Most people tend to call their lender first however you should give first call to your real estate agent, agent will fix you with a lender who knows how to get things done and the transaction is even smoother. The first step to buying a home is getting pre-qualified. You need to find out how much money you can borrow based on your credit score, income, debt, and cash on hand. Once we know how much you qualify for than we can meet and come up with a home buying strategy that meets your needs.

We apply for an enhancement loan to make minor repairs to your house to get it ready for sale. Then you pay it back when the house closes.

The answer to these questions to ask real estate agent professionals can vary significantly based on many different factors. Once a home has been selected and an offer accepted the closing process takes between 20-45 days. The short answer is added 20-45 days to the amount of time it takes us to get pre-approved, find a home you love and get an offer accepted. We have helped a family buy a house in about 24 days and we have helped families that have taken many months. If you are paying cash for your home, then the closing time can be reduced to as little as 5-10 days.

Technically you do not pay an agent anything to help you buy a house, the seller does. When a home gets listed on the MLS the seller agrees to pay a commission to the buyer’s agent. That percentage gets paid at closing. Some agents may require you to sign what is called a Buyer’s Agreement.  This is a contract that states that if you buy a house you agree to give your buyer’s agent an agreed upon commission

Absolutely.  Everything is negotiable. The price of the home, the earnest money deposit, the down payment amount, the time to close, what stays with the house, what goes, if work needs to be done, whether or not there will be an inspection, how long you have to get the inspection done, if the sellers would like to rent the home after closing or just need to stay a little longer. We have negotiated chairs staying to foundations being rebuilt and everything in between.

580 minimum for FHA. 620 minimum for Conventional. There are some programs that will let you go lower than that, but the terms will not be as favorable. The higher your score the more favorable your loan terms become including less fees and lower interest rates.

There are still plenty of 0% down loans available for conventional loans. There is good 3.5% and 5% down loans available for FHA loans. Often people think that you need 20% down to buy a home.  However, that is less common than 0%, 3.5%, 5% and 10% loans. The reason most people assume you need 20% is that is the amount you need to avoid paying private mortgage insurance (PMI). The insurance is a percentage of the loan amount annually, paid monthly with your mortgage payment. PMI is nothing to be afraid of. PMI simply protects the lender in the case of foreclosure, and its cost is generally well worth the gains in home equity associated with purchasing sooner and making a smaller down payment. It is best to talk to a professional mortgage broker about what would be best for you.

It is a deposit that you pay to the seller to show good faith toward buying the home. When you submit an offer, you will agree with your agent on an earnest money amount. Typically, between 1-3% of the purchase price. When your offer is accepted you will have 2 business days to provide a check or money order to your agent or the escrow office. This sum of money will be held by the escrow company and when the transaction closes will be applied to the down payment and cost of the home. If the transaction does not close the earnest money is refundable if the buyer does not terminate the sale for contingencies not listed in the contract, or miss timelines as agreed upon in the contract, or if they simply decide to walk away for no reason.

If your offer is rejected by the seller than nothing happens.  There are no money trading places, or contracts being made. Simply, you just start your home search again.  This time a little more experienced.

Wire fraud typically involves a hacker gaining access to an email account and posing as a trusted party involved in your real estate transaction. This could be someone pretending to be your real estate agent, loan officer, title agent, or even an attorney. Once the hacker has access to a trusted email account, the hacker sends an email from that account or from a similar account that looks “almost” the same as one of the parties in the transaction – with information related to your transaction, including wire instructions for your closing funds.

When you buy or refinance a home, title insurance confirms there are no disputes over who has rights to the property. All title insurance rates, and policy forms are filed with the Office of the Insurance Commissioner.  If the Commissioner finds that a title insurance rate is excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory, he can order the modification of the rate on a prospective basis.

When a buyer and seller come to an agreement on the terms of sale, everyone involved gives their part of the transaction to the escrow officer. Then the escrow officer ensures everyone does what they agreed to do before handing over the deed and distributing funds appropriately. And by the time the property changes hands or the refinance is complete, all the variables are coordinated, and everyone has peace of mind it was all done correctly!