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1. Determine Budget
One of the most important first steps as a buyer is to consider your budget. What can you actually afford to pay per month for a mortgage vs. what you are willing to pay per month? While trying to determine what this looks like for you, one should consider lifestyle, extracurricular activities, vacation needs, personal/retirement contributions, and any other financial priorities you have. Be sure to check out our mortgage calculator to give you a quick reference of what your mortgage and buying power could be.
2. Getting Pre-Approved
The second step is to understand your true buying power. We work with trusted local lenders who understand our niche market and can connect you with one of our many contacts to get the process started. Your lender will help evaluate your true financial standing and provide a pre-approval to be used during the buying process. These lenders review your income and credit history to determine how much they will lend you. This ultimately determines the price range for your home search. In most cases, buyers’ offers are not seriously considered without a current pre-approval letter, particularly in today’s climate. This step is crucial and time is of the essence.
3. Home Search
Now for the fun part, finding the perfect home to meet your needs. Let us be part of the process! You can start your search for the perfect home right here within our system with up to the minute MLS updates. When creating a search, there are many variables that effect the outcome. Be sure to speak with our agents about how to best set up your search to maximize the results in your home search.
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4. Offer Time
We’ve toured properties, you narrowed your search, and found the perfect home! Time to write an offer. This is where our experience becomes more evident. Markets vary, and as such, so do buying strategies. We work with you to craft an offer that is representative of market conditions, while placing you in the best light: an offer with multiple conditions and variables, that goes beyond the boilerplate experience, to truly expand all of your real estate options. During our buying consultation we cover off in great detail the buying process and the steps to be successful. If you’re not already a client, be sure to request a no-obligation buyer consultation to ask any questions you may have and explore your options.
Buyers Consultation
5. Under Contract
Your offer is accepted and we’re under contract — or in escrow, for all of our reality TV watchers. This is the time where both buyer and seller are legally bound to each other. The home cannot be sold to anyone else while the contract remains in effect. There are many requirements and time constraints during this period: delivery of earnest money, inspections, financing and locking your interest rates, and appraisal, just to name a few. ACCESS KC’s agents and in-house processors are experts in this area and will keep you on the right track.
6. Home Inspection
Inspecting the physical well being of your next home is an essential component to the process and adds peace of mind for the decision you’ve just made. At ACCESS KC, we have a variety of inspectors who specialize in whole home inspections. A licensed home inspector will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the entire property, from structure to systems, and generate a thorough report of any conditions that may exist during that snapshot in time.
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7. Appraisal Process
This is the next significant commitment in the process and typically has an additional financial commitment. During this period, your lender will arrange for a professional, unbiased opinion of the fair market value of your potential home. They are a third party and completely independent of the transaction. Their role, as the appraiser, is to confirm the value of the property for all parties involved.
8. Final Walkthrough
Final walk through is a period of time where the buyer is afforded the opportunity to walk through the property and ensure there has not been a material change in condition from the time of initial offer. This further serves as an opportunity to ensure that all negotiable items and repairs have been completed and that the home satisfies the terms of the agreed to contract. Final walkthrough usually occurs a day or two before closing, all the way up to the hours before your closing appointment and typically takes to complete.
9. Time To Close
The day has finally arrived! Typically we meet at a local title company who help facilitate and insure your transaction. During this time, the title company will present the disclosures and conditions and summarize your terms, monthly payments, taxes, and ancillary costs associated with the transaction. They will confirm that we are clear to close, and upon all parties signing the paperwork and your loan or cash funding into the title company’s account, you will receive the keys to your new home! Congratulations, you are officially a homeowner and free to move into your great new space.