Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by your agent will help reduce the stress of buying a home and
help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.
Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods and help you when the time comes to make an offer.
Notice I said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. This likely includes doing a full household budget and taking into consideration what changes other than a mortgage payment will occur once you move into your new home. If you’ve lived in an apartment or with roommates, you may overlook new expenses like garbage, water, or HOA fees that could easily blow your budget.
Just because you think you can afford a certain payment every month doesn’t mean the mortgage company will agree. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can cause major problems when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a home, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify for. This will also be an advantage when you make an offer on a home, as some sellers won’t entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.
Can you shop for, look at, and ultimately make an offer on a home without a real estate agent? Technically yes, but why would you when it costs you nothing for an agent like me to take much of the stress off your shoulders? Not only will I help identify properties you might be interested in, arrange showings, and ultimately handle the offer process, but I also have a knowledge of the market that you don’t possess. I may be able to steer you away from certain homes or neighborhoods, suggest hidden gems, or give you pointers that will help you find your dream home for the right price.
This should be the most enjoyable step of the entire process (other than moving in!). I will arrange showings of homes you’re interested in that are within your price range. Take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. Turn light switches on and off, open and close doors, and run the faucets in various rooms. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, and how close it is to necessities like schools and grocery stores.
Once you have selected the perfect home, work with your agent to craft a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes on the market. Depending on what the home is listed at and whether the current environment is a buyer’s or seller’s market, your offer may be below, at, or even above the asking price. I will be able to help you negotiate if you receive a counteroffer and reach an agreement. At this point, the house will go into escrow.
In most cases, your offer will be contingent on having the home inspected to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. I can help you arrange this, and you can schedule it within days of making an offer. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there is, you can renegotiate your offer based on what needs to be fixed, or you can withdraw it.
Now is the time to go back to the mortgage lender who pre-approved or pre-qualified you and choose your mortgage. You will be presented with various options based on your unique financial situation, including fixed-rate, variable-rate, 15-year, 30-year, or special programs such as VA loans or FHA loans. Work with your mortgage lender to select the option you feel the most comfortable with.
Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.
No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. Fortunately, everything will be arranged by your lender and title company and, when you’re finished, you’ll know you are the legal owner of your new home.
The contract contains contingencies that are essential protections for the buyer and seller before the contract becomes binding. When writing an offer, there will be different time periods for the buyer to complete all of their investigations, obtain financing(loan), verify the property's value, and exit the contract without any penalty. Once ALL contingencies are removed, the buyer is in a binding contract. Should they default or cancel, they can be taken to mediation where their 3% deposit would be at risk.
This is typically the longest time period, and when your lender secures your loan. Should he/she not be able to, you may cancel w/o a penalty.
An appraisal is directly correlated to your loan. It is when a 3rd party appraiser assesses the value of the home to make sure the bank is not over-lending. If the appraiser values the home at a lesser value than the agreed upon purchase price, then the buyer has the option to pay the difference, try and negotiate a price reduction, or cancel the escrow.
This includes property inspections, review of all disclosures/reports and HOA documents (if a townhouse or condo). Should there be major issues with the property, we can issue a "request for repairs" and negotiate a credit for the damage, a price reduction, or request that the seller complete the repairs prior to the close of escrow. Because homes in California are sold "as-is", sellers are NOT obligated to participate, however, most cooperate in good faith.
After signing the final paperwork to complete the purchase, you are now the owner of a new house. It may take a few days for your loan to be funded once the paperwork has been returned to the lender, but once that check is delivered to the seller, you’ll be all set to move into the home of your dreams.
Kristen is an amazing Realtor®. She was patiently showing me around all of LA till we found the right condo. Friendly, knowledgeable, and firm when it comes to closing a deal. You will be in great hands!
She’s gone on to make dreams come true for 3 more friends, and I’m sure many more coming. Like I say to everyone I recommend Kristen to, she’s a real human with your best interests in mind. Couldn’t recommend more."
Kristen and her team are the best. This is the second time we worked with her, and we’ll definitely work with her again in the future. She is always on top of everything and we really trust her input and recommendations.
This is not your average 5-star review, I wish there were 6. Kristen helped us buy our beautiful house: 1. Directly in the middle of the insane pandemic housing boom 2. Amongst 12 other offers 3. With dignity, grace, and exactl...
Working with Kristen and her team was a first-time home buyer's dream! She made the process so easy and even though she had other, active clients, she always made time and made you feel like a priority. She also introduced me t...
Kristen was amazing to work with when we were searching for our dream home. As first-time homebuyers, she was patient, attentive, friendly, and enthusiastic to help us with the process. She came to every house tour with us, no ...
We are fortunate to have landed the best Realtors®! Lisa and Kristen were involved in every step in our journey of becoming homeowners. Their availability to answer our questions and concerns did not have a limit, which speaks ...
Lisa Kirshner and Kristen Partipilo are really excellent real estate agents. They are incredibly knowledgeable about West LA neighborhoods, which allowed us to confidently buy a condo in the midst of the pandemic. As first-time...
Lisa and Kristen were very knowledgeable and attentive to us throughout our 7-month house hunting journey. Being first time homebuyers, we had a lot of questions and they answered our questions thoroughly. They made sure we fel...
Kristen helped our growing family find the right home at a very crazy time to buy a house (thanks a lot pandemic!) and to make matters even more challenging for us, we were moving from out of state. Despite these challenges, Kr...
Kristen’s expertise and professionalism were anything less than flawless! Beyond her extremely detailed and thorough representation, we appreciated her ability to negotiate and execute. It’s rare when you find an agent who chec...
Kristen is fantastic and I couldn't ask for a better agent! After I initially got an offer accepted to buy a condo with Kristen, I decided to back out of the agreement during inspections with her full support. Then Kristen gave...
We cannot say enough good things about Kristen - she made the entire process from our very first call to closing SO much easier. We always felt like we had an absolute expert that had our back every step of the way, we never ...
Kristen was amazing to work with when we were searching for our dream home. As first time homebuyers, she was patient, attentive, friendly, and enthusiastic to help us with the process. She came to every house tour with us, no ...
My wife and I interviewed a couple of Agents that were recommended to us and we decided to work with Kristen. She was very professional from the start and we felt confident that she was going to get the job done. We had a goal ...
Get assistance in determining current property value, crafting a competitive offer, writing and negotiating a contract, and much more. Contact me today.
