Step 4: Find Your Home

So you are preapproved and ready to begin your search. But how or where do you begin? There are a lot of homes out there and diving in without a guide can become overwhelming and confusing. A great agent will help you more accurately pinpoint homes that fit your criteria. The right home will meet all your important needs, and as many of your additional wants as possible. Some questions you might ask yourself include:

• What do I want my home to be close to?
• How much space do I need and why?
• Which is more critical: location or size?
• Would I be interested in a fixer-upper?
• How important is home value appreciation?
• Is neighborhood stability a priority?
• Would I be interested in a condo?
• What features and amenities do I want? Which do I really need?

You'll learn as you look at homes, your priorities will probably adjust along the way.

Step 5: Make an Offer

Once you've found a home you love, the next step is making a compelling offer. While emotions are probably in high gear once you've found a home you love, it's important to remember that a home is an investment. Your agent will research similar properties in the neighborhood to help you determine the market value, and fair price, for your home. Look to your agent to explain and guide you through the offer process.

• The three basic components of your purchase offer are price, terms, and contingencies.
• Price is the dollar amount you are approved for, willing and able to pay.
• Terms cover the other financial and timing factors that will be included in the offer.
• Contingencies are clauses that let you out of the deal if the house has a problem that didn't exist or which you weren't aware of when you went under contract. They specify any event that will need to take place in order for you to fulfill the contract.

Step 6: Perform Due Diligence

Just because you love a particular property doesn't mean that it's perfect. In fact, this is where reason has to trump emotion. You'll need to have a property inspection (which we highly recommend you attend) that will hopefully expose all the issues a home might hide. This way you'll know exactly what you are getting into before you sign closing papers.

• Your main concern is the possibility of structural damage. This can come from water damage, shifting ground, or poor construction when the house was built.
• Don't sweat the small stuff. It's the inspector's job to mark everything discovered no matter how large or small. The inspectors report may be long, but, things that are easily fixed can be overlooked for the time being.
• If you have a big problem show up in your inspection report, you should bring in a specialist and if the worst-case scenario turns out to be true, you might want to walk away from the purchase.
• Even if your home passes inspection with flying colors, you'll still need to buy a home owner's insurance policy that protects you against loss or damage to the property itself and against liability in case someone sustains an injury while on your property. This can often be negotiated into the sales price of the home.

Step 7: Close

Once you've made your offer and have the inspection under your belt, you're in the "home" stretch! But, in order to ensure that you don't put your closing date, or your mortgage at risk, you have a few pre-closing responsibilities that you'll need to be mindful of. These include:

• Staying in control of your credit and finances, first and foremost. If you are tempted to make any large purchases during this time, it's best to talk to your lender first.
• Keeping in touch with your agent and lender and returning all phone calls and paperwork promptly.
• Communicating with your agent at least once or twice a week, and verifying with your lender that all mortgage funding steps are completed.
• Conducting a final walk-through of the home with your agent.
• Confirming with your agent, home insurance professional, and lender that you have the settlement statement, certified funds, and evidence of insurance lined up prior to closing.

Step 8: Protect Your Investment

Congratulations, and welcome home! The home buying process is complete, but just like any big process, there's a maintenance plan! It's now your responsibility, and in your best financial interest, to protect your investment for years to come. Performing routine maintenance on your home's systems is always more affordable than having to fix big problems later. A good rule of thumb is to watch for signs of leaks, damage, and wear.

And remember, just because the sale is complete, your relationship with your agent doesn't need to end! After closing your agent can still help you with such things as providing information for your tax returns, finding contractors and repair services, and even tracking your home's current market value.

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