Timeline Guide for Purchasing

Here are the steps you'll take to find and close the property of your dreams:

Seek pre-approval for a mortgage:
Typical time frame: 1 - 2 days
You must know how much you can spend before you spend it. Talking with a lender will help you determine how much house you can afford. Pre-approval helps you in other ways. Consider this scenario. A home seller gets two similar offers. One is accompanied by a letter from the buyer's bank that states she is pre-approved for a mortgage in the amount of the offer. The other has no supporting documents. Which offer do you think the seller will consider first?

Find a property:
Typical time frame: 3 - 6 months
Depending on what you are looking for, the length of your search will vary. Once you've determined your price range, it's time to start looking at houses. But where should you look, and what can you expect to find? In all likelihood, no one home will have everything you want. But the home you ultimately purchase should meet as many of your expectations as possible. A key to the entire process is narrowing your search and not wasting time looking at every property.

Submit an offer:
Typical time frame: 1 - 3 days
When you find the home you want, we will write a purchase contract commonly known as "an offer". Your offer will spell out what you are willing to pay for and what you are not, when you want to close, and when you want to take possession of the home. Your contract should be contingent upon getting an inspection and evaluating the results. If the inspection reveals a big problem, you and the seller can renegotiate the purchase price if you are still interested in buying the property. You can also ask for some of the home furnishings in the initial offer.

Have inspections completed :
Typical time frame: 1 - 2 weeks
To protect yourself before you buy, you need to know everything you can about the condition of your prospective home. A home inspection is an in-depth examination of a home, and will identify any potential problems and necessary repairs. A satisfactory home inspection is a major component of purchasing a home. The buyer selects a licensed home inspector and pays for the inspection. The home inspection will be an additional cost of a few hundred dollars, but can give you the confidence that you know as much as possible about the property.

Schedule a Closing:
Typical time frame: 30 - 45 days from contract acceptance
A "loan closing" is the transfer of the title from the seller to the buyer, and the settlement of all the monies that are due. You will be contacted by the lender's attorney with instructions on what to bring to the closing. Usually, a driver's license, insurance binder and cashier's check for the remainder of the down payment and closing costs are requested. You should read all documentation before signing, and should feel free to ask the closing attorney each and every question you may have.

Typical Time Frame from the time a property is found, to the time a property closes: 3 - 5 months.