Buying a home can, and should be, fun. 

For most people, buying a home can be an intimidating event. But with a little up-front planning, it isn't very complicated. So buyers know exactly what they can expect, I like to provide them with a road map of the entire deal. Below are my nine steps to purchasing a home. When you're ready to get started, just contact me here or e-mail me at . I'm glad to answer questions you have about this information.

Step 1 – Prepare to purchase

Prior to beginning your home search, there are several things you should take into account. When you start your search, you'll want to put together an index of items you want to have, get an idea of what school districts and neighborhoods you want to live in, and start planning around your budget. Keeping your mortgage payment less than a third of your monthly income is a good principle to adhere to. 

If you are going to finance the home, I'll can help you find a lender.  I can recommend some very good mortgage professionals my clients have enjoyed using in the past.  However, you can use any lender you feel comfortable with.  You will need to get prequalified before searching for homes.  That is how you will know how much home you can afford so we're not wasting time. 

Step 2 – Communicate with a real estate agent

That's where I come in. We'll discuss your real estate needs to give me an idea of what you are looking for in a home.  Everything from size and style of the home, price, community amenities, distance from work, schools etc.  I'll also go over the mortgage industry and other economic factors that may potentially affect your purchase.

Step 3 – Start looking for a home
After our initial meeting, I'll build a search for homes with your search criteria and email you a link to a portal that will have all the available listings meeting that criteria.  If you are out of state, or just crunched for time, I can go and preview homes to eliminate ones that have deal breakers you can't see from photos and videos.  i.e. road noise, barking dogs, power lines etc. to save you time.  Then we'll schedule an appointment to view homes that might work when it's most convenient for you.

As we view the homes, I'll call attention to good features, as well as negative ones.  As we go, it's very common for buyers to change their must-have list  and some features become more necessary than others. If that happens, I simply adjust the search.

Step 4 – Comprehend the housing market
An agent's understanding of the housing market is crucial  in your home search.  Because I work with so many out-of-state buyers that aren't sure where they want to be, I have pretty good grasp on the entire valley.  The valley is huge though, so I don't pretend to know every school, community or park.  If I come across a community I'm not familiar with, I contact an agent that is very familiar.  The benefit to you is you don't have to work with multiple agents.  My record is over 800 miles going from one side of the valley and back, previewing and showing an out-of-state family homes before they made their decision.   

Step 5 – Find your dream house
When we find the home you've been looking for, I'll show you the comps so you can see what other homes, like it, recently sold for in the area.  So you can feel comfortable with price you are offering.   We'll go over the other terms of your offer.  Some things I will know because of previous discussions.  Things like, how soon do you wan to close and take possession.  It can be as fast as 7 days or as long as a couple months, depending on a lot of factors.  

Step 6 – Negotiate the deal
Unfortunately some contracts aren't accepted on the initial offer – it's common to receive a counter offer. Don't let it discourage you. We'll talk over whether or not to take the counter offer, present our own counter offer, or refuse the seller's offer and go on to the next home.

Market conditions will play a role in how aggressively we negotiate the deal. In addition, we may need to work within financing constraints.

Step 7 – Inspections and Appraisals

Once all parties have agreed to terms and we are "under contract", we will order a home inspection.  You will have 10 days to do your due diligence.  10 days is negotiable but it's standard.  On the day of the inspection, inspector will go over the report with us.  You will decide if you want to cancel the offer, ask the seller to make repairs, using what is called a BINSR(Buyers Inspection Notice Sellers Response) or accept the home as is.  The lender will order the appraisal once we get past the inspection process, usually.

Step 8 – Close the deal
Your mortgage lender will have given give you a Loan Estimate (LE) detailing closing costs within three days of getting your loan application. This estimate rests on the loan amount, and RESPA requirements  mandate that it has to include all closing costs and be within a precise range of accuracy.  3 days before closing, the lender will issue a estimated settlement statement and it should be extremely close to the (LE)  I'll examine both estimates and let you know if everything looks okay.

Then we'll sign the papers and close on your house.  This will most often occur a couple days before the actual closing date at a title company or escrow office but, can be done just about anywhere, and is usually smooth and fun.  The title company will make sure all the funds are in and everyone has signed and will send it to the county, were it is recorded.  This is usually the same day as closing.  Once the transaction is recorded, you get the Keys!

Step 9 – Move in
Congratulations! Now you can move into your new home. Enjoy it. And if you have any questions, be sure to contact me at 480-586-8833 or e-mail me at paulsazre@live.com .