Things to remember when buying your home
You want to know how to buy a home? One of the most important things you can do when buying a home is to make a Home Buyers Checklist as you search for, find and ultimately purchase a property. Your home buying check list will keep your process organized. By keeping on top of your home buying game-plan at all times you will greatly increase your chances of success. With this in mind we have prepared a home buying checklist for you to use to assist in keeping a good focus, and making certain you don't forget key issues. To save time, and learn much more about how to buy a home, bookmark our home buyers guide and refer to the following home buyers checklist frequently. Read the home buyers guide pages that are linked to from the check list, and print them if you want to.
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House Buying Checklist |
- Always be an informed buyer. There are well over 100 pages of information on this site as well as links to much more information. Gather as much information as you can. You can keep up-to-date by subscribing to our free newsletter and by visiting this site often -- we update the information here regularly.
- Buying your first Southeastern Massachusetts home? See the page First Time Home Buying.
- Familiarize yourself with mortgages and the mortgage process. Visit Personal Mortgage Brokers for a quick pre-approval of your home loan. Have questions visit the FAQ or contact us?
- Begin the application process by getting prequalified and preapproved. Do this first. You will need your mortgage qualification, and it will strengthen your offer when you find a home you wish to buy.
- Get your financial picture in focus as soon as possible. Since it is an important component, be aware of your credit situation. Get a copy of your Credit Report, Credit Score & FICO Score here or see the Understanding credit page for additional resources for getting your credit report.
- Work on your budget before you move.
- How much time is needed to buy a home? See our home buying timeline.
- Find an Agent that you trust. Do this before you go looking for homes or you may end up with no representation. See the Agency and Buyer Agent pages for important information about "who represents who." See Buying Without An Agent for things to look for.
- Once you choose an agent, work WITH them, and let them help guide you. It is what they are there for. Make sure you have a buyers agency agreement in place. This ensures that the agent represents you and not the seller.
- Write down your housing needs and wants to determine what types of houses you should consider.
- Familiarize yourself with the various types of housing: Single family, multi family, townhouse, condo, etc.
- Have questions about buying a home? See the FAQ or the home buyers questions page.
- Still have a question about Real Estate or mortgage terminology? See our Glossary.
- Time to start House Hunting! First, see our page about finding the right home. Then use our score card for each house to help keep track of the properties you've seen.
- Learn how to set a value on a house. This can save time and help avoid disappointments.
- When you find a house you want to purchase, submit an offer to buy the house with your Rhode Island Realtor. Find out how offers become contracts.
- Negotiate the best deal using all of the information you have, and with the assistance of your Buyers Agent.
- If you haven't yet, apply for a mortgage loan.
- Arrange for a home inspector to visit the house . Protect yourself from problems, don't skip this!
- Learn about home warranties and what they cover.
- Compare and obtain homeowners insurance. Because homeowners insurance is for the long term, getting the best deal provides long term savings.
- Arrange for closing agent or attorney. In Rhode Island, it must be an attorney. Make final preparations for closing.
- Make your moving plans. If you are planning to use a moving company, make comparisons and reservations now.
- Get final loan approval and commitment from the lending institution. If you have done your homework, this should be relatively straightforward.
- Do a final walk through of the house to ensure that the house is in the expected condition, and that any changes that were required in the deal have been completed.
- Final closing and settlement.
- Move to your new home and enjoy it!
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