Getting an offer accepted is definitely one of the most exciting parts of the process when you’re buying a home - so congratulations, you’re now well on your way to owning your very own home!
Now things get really serious, but if you follow these suggestions (and your realtor’s advice), closing will go as smoothly as possible.
Deposit Check
You have been asked to give a deposit check with your offer, make sure that there are sufficient funds in your account to cover this check which gets cashed upon acceptance of your offer.
The deposit check may be held by an attorney or in the broker’s trust account and forms part of your total purchase price. Assuming the sale goes through, this money will be applied to the purchase price of the home.
If for any reason the sale is not consummated, you may be entitled to receive all of your deposit back, less standard cancellation fees. In certain instances, the seller may be able to retain this money as liquidated damages.
Down Payment & Lawyers
You will be asked for a downpayment on the home you are purchasing. You can choose to put down as much or as little as you want (depending on your mortgage), but remember, the more you put down toward the total price of your home, the less time it will take you to pay off and the less your mortgage payments will be every month.
During this period of purchasing your home, you are going to need a Lawyer to act on your behalf, they will make sure title to your new home is clean and to transfer the title to you, the purchaser.
You probably have conditions in your offer, such as financing or home inspection.
During this time, each item specified in the contract must be completed satisfactorily. By this time you have an agreement with the seller on the closing date and the contingencies. Each contract is different, but most include the following...
Inspection Contingency
This should be completed as soon as possible after the contract to purchase is signed as unsatisfactory results of the inspection may mean that you will want to cancel the contract.
Financing Contingency
Once the contract is signed, you have a period of time to secure funding. If, for any reason, you are unable to secure funding during the period of time granted to you by the contract (and the seller will not provide a written extension of time), you must decide whether you want to remove the contingency and take your chances on getting a loan. You may choose to cancel the purchase contract.
Insurance
Once all of your conditions have been satisfied and removed! Well congratulations – you now need to obtain homeowners insurance and must present to your lawyer before you get possession of your new home.
Contact local utility companies to schedule to have service turned on when you take possession.
One Last Inspection
Schedule the final walk-through inspection.
At this time, you should make sure that the property is exactly as the contract says it should be. What you thought to be a “permanently attached” chandelier that would come with the property might have been removed by the seller and replaced with a different fixture entirely.
Congratulations!
Yes! You’ve made it!
Once the sale has closed, you’re the proud owner of a new home.
Congratulations!
