process. So use those lists – they are helpful, I promise! However, check this list out for some extra tips that might help your transaction.

Plan & Get Organized

No, I’m not talking about packing and getting organized (although that helps too if you’re planning to move – more on that in another post). What I’m talking about here is getting your financial life together in advance of a home purchase. Limit big ticket items, realistically analyze your budget (know how to live comfortably within your means with increased housing costs) and have financial documents readily accessible. What sort of documents and information will you need? Think tax returns, bank statements, proof of employment, pay stubs, retirement accounts, recurring debt payments (car(s), student loans, credit cards). From this point – you’ll be poised to interview lenders and discuss available loan options and programs.

Get Pre-Approved

After you’ve spoken with a few lenders and made your choice who to work with – go through the pre-approval process. This is so important if you’re serious about house hunting and making an offer. One thing to note – the saying timing is everything is super important. If there is a chance you’ll be considering a new build – you may want to hold off on the pre-approval process until you’ve selected your builder. Why? There are often incentives for using the builder’s preferred lender. Running your credit too often can have a minimal impact on your score. However, if you’re loan shopping and do the pulls in a certain amount of time, they should only count as one pull.

Get to Know the Expenses You’ll Likely Incur Pre- & Post-Close

Pre-Close: Newsflash – there’s more to buying a house than a down payment (and no – 20% is not a fixed down payment amount). Here are some common costs incurred while house shopping and going through the contracting phase: earnest money deposit, inspection charges, credit pulls and appraisal charges. Many of these will be addressed at closing as credits/debits depending on where they’re owed. Some like the inspection and credit pulls are incurred costs. You’ll also want to plan for moving (unless you plan to DIY in your own personal vehicle) and cleaning costs.

Post-Close: If you are buying a condo or home in an HOA or master planned community – you may be looking at regular fees like common charges, HOA and/or CDD fees (which are charged at regular intervals throughout the year) in addition to mortgage and taxes. PMI is another charge that may be added – post close – if you put down less than 20%. Rest assured – these charges should be known to you between disclosure while shopping and the loan process. Also, many of the charges will land in your escrow account post-close (typically taxes, homeowners insurance and PMI).

So Many Professionals

Each and every one of the professionals associated with your transaction will play a role. There are many and no – you likely will not have to deal with all – but let’s start a list:

Realtor (buyer and seller side)
Lender
Builder
Home inspector
Title company
Real estate attorney
Movers
Cleaners
Insurance Agent

Be Available

With so many professionals working on your behalf – please do your best to be available. Full disclosure: house hunting and proceeding through the offer phase is time consuming (and at times emotionally exhausting, tiring yet exciting). Your availability is key to keeping everything on track. If you need to be in your home by a certain date – you’ll need to do everything in your power to help keep things moving along. Rest assured – you’ll get countless requests and your agent and personally selected vendors will be there to help every step of the way.