You’ve decided that you are going to be purchasing a home in the Fort Wayne area. Congratulations!
Now what? Write an offer? Look for homes online? Drive around and call the number on the real estate signs? Go to open houses?
Let’s cover the steps…
1. Call a Realtor®. Have a conversation about your needs and wants in a home. It’s important that you and your agent are on the same page.
2. Call a lender about pre-approval for a mortgage loan. If you don’t have a lender preference, we can get you over to a trusted business partner. Have a conversation with your lender about not only the amount you can comfortably afford, but also about the type of loan, down payment, etc.
It’s very important that you know your buying power BEFORE you even step foot in a home.
3. Physically look at homes. We recommend sending us over a list of homes that you’ve seen online. We can then schedule a time to view these homes. If you have a LOT of homes you want to see (more than 10), if time permits we normally have buyers pick their top 5 to start with.
4. Write an offer and negotiate. We will either physically or electronically help you put all of the paperwork together so that we can present an offer to the other agent. We will then negotiate on your behalf with the other agent.
5. Home inspection. Once we have a home under contract, it’s time for the inspection. It is your choice who you use as an inspector. Our office has a list of 15-20 local home inspectors. We’ll give you all the information you need to relay to the inspector you choose.
The home inspection usually takes an hour on smaller homes, and can take up to 2 hours or more with larger homes.
The cost of a home inspection depends on the variables, but you should be prepared to spend at least $300 for a basic inspection.
There are specialty inspections (radon, mold, roof, etc.) that you can have done if you choose. You can discuss that with your inspector.
Once the inspection is done, we’ll negotiate on your behalf for repairs to be done by the seller.
6. Appraisal. The appraisal is something a lender almost always requires to ensure the home’s value is equal to or greater than the purchase price. Unless negotiated differently, this is a cost to you, the buyer. You can expect to pay $350 or more for an appraisal.
7. Final walk through. This is normally done either the day before or the day of closing. It’s to ensure that the home is in the same condition it was when you first saw it, unless repairs were being done prior to closing.
8. Closing. Most of the time closings take place at the title company. Most of the time in Indiana, both buyers and sellers are in the same closing room along with both agents, the lender, and the closer.
Most closings take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour.
This is a very basic list of what to expect when purchasing your home. Our jobs as your Realtors® is to guide you through the process every single step of the way, and to educate you on what’s going on and what to expect.
Whether you’re a first time home buyer or an experienced buyer, it is very important that you have representation. We’d love to answer any and all questions you have about the process.
We can be reached at 260.704.0842. Feel free to call or text!
