3 Things You Need to Buy a Home
Whether you are a first-time a buyer or need a quick refresher, here are the things you need to buy your next home:
1.) Pre-Approval letter
*Note, you only need this if you plan on purchasing a property with a mortgage. If not, skip over to item #2
This is what you receive from your lender after he or she pre-approves you for a mortgage. It is a statement stating that the lender will provide you a loan for up to a certain amount. Without a pre-approval letter, there is no way to know if you can get a mortgage. As a result, the seller will not consider an offer from you without this letter.
2.) Proof of Funds
The proof of funds is a document from a bank or financial institution that shows how much money is in your account. Common forms of proof of funds are bank account statements and investment account statements. Regardless of which statement you use, the money in the account must be liquid.
The reason why you must provide a proof of funds is to show the seller that you can pay the down-payment (or the full purchase price for an all-cash offer).
3.) Purchase Agreement
Once you have your pre-approval letter and proof of funds, you are ready to put an offer. The way to put an offer on a home is to deliver a Residential Purchase Agreement to the seller.
The Residential Purchase Agreement is arguably the most important contract in the home buying process. It dictates not only how much you will purchase the property for, but also the terms of the escrow period if the seller accepts the offer.
When you find the home that you want, we will help prepare a Residential Purchase Agreement for you. Because the market is very competitve, it is very common for a seller to have multiple offers on his or her home. In these cases, we also will guide you on how to put the very best offer so that you can have the best chance to get your offer accepted.
If you have any questions, please be sure to give us a call or email us. We are happy to help!