Buying a Home in New Jersey,Check out our 20 steps to a GOOD closing.

Thank you for choosing GoodBuy Homes NJ Realty as your REALTOR to help you find your dream home.

If you have made the decision to purchase a home in New Jersey then you may want to know what the process will entail in order to ensure a smooth transaction. Many buyers enter the buying process without any knowledge of what to expect. We here at GoodBuy Homes NJ Realty feel that an informed Buyer is a Happy Buyer which makes us Happy Agents; with that said here is a detailed explanation of the home buying process so you know exactly what to expect when you are ready. Now it’s time to turn your dreams into reality and we can help!

Many Agencies make the buying process out to be an easy-4-step process; which is to find a home, make a offer, get a home loan and move in; but there is so much more involved and we have Created our Good Buyers 20 Steps to Closing which breaks down the home buying process for you step by step.

GoodBuyers 20 Steps to Closing: 

Step 1: Decide if you are ready? This is the moment you decide that you are ready to own your own home.

Step 2: Get a Loan Pre-Approval – Do tons of reasearch on various lenders and there fees and rates and find the right match (we have met some Good Loan Officers in our travels, if you need a reccommendation) once you find the right lender; provide them with all requested documents and get a pre-approval letter so you know exactly what your qualified for before starting your search.

Step 3: Hire a Realtor – Hopefully you have done that already and contacted your local GoodBuy Homes NJ Realtor to help you find the right home for the right price at the right time.

Step 4: Start House Hunting!- Your GoodBuy Homes NJ Realtor will begin the process of sending you listings via email, fax or telephone (you decide) to review; it may take 1 or upwards of 20+ homes just to find the right one.

Step 5: Make an Offer – Now that you have found your dream home, it’s time to Make an offer. At this time you will have to place an earnest deposit on the sales contract as a form of good faith. This deposit check which is usually $500 or $1000.00 will be placed in your GoodBuy Homes NJ Realty’s Broker Escrow Account; which will be applied to your total down payment at the time of closing. At this point there are some important things to remember in terms of dates; Important date #1: 2nd Deposit (if any) most times it is written in days after Attorney review or an actual date when this is due. Important date #2: Mortgage Contingency date; this date will be the date that you and your Loan Officer must provide a commitment to lend from your bank for the purchase of this house. If you are unable to meet this date because your loan is declined you will be able to back out of the deal without penalty, however if you allow this date to pass without being granted an extension; you will run the risk of losing any deposit monies that have been placed in escrow due to a breach in the contract. Important date #3 Inspection Contingency date This is generally around 7-10 days after the conclusion of Attorney Review where you must get the property inspected (if you choose too, remember this is optional) and negotiate repair credits etc.. (if needed) Important date #4: Closing date, this is the day that will serve as the physical closing date on the current contract; this date may be subject to change because of many factors but must always be in writing and approved by both your Attorney and the Sellers Attorney in order to be granted.

Step 6: Offer is accepted – After negotiating with the Seller and now it is time for the Attorneys (Buyers and Sellers) review which is called the Attorney Review Period .

Step 7: The Attorney review period starts once both buyer and seller have received fully executed (signed) copies of the contract; during this period the Attorneys that are representing both you as the buyer & the Seller will discuss the contract and make revisions to ensure it is written in a fair and concise way to avoid confusion. Also during this period either the Buyer or Seller can terminate the contract for any reason they choose without penalty. This is the first opportunity you have to walk away from the deal without penalty.

Step 8: Moving forward – Once you survive the Attorney period; you are officially Under Contract on your new home. Way to go!

Step 9: Additional Deposits – If your contract was written to include an additional deposit; now would be the time that for that deposit to be provided and placed into the escrow account outlined during Attorney Review.

Step 10: Under Contract – Now that you are out of Attorney Review and Under Contract one of the first things you need to do is schedule a Home inspection; this usually cost between $350-$500 (which is a cost that you must pay out of pocket the day of the inspection.) This report is being conducted so you as the buyer understand the true and accurate condition of your dream home so there are no surprises. The home inspection will likely also check for Termites and conduct a Radon Test. To find out more about Radon Test please CLICK HERE. Usually these cost will be apart of the total fee given to you by the inspector. This is also the time where (if necessary) you would order an Oil Tank Sweep. Oil Tanks in New Jersey can be an expensive fix so if there are no records available then you may want to conduct a sweep to ensure there are no abandoned tanks below the ground that may have leaked; which is when it gets really expensive. CLICK HERE to get some information about Oil Tanks in NJ.

Step 11: Negotiating after the Home Inspection – If all goes well with your home inspection, you will move forward and continue the process of your loan. If a problem arises with the inspection then you may be able to negotiate a credit for damage items or things in need of repair. If a problem arises and the seller refuses to aide with those items and you decide it’s too big of a deal and you are no longer interested in the property (because of those item(s) on the report) then that is another opportunity to cancel the contract without penalty. Keep in mind if the property is a short sale or Bank owned listing you may not be able to receive a credit because generally these sales are “as is” and without any warranties, so any damage items or repairs needed fall simply on your shoulders (pockets).

Step 12: Appraisal Time- If all goes well with the home inspection your lender will proceed with your loan application and want to order an Appraisal; the Appraisal is a cost that you must also pay upfront and this will give the bank the opportunity to determine what’s the fair market value of your new home. This is done to avoid buyers from buying a home for more than its worth and also provides the lender with a report on the property and all it’s specs; Here is an example on why this is needed; Lets say you agreed to buy your dream home for $300,000 and is only worth $150,000, then the bank would not provide financing for this purchase because you will be upside down on the property and will be over leveraged. Now of course you could make up the difference; in this example $150,000 but why would you that do that right? An appraisal can cost between $300.00-$500.00.

Step 13: Applying for the Loan – At this point your Loan process should be underway towards an approval now that the Appraisal has confirmed that the selling price and the fair market value are in line with one another. Depending on your lender the approval or decline of your loan could take a week or many weeks to receive an answer that is why we MUST put enough time for the loan process to run its course in the purchase contract to avoid problems down the line. (Just as a reminder; now is NOT the right time to start applying for new a car, furniture or any new credit as this may affect your buying power)

Step 14: Loan Approval – Now that your Loan Approval has arrived…Congratulations! your loan approval may come with a few conditions so be sure to speak with your Loan Officer about items that may be needed in order to obtain a clear to close status for your loan.

Step 15: What is HOI? – One of your conditions will be to obtain Home Owners Insurance; you will have to contact an Insurance Provider (We have some options available on request) to provide you with a quote and once you have decided on the carrier you will need to purchase an actual policy that needs to be valid for one year (it should be valid from the day or two before or the day of closing and valid for a year going forward from that date.) Once obtained you will have to provide your lender, Agent and Attorney with a copy as it is needed in order to close on the property. This is the final upfront fee that you will have to pay prior to closing. Cost vary but I think its safe to say you should budget between $800-$1000 for this expense.

Step 16: Final Steps – By this point your Attorney would have checked the Title of the property to make sure there are no issues and the Certificate of Occupancy (needed for most counties in NJ) will be obtained which registers you with the town as the buyer whom is buying the home and ensures that you have met all Fire & Safety Guidelines that are issued by the township. Usually this fee is paid for by the Seller but there are times where this expense falls on the buyer i.e. Short Sale or Bank Owned Homes. The cost to obtain usually varies from around $125-$250.00.

Step 17: Final Walk through – This is done the day of closing to ensure you as the buyer that you are still buying the same home that you fell in love with a few weeks/months ago. This is done because often times buyers will go weeks without seeing the house which could be a mistake come the day of closing. Prior to this practice there were some Buyers who have actually closed without a final walk through and went to the house after receiving the keys and realized that the home was stripped of items and destroyed. At that point there is no turning back so its always best to conduct a formal walk through prior to closing and if anything is not right; take pictures and bring with you to closing as proof (Your word we will not be enough). As a precaution we advise our clients to flush toilets, turn on/ sinks & tubs faucets, turn on/off light switches and check for water leaks in the basement and Attic to ensure all is in tip top shape before you sign on the dotted line.

Step 18: Bring your Pen, your proof of ID and your checkbook because its Closing time!

Step 19: Sign your final document then you will receive the keys to your new home

Step 20: Invite Malik over for the House warming party and start the process of referring all of your friends, co workers and family members about the GOOD service you received from working with Malik and the entire GoodBuy Homes NJ Realty Team.

We hope this information is useful to you as you embark on your journey, GOOD luck and remember a GOOD Agent Matters.