CONGRATS! Your offer has been accepted! You are almost at
the finish line, but there a few crucial steps that stand between you and the
closing.
- Hire a home inspector
Your Realtor is a great source to find the best home inspector. They have done a ton of inspections and will have a strong opinion on who and who not to use. So listen to their advice. Just make sure it is based on merit and a job well done and not on referrals. Ask friends and family who have recently purchased a house how their home inspection experience was. Then, once you got a few names of inspectors contact them to get their credentials. If they belong to a professional organization like the “American Society of Home Inspectors” it's a good sign that they are skilled and experienced. - Get the home appraisedUsually your mortgage lender will hire the appraiser. But on occasion, during
negotiation, the sellers will agree to pay for it. Appraisals tend to run
between $300 and $400.
- Make purchase funds availableYou will need funds for closing. So make sure you have them available and ready
to go when you finally get to the closing table.
- Final walk-through You are allowed to do a final walk-through of your new house 48 hours before
closing. This allows you to make sure that the currently homeowners have been
keeping the property in good shape, and kept their end of the agreement to
fix or do any improvements around the property. This is NOT the time to back
out of the deal or negotiate with the seller. It is just what you do before you
sign your name.
After all of that… it is closing time! At the closing, be
prepared to sign lots and lots of documents. But it’s totally worth it! Because
you now are the official owner of your dream home! Just make sure you bring
your ID and cashier’s check to pay for the closing costs. You will be notified about how
much you owe before you get there.
Now go out and treat yourself! The road to home ownership is
a long one – so enjoy being done with the process and enjoy your new home!
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