Congratulations! You’ve bought a home! How exciting, and it’s my sincere hope that we are working on that home purchase together.
Buying a home can be a stressful time, it’s not an easy feat. Many times a new buyer will ask me for a rough timeline of how the home buying process works.
I’m bringing that to you today!
Let’s dive in from the point of finding *the house* that you want.
Days 3-5:
Offer and Acceptance: This process can take on average of three to five days.
-You (and your trusty Realtor, me) submit proof of funds/financing, all signed disclosure documents, and a purchase agreement with all relevant terms (cost, what conveys, due diligence, contingencies). The offer is presented with an expiration date and time that the seller must reply to.
This ticking clock is usually a bit anxiety-inducing but the seller WILL reply!
-Negotiation: This is when buyer and seller go back and forth on aforementioned terms.
-Ratification: Congrats! Everyone has agreed and you are under contract!
1-3 Weeks:
Due Diligence: This is a very important phase of your buying timeline. Once you’re under contract, the home inspection is scheduled and your lender goes to work on getting financing started.
-Inspection report and repair addendum: After the report is back, a repair addendum is presented to the seller and repairs are negotiated. Once this is agreed upon and ratified, the buyer will determine if they are moving forward beyond due diligence.
-The lender is working during this time in the background to make sure the loan will move forward and the appraisal is ordered and scheduled.
4-6 Weeks:
Escrow and Closing: Once due diligence is over, the lender and the closing attorney are the main focus points.
-The lender continues to move the loan forward, confirms that the home appraises and makes sure you haven’t gotten a new job, taken out new lines of credit, bought a car, etc.
-The closing attorney researches the property history, prepares the title work and deed for your new home.
1-1.5 Months:
CLOSING!
It’s usually a little over a month to get to the closing table! But, you’ve made it! All contingencies and terms have been met, any agreed upon repairs have been made and your loan is funded.
Most important: cheers, you did it!
