Buying an Austin Texas Home 

Decision to Buy an Austin Texas Home

Before you buy a new house, you need to ask yourself some important questions. Why do you want to move? How soon do you want to move?  How long will you be living in your new home? What’s better for your situation, buying or renting?

If you’d like to discuss these points with me, I’ll be happy to meet with you and help you decide is buying is right for you. If you prefer to get started right away, just fill out the form below and I will contact you.

Needs Analysis

Once you’re sure that home ownership is right for you, we will meet and discuss your current situation in detail. What home features are most important to you? How much do you want to invest? Will you be adding a new baby, seeing grown kids move out, retiring, or facing other lifestyle changes? What part of town appeals to you? What schools do you want your kids to attend? Once I know your goals, I can help you achieve them/

Get Pre-qualified or Pre-approved

Unless you have a very thick wallet indeed, you’ll want to start this process by qualifying for a loan. I can help you find the best mortgage lender, with the best rate, terms and service, for your needs. First, you’ll spend about 20 minutes on the phone with your lender, or filling out a simple questionnaire, to get a pre-qualification letter. For this step, you’ll need your and your spouses’ names; address; phone numbers; Social Security numbers; past two years of employment; and residential, bank, asset, and debt information. If you can, try to go for pre-approval rather than just pre-qualification. Pre-approval is a stringer commitment–a statement that your employment and credit have been verified and you are approved for a loan, subject to a final credit check and property appraisal.

Ask about all loan costs (origination fees, discount points, etc.) as well as closing costs. Closing costs are fees for services, taxes, or special interest charges connected with a home purchase, including front loan points, title insurance, escrow or closing day charges, document fees, prepaid interest, and property taxes. Be prepared to pay an average of 2 to 3 percent of the home’s total value in closing costs, with payment due at closing unless the costs have already been rolled into the loan. And make sure your lender gives you a Good Faith Estimate in accordance with the Truth in Lending Act (Regulation 2), so you can make “apples to apples” comparison between lenders.

Home Search

We’ve found a truly promising home that you really like, but we have to do our homework before we can make an offer. First I’ll run a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) to see if it’s priced fairly. Then we review the seller’s disclosure, make appropriate adjustments, and put together an offer, an earnest money check made out to a title company, and an option money check for the seller.

Inspection and Repairs

Look before you buy! Hire a reputable, qualified home inspector, along with a termite and wood destroying insect (WDI) inspector to check out your home for any existing or potential problems. If you don’t know a qualified inspector, I can recommend one. The appointment time must be agreeable to the seller. I’ll be at the appointment, and you should attend too if at all possible, so you can learn all about your prospective home.

Next, you’ll review the inspection reports to see if the home is acceptable “as-is.” If everything is perfect, you can move on to the offer. If you want repairs made, we will need to re-negotiate with the seller. You can request that the repairs be done before closing, or you can ask for extra money to cover repair costs. If the seller opts to end the negotiations, then he is free to accept another offer, and you get your earnest money back. If he’s willing to re-negotiate, the contract is amended and we waive our option to terminate the agreement. Then we contact your lender to request an appraisal and start planning your move. The day before closing, you should walk through the whole house and make sure everything is still in good shape. You’re almost there….

Closing

The exciting day is finally here! I’ll attend the closing with you to make sure everything goes smoothly, after verifying in advance that all the paperwork is in order. We’ll review the HUD-1 settlement statement so you can clear up any final issues and ask any questions before closing. Usually the buyer gains possession the day of the signing, but sometimes a little delay can occur if there’s a snag in the funding, so it’s best to give yourself an extra day before moving in–especially on a Friday or the day before a holiday.

Once you’re all moved in, make sure people can reach you! You must file an official change of address with the Post Office, either locally or online, to make sure your mail service isn’t interrupted. And keep in mind that credit card companies, magazine subscriptions, and other vendors can take 1 or 2 months to process your change of address.

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