These are the basic steps to a Kingsland, GA home purchase. The process will vary slightly from transaction to transaction, but this information will be very helpful for you if you gain a basic understanding of the process.
When Looking to buy a Kingsland, GA Home:
1. Get a Quality Realtor - How to screen agents to get a quality agent is covered on another page. This is not the most exciting step when buying a home, but it is necessary to ensure a smooth home buying purchase. Do NOT take this step lightly or you will minimize the odds of a great experienc. Most home buyers will move this item after step three and it is probably the single biggest factor contributing to "home buying disappointment".
2. Get Yourself Pre-Approved (or at least Pre-Qualified) - Like step one, this step is covered in depth on another page. This step is surely the only step less exciting than step one, but again, like step one it is necessary to ensure a smooth home buying purchase. Doing this step after you find and fall in love with your next home is the biggest factor in creating a stressful home buying experience.
3. Find Your Georgia Dream Home - Now this is the exciting part. It can be done a variety of ways with the two most common ways as follows:
- You can search the multiple listing service (MLS) on this site and find the homes you want to see. You can do this at your leisure as you build your list of a period of days. Call or email your agent to inform him/her of the homes you like. Your agent will schedule the homes and take you through each of them.
- You can simply meet your agent in his/her office and go through the MLS to screen homes. Using the MLS, you and your agent can go through the homes one by one, selecting the homes that match your criteria, narrowing the list of homes while still in the office. Once the list is narrowed down to a manageable number your agent can schedule all the "showings" and then you go view the homes.
Sitting in the office with your agent has some major advantages. A quality, well informed agent can describe many of the homes, floor plans, amenities, and neighborhoods from experience, allowing you to whittle the list down without having to tour dozens of homes. Truth be told, a high quality agent can narrow your list down to 5-10 homes and your home will be in that list. If you view all those homes and do not find your next home either the agent is not listening to your needs or you are having difficulty defining your needs. Doing a needs vs. wants analysis can help clarify and get you to your next home.
4. Make an Offer - Your agent will type the "Purchase and Sale Agreement" that spells out the terms of your offer. Realtors in our area typically use the Georgia Association of Realtors standard forms. These are fill in the blank forms and not too difficult to handle. The more important point in this step is your real estate agent's ability to negotiate properly. A great agent will also be a great negotiator, understanding how your offer will be perceived by the seller and keeping as many points in play as possible. Once the offer is fully negotiated between buyer and seller then you have a "binding contract".
5. Provide Binding Contract to Your Mortgage Representative - A binding contract is a contract in which both parties have signed the contract. In essence you have an agreement to buy the property at a price and terms that are also acceptable to the seller. You will need to provide a copy of this contract to your mortgage representative for them to fully process your loan. This is true even if you are pre-approved for a loan.
6. Get a Home Inspection - This is not a legal requirement, but it is prudent. Home inspections typically cost a buyer from $200-$300 but are worth the extra money. A home inspector will go through the house and inspect major systems and structure. Usually climbing through the attic, conducting cursory inspection of the slab, running the heat and air conditioning, checking hot water temperature, etc. There are no guarantees a home inspector will find everything wrong with a home, but they will usually find any major items of concern. In the event they find a major problem you can either terminate the contract (under specific contract clauses and circumstances) or you can negotiate repairs by the seller. If all they find is a list of small items you can also negotiate seller repairs, but more importantly you can feel pretty good about the home you are buying.
7. Get a Termite Inspection - This inspection is done by a qualified exterminator. Their job is to inspect the property for wood destroying pests. The most common wood destroying pest is termites. In the event the home has termites, discuss the extent of investation and/or damage thoroughly with your agent. It is not necessary to panic if the home has, or has had termites. The more imporant topics are the extent of damage (if any; often there is minimal damage), who will pay for the treatment, and who will pay for any repairs.
8. Review Preliminary HUD 1 - Before the actual closing you should see a preliminary HUD-1; the preliminary HUD-1 will be available about one working day prior to closing. The HUD-1 is a required document that breaks-down all the cost for both the buyer and the seller. All costs will be disclosed on this document. The preliminary HUD simply allows the agents and the buyer/seller to review their cost or proceeds to ensure they match the contract. In adjustments can be taken care of prior to the closing.
9. Conduct Final Walk Through - This is generally done immediately before the final closing. For example: If your closing is taking place at 11:00 a.m. you will conduct your final walk-through around 9:00 - 10:00. The purpose of the final walk-through is to ensure the home has been completely emptied, left in a clean manner, and all the requested repairs (from step 6) have been completed.
10. Go To Closing - At the closing table you will see all of your required mortgage documents. Be prepared to sign a lot of different documents. It will typically go by in a blur if this is your first home. The attorney generally has no input on what the documents state. The attorney's office is presenting you with documents required by your mortgage company. Once you sign all the documents and the seller signs their documents, the keys will be turned over to you and you are the proud owner of your new home.
Again, these are very basic steps presented for you to gain some insight to the process. The process will vary slightly, however it is in your best interest to ensure you pick your agent and get pre-qualified before finding a Kingsland home for sale that you want to purchase.
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