San Diego Homes For Sale

Once you have decided that you are ready to enjoy the benefits of home ownership we can begin the process that will lead to your success in obtaining the home that will best meet your needs and financial situation.  These steps will take the guesswork out of your home buying experience insuring that there are no nasty surprises, and allow you to save thousands of dollars now and tens of thousands dollars in the long term.

1. Getting pre-approved –
Many homebuyers try to skip this first step and that is a big mistake.  One of the biggest reasons to get pre-approved right away is that a good lender will be able to guide you in preparing to get the best loan, give you accurate numbers so that you know what to expect, and give you a cushion of time in which to correct any issues that could hurt your rate or ability to qualify.  A good San Diego REALTOR® can give you some recommendations for reputable sources of financing, if you would like a recommendation just let us know.

2. Interviewing an agent/Buyer consultation –
Having a consultation with a Buyer Specialist is imperative to creating the optimal outcome in your home purchase.  During this consultation the agent should speak to you in depth about what your goals are with your home purchase, what you are looking for in a home, and what your situation is.  In addition to talking about what you are looking for the Buyer Specialist should take some time educating you about the buying process so you know what to expect and educating you about what is currently going on in the market so you have the power to make educated decisions. Without this consultation it is nearly impossible to ensure a smooth process.

3. Viewing Homes –
There are many homes on the market and sometimes it can be difficult to know which homes are the right ones to see.  Having an in depth buyer consultation should help you narrow this down so that you are only seeing the homes that fall within your criteria and price range that are viable options. Seeing 4 – 5 homes at a time is typically a good number so that the homes don’t blur together and your time can be used efficiently.

4. Making offers –

In today’s market it is definitely to your advantage to make as many offers as possible, this will keep you from losing out on homes that may be second or third choices if your first choice does not accept your offer. If you get more than one offer accepted this will also give you real time options of which home to choose based on what price you will pay for each

5. The Escrow Process –
Once you have an accepted offer on a home the escrow process will begin.  In most cases this will be a 30 day period, depending on what was negotiated in the offer to purchase. This timeline will consist of your investigational period during which you will investigate the home, receive all information the seller is responsible for providing and determine that there are no issues that would deter you from completing the purchase of the home. During the first 17 of the escrow period you will also be going through the loan approval process and providing any additional documentation the lender needs to approve the loan.  Once your loan is approved and you have accepted all matters affecting the home, the lender will issue loan documents (which is your formal agreement with the lender as to the terms of your mortgage).  Once you have signed your loan documents they will go back to the lender for review and if everything is correct they will fund the loan and you will be recorded as the new owner of the home within a few days.  Please keep in mind that this is a simplification of the process and there are many more details that occur in the timelines that your REALTOR® will guide you through.

6. Moving into your new home –
Congratulations you are now a home owner! Moving into your new home can be a complicated and difficult process, so I will just give a few pointers.  If you have pets or children make sure that they will be secure in their new space and that there are no safety hazards.  Call the utilities to transfer them into your name several days before close of escrow so you do not have to wait several days if the utilities are shut off. Make sure you pack any necessities where they can be easily accessed; many new homeowners have regretted the day they packed the toilet paper in the bottom of a box.

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