The 9 Steps to Home Ownership

Step - 1 Make the Decision to Buy A Home

It seems obvious, but it's good to note that the first step to buying a new home is making the decision to buy. Consider the various reasons you want a new house. Write them down. How long do you want to live in your new house? Does buying make good financial sense? Can you afford a house that meets your desires and needs? A good rule of thumb to consider is your monthly mortgage should not be more than 1/3 of your net monthly income.

Step 2 - Seek Professional Guidance

We would love to meet with you to discuss your reasons for buying a house and your plans for the future. We'll talk about neighborhoods around Nevada City, Grass Valley, Lake of the Pines and western Nevada County - the schools and services available. We can discuss economic factors affecting today's market and tomorrow.

We will also help you get pre-qualified for a mortgage loan. In today's market, being pre-qualified is very important when we are negotiating the deal.

Step 3 - Start the Hunt

Once we have an understanding of your specific needs and preferences, we will search our resources for houses on the market that fit your criteria. We can review these and schedule appointments to tour the houses of interest at times most convenient to you.

As we tour houses, we will point out what we see as positive and negative features. You can say what you like and what you don't like about them. As we tour houses, some things will become more important and others less important. You will get clearer on what you really want. With this new information, we'll refine our search to narrow in on your dream house.

Step 4 - Know the Local Market

We have been serving Nevada County for over 3 decades. Our knowledge of the local market is a critical factor in your house search. We can help you recognize when a particular neighborhood is "hot" and requires immediate action or when the market is "cool" and suggests more thoughtful consideration.

With our experience, we can advise you on when the asking price has negotiating room and when a house is "priced to sell". Our broad market knowledge helps to keep you a step ahead of the house hunting competition.

Especially in this unique economy, our expertise on the local market can help steer you to the right house at the right time.

Step 5 - Find Your Dream House

We are confident we'll find your dream house in western Nevada County. When we do, we will put together a purchase offer specific to your needs including appropriate contingencies (such as timing of close, obtaining financing, favorable home inspection, clear title, etc.).

The offer is normally presented with a cash deposit or "earnest money" to secure an offer to buy the property. The deposit is applied to your closing costs. Once the seller accepts the offer, closing is usually held 30 to 60 days from the offer date depending on the turn around time for your financing requirements.

Step 6 - Negotiate the Deal

Often a seller will respond with counter offer to the initial purchase offer. We will discuss the counter offer and decide whether or not to accept the counter, submit our own counter offer, or reject the counter offer and move on. Don't be surprised or discouraged when this happens.

Market conditions will contribute to how aggressively we negotiate a deal. We will also work within your limits and encourage you to define your limits. We recommend you set limits prior to negotiating an offer and stick to these limits.

Step 7 - Get a Loan

During the closing period, you will be working with your mortgage lender to close the loan. Pre-qualifying for a loan before starting your home search, streamlines this process. We will gather the property information your lender will need to close your loan.

Step 8 - Close the Deal

When the loan application is submitted to the lender, you will receive a "Good Faith Estimate" of closing costs. The estimate is based on the loan officer's past experience and may not include all the closing costs.

We are happy to review your "Good Faith Estimate" with you and answer questions and highlight missing costs and estimates we think may be low. We can not give you exact costs but can help anticipate what the costs will be.

Step 9 - Move In

Congratulations! Now you get to move into your new house and make it home. Enjoy this special time. IWe will provide a checklist to help you plan the numerous details that will make your moving day a pleasure.

We look forward to walking through each step of the Home Buying process with you and your loved ones! Call us today or when you are ready to get started!