Ready to buy a home?

A home inspection is an important step in buying a home. As part of your purchase agreement you may add an inspection contingency for a small price (typically $100-$150 for 7-10 days). This contingency will give you the ability to inspect the property and back out of the offer, free of penalty (except the option fee), if you don't like the results. Although a home inspection can't identify everything that might be wrong with the property; they specifically look for visual cues to problems. For example: if there is a small leak in the wall but there are no visual signs of such leak, this issue might be overlooked.  A good inspection will examine some of the most important components of the home and it will last from 2-3 hours. Ask your home inspector for a list of items that he/she will examine. The inspection report will give you a general idea of what might be wrong with the property. If you are concerned about a specific issue, you should hire a specialist in that area. 

Are you ready to buy a home? Have you been pre-approved? We are now in a seller's market which makes the home buying process very competitive. Multiple offers on properties are becoming more common so it's crucial for buyers to be prepared. Any small advantage, may make the difference between being accepted or denied. If you plan on financing your property it is important to get pre-approved for a loan. There is a difference between pre-qualification and pre-approval. A pre-qualification can be done by phone and most, if not all, the information provided is verbal. A Pre-qualification is based on what you disclose to the lender about your earnings, credit score and assets. A pre-qualification gives you a simple idea of the range of price you might be able to afford. This carries no weight for a seller. A pre-approval requires a borrower to provide documentation of their income and assets. The lender will also run a credit report and score. The bank will require tax docume