Posted August 23, 2010 by

How to buy a house 101

Often times I will get people who ask me to summarize the steps to buying a home. Below are the brief bullet points to how a typical real estate transaction works.

 

Identify your realtor

Identify your loan officer

Submit all necessary documents to get prequalified

Begin touring properties

Make a contractural offer on a property

The offer is either accepted, denied or countered

Once all parties are in agreement you will deliver your earnest money and option check

The earnest money goes to the title company and the option check goes to the seller

The earnest money secures the propety and essentially takes it off the market. Typically it is 1% of the purchase price.

The option check gives you the right to have an inspection during the designated "option/inspection" period. You can terminate the contract at this time as well and only lose the option fee plus any inspection costs incurred.

Before the option period ends you might have additional negotiations for repairs.

After the option period the contract is pending

Once you are at the closing table and the loan funds the house is officially yours.