How Much Can I Afford? 

The first questions you should ask is “How much can I afford?”.  This will depend on a number of factors:

• The type of home you want.  Do you want a condo, semi detached, bungalow, new or resale?
• Your income.  Remember, it’s not just a mortgage payment that you have to take into account.  There are also property taxes, hydro, heat and upkeep.
• Present market conditions.  It is a buyers market, sellers or a little of both?
• Your down payment.

When buying a home, there are 2 types of costs to keep in mind: one time and ongoing.

 Typical one time expenses include:

• mortgage application and appraisal fee
• property inspection
• legal fees
• property survey
• land transfer fees
• home and property insurance
• moving expenses

Typical monthly expenses include:

• mortgage payments
• maintenance
• property and content insurance
• utilities
• property taxes

A Re/Max Real Estate Professional 

Choose the right real estate agent who is a professional and will help you find the type of home you’re looking for….at the right price!  Re/Max associates are the industry’s top producers.  I will help you get together the team that will make your home buying experience easier; including lawyers, appraisers, lenders, mortgage brokers, home inspectors and insurance brokers.  And remember, there is no commission payable by the buyer to the real estate agent.

Financing Your Dream Home 

Odds are you will need some sort of financing when purchasing your home.  Before you actually start looking for a house, the best thing to do is obtain a “pre-approved mortgage”.  That way, you’ll know exactly what you can afford before you start looking.  You will also be protected against interest rate increases while looking for your dream house. Before you go shopping for a mortgage, consider your down payment.  In general, most lenders require at least a 5% minimum down payment. A mortgage is made up of principal and interest.  Principal is the amount borrowed and the interest is the fee you are charged for borrowing.  There are many mortgage options available so shop around to get the best rates and terms.  I can recommend a number of options.

The Offer 

Your financing has been approved and together we’ve found the perfect home.  Now what?  Together, we will make a written, formal offer to purchase.  I will work with you to ensure that you get the best possible price, with conditions and a closing date that work for you.  Remember, this is a legally binding contract outlining your preferences. 

The offer can be firm or conditional.  A firm offer means you are prepared to purchase the home without any conditions.  If the price is acceptable, the house is yours.

A conditional offer means that you have placed one or more conditions on the offer.  These can include things such as financing, home inspection or sale of your existing home.  The home is not formally sold until these conditions have been met.

Whether firm or conditional, your offer will be presented to the seller as soon as possible.  After the presentation, the seller can either, accept, reject or return it with a counter offer.  The counter offer could change the price, closing date or conditions.  I will be with you each step of the way through out the offer process until the deal is done.

Closing 

Before your purchase closes, I will make sure that all (if any) of the conditions have been met by the seller.

A final inspection of the property will be arranged.

You will make a trip to the lawyer’s office a few days before closing for all the final papers to be signed. 

On the day of closing the lawyers will arrange to transfer title of the property from the seller to the buyer and the transfer of the mortgage money.  The buyers lawyers will then receive the keys for the property. 

All that is left is for you to pick up the keys to your new home and start settling in!!