The ABC’s of Buying a House Compliments of Home Team Advantage Realtors: Joy Rochlitz & Matt Smith Direct: (586) Website: C. Looking for the Right House This is when the fun starts. No matter where you are in the process, you can always start looking online. We’d like to get you started using a FREE program called Listingbook, a user friendly website that allows you to search the internet for listings the same way we would! Through it you can obtain prices, room sizes, tax information, location, pictures, and much more to make you an informed buyer! We’ll hold off on showings until you are approved by the lender, because it could lead to a bitter disappointment for you if you find something you love but are not yet qualified to purchase it. Once you’re approved, we’ll be in a great position to find your new house! B. Find a Great Realtor Hire a Realtor (Matt and Joy) who works full time and has years of experience, and also works for a reputable company, such as Keller Williams Realty, which is one of the fastest growing companies today. We are currently the third largest real estate company in the US! A realtor can take the stress out of the very difficult task of finding your dream home. We don’t just find you the right home; We keep you from buying the wrong home if at all possible! A few words about Buyer Agency… Until 1988, all agents represented the seller. Even if an agent was working exclusively with a buyer, they are responsible to get the highest price for the seller! Now you can have an agent specifically committed to representing you, from the selection of a property to the closing table. It’s very important to establish such a relationship in the buying process! Make your move a ‘Joy’ful experience! A. Getting Approved for a Loan Getting pre-approved before anything else is of the utmost importance, and getting an approved loan is even better. This is such an important step. It will give you confidence in your buying capabilities and must be done before the hunt begins. It will also prevent you from wasting time looking for homes that are not going to work for you and your family. Some lenders will not just pre-approve you, they will take you through underwriting and leave no guesswork or suspense for later! We can recommend lenders that will work well for your needs. Something important to remember is that you need to have a middle credit score of at least 620 now just to get pre-approved!

The ABC’s of Buying a House Compliments of Home Team Advantage Realtors: Joy Rochlitz & Matt Smith Direct: (586) Website: Make your move a ‘Joy’ful experience! D. Making an Offer Wonderful! You’re approved, and we have found you a home you love! Now we will sit down together and come up with a reasonable offer. At this point you will need to write a check for the Earnest Money Deposit. Remember that time is always of the essence! If you like a house, someone else may like it, too! E. Your Offer Has Been Accepted! Great! The Sellers have signed all documents and may have made some changes, but as long as you agree on terms and conditions, we have a deal! F. The Home Inspection At this point, we strongly recommend that you hire a licensed & insured professional home inspector, not your uncle Harry. If you would like, we can recommend some inspectors for you. This will probably cost you between $200 and $350, depending on the size of the home. G. Ordering of the Appraisal This is something that the lender will order and will probably take place about one to two weeks after the purchase agreement is finalized. You will have to pay a fee for the appraisal, approximately $350.00

The ABC’s of Buying a House Compliments of Home Team Advantage Realtors: Joy Rochlitz & Matt Smith Direct: (586) Website: H. Titlework A reputable title company will be taking care of making sure they can convey a clear title for the property you desire to purchase. They will inform the agents of any problems that need to be resolved before closing, and they will also expedite the closing. I. Setting the Closing Be flexible about the time and date. We will be looking over the titlework before closing. We like to see them a day or two ahead, but sometimes we have just a few hours. Your Lender will inform you how much money you will need to bring to the closing. Please remember not to make any credit or large cash purchases during this time. This could cause you to not qualify to close on your new home. It’s also a good idea to walk through the home the day before your closing. J. It’s here! Closing Day All parties meet together and sign a lot of documents. You may receive keys, garage door openers, and alarm codes, if applicable. If the contract states that the sellers can stay in the house after closing, then we will meet at another date to exchange keys. You can now unlock the door to your dream! Congratulations! You just purchased your new home! Aren’t you glad you hired Joy Rochlitz and Matt Smith with Home Team Advantage?