First Time Home Buyer Step-by-Step Guide.

If you’ve recently made the decision to buy your first home, congratulations! This is one of the most exciting milestones in your life, and it lays the foundation for so many other significant moments in your future. Your home will become the backdrop to the next season of your life, whatever that may hold. So as you begin this journey of unlocking your own new doors, I am cheering you on with excitement.

That being said, buying a home can feel a bit overwhelming for a first-time home buyer! Trust me, I’ve been there myself. I would love to break the process down for you into 10 steps to help the process feel just a little less abstract. Let’s get into it!

1. Evaluate your finances. You’ll want to take a look at your credit score, decide how much you’d be able to invest on your down payment, and then make sure you have some buffer in your savings for the closing costs, moving expenses, and inspection fees.
2. Establish your budget. Then, to establish your official budget, you’ll want to look at realistically what you can afford on a monthly mortgage payment. You may want to keep in mind that if you can pay 20% of the home’s purchase price as your down payment, you will be able to avoid private mortgage insurance (PMI), which will cut down how much you will spend on your mortgage month to month.
3. Determine financing options. When it comes to choosing which kind of mortgage to go with, you have options. These are the five most common kinds of mortgages to consider: conventional loans, Federal Housing Administration loans, VA loans, jumbo loans, and renovation loans. Consulting with a lender or mortgage broker to help assess your situation is super helpful and I highly recommend.
4. Create your wish list. Once the nitty-gritty background work with finances is finished, let’s get into the fun part! Creating a wish list for your future home is a great way to guide the house hunting process, and to keep you focused on what’s important to you. It may be helpful to separate your list into “wants” and “needs” so that if you have to compromise on something, you already have your priorities in line.
5. Find your agent. I would LOVE to work with you to “unlock new doors”!
6. House hunt. And now for the most thrilling step of the whole process – the hunt! This is where all of the dreams and plans begin to materialize as we consider in real life what your options are. This can take anywhere from just a few weeks, to a few months, depending on market conditions and just how quickly we come across that space that checks the boxes.
7. Make your offer. Once you find the property you love, it’s time to make an offer! I will help you determine a fair market offer based on a comparative market analysis, and then communicate with the seller’s agent to negotiate and ultimately settle on an offer with terms and conditions that are agreeable to both parties.
8. Apply for your mortgage. After your offer has been accepted, it’s time to finalize your mortgage. If you had been pre-approved for a mortgage, just remember that it is not binding, so you can still shop around for a better deal before signing any papers.
9. Begin the legal work. The final step in the homebuying process is some legal work, consisting mainly of three things: homeowners’ insurance, a home inspection, and a home appraisal.
10. Seal the deal! A few days before your agreed-upon closing date, the lender will send you the final paperwork which outlines all the details and financials. This includes loan terms, taxes, mortgage rates, closing costs, title insurance, and many other things! Once these papers have been read and signed, you are officially the new owner of the property!

And thus begins an exciting new chapter of your life within your new walls. Moving in, making it your own, decorating, finding your place in a new community, and building new memories from scratch all await you. As a realtor, I truly love the process of finding and securing a new home that is a great fit for you as my client. If you are a first time (or second or third time) home buyer, it would be my pleasure to assist you in unlocking your next new doors!