Contact an experienced real estate professional to help you purchase a property. Your real estate agent will discuss with you the parameters for the property such as price, bedrooms, baths, and type of home, garage, school system, location and other information important to you.

Contact a lender to determine how much you can afford. If you do not have a particular lender in mind, your real estate professional can give you names of people to contact. This is a very important part in the process because it is key to determining the correct properties for you to view, and most sellers want to know you are pre-approved before viewing their property and may require a copy of a pre-approval.

Select the properties you wish to view. Now that your real estate agent knows your price point and property requirements he/she has searched a database of properties to determine the homes for you to view. After reviewing the list, you and your agent will determine which properties you would like to view and a convenient time.

Viewing properties. Your real estate agent has scheduled the appointments to view properties and it is now time to view the interior. The seller has the option to be on the property during the showing ,but typically the seller does leave so you are able to openly discuss your thoughts/opinions of the property with your agent. Please be considerate when viewing properties such as not touching personal belongings, valuables, holding on to or carrying children.

Narrowing down the list of potential properties. You have viewed all of the properties once so it is now time to narrow the search to determine which properties to view again. It is best to determine the positives and negatives of each property and decide if you can see yourself living or working at each property. Once the list is narrowed down to a reasonable number your real estate agent will schedule a second showing.

Writing the offer. You have viewed every property you wanted to see at least once if not more and the decision is made as to which property you would like to purchase. Your real estate agent will help you determine the offer you would like to make on the property and explain all of the paperwork involved in writing an offer. Be sure to ask questions if you do not understand something.

Presenting the offer. After the offer is written and signed by all purchasing parties involved, your real estate agent will present the offer to the selling party. This can be done by meeting with the actual sellers of the property or presenting the offer to the real estate professional representing the seller. Your agent will explain the offer to the selling party and any additional information you want the sellers to know about you. Your agent will also ask if there are any questions and answer them.

Waiting for the answer. In your offer you gave the sellers a deadline (day and time) in which to respond to your offer. They have the right to accept the offer as written, write a counteroffer or let the deadline pass without a response. If a counteroffer is written, you have the option to accept the counteroffer, counter the counteroffer or let the deadline pass without responding. If an agreement cannot be made between both parties the same steps will be taken on the next property.

Acceptance of an offer. All parties have agreed upon the terms of the contract so it is now time to finalize all documentation with the lender of your choice, get the loan process underway and schedule the inspections.

Inspections. Your real estate agent will give you a list of inspectors to make your selection or you can find an inspector on your own. Once the inspectors are selected your real estate agent will schedule the day and time of the inspection. He/she will notify you and the seller of the inspection appointments. The typical inspections to be completed are home inspection and pest inspections. Other inspections that can be performed are radon, well, septic, lead and others. You and your real estate agent should be present during the inspections so you understand the findings of the inspections. The seller also has the right to be present during the inspections. If the inspections check out without problems the process continues. If certain items show up during the inspections you have the right to write an addendum to the purchase agreement. This addendum states the items you require the sellers to correct before closing. The seller has the option to accept all of the items on your list or negotiate with you on what the seller will correct.

Scheduling a closing. All of the inspections are complete, paperwork is in order and the lender is ready to schedule a closing. Your real estate professional will coordinate with you, the seller, the lender and the title company as to the date, time and location of the closing.

Preparing for closing. Typically the closing takes place at the title company so it is important to know where you need to go. You need to call the local utility companies to transfer utilities into your name (gas, electric, water, sewer, etc). You may also need to call other companies to schedule deliveries/installations such as phone service, cable TV service, waste removal, moving company, etc. Typically 24 hours before closing your real estate agent will receive copies of the closing figures. He/she will review the numbers with you and tell the lender if any mistakes have been made. You will need to bring a certified check to the closing so allow enough time to go to the bank to prepare the check. You will also need to bring a photo ID such as a driver’s license.

Closing. The day has come to sign all of the documents transferring ownership of the property into your name. The closer will explain all of the documents you will be signing, answer any questions you may have and you should receive copies of everything signed. Your real estate agent will also be in the room to answer any questions and to verify the numbers are correct. After all of the papers are signed by all parties you are now a proud owner of real estate.

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