The Top 10 Buyer FAQ’s I Receive As A Real Estate Agent
Making the decision to buy a home is a BIG deal and it involves a lot of steps along the way.
If you’ve never navigated the process before it can definitely feel overwhelming and sometimes even a little confusing.
That’s why as your friend in real estate, I created a Buyer’s Series on the blog to help you know exactly what steps to take from start to finish.
When I say I’m here to help every step of the way, I really do mean it.
From the FIRST steps to take before you start house hunting, to home searching after pre-approval, offer submission, and more, I’ve got you covered.
As I wrap up this series (for now – there’s always more where this came from!), I wanted to list some of the most frequently asked questions that buyers have all in one place, so that in case you’re wondering them too, you can easily find your answer or be pointed in the right direction!
And if your question isn’t covered in this blog post, shoot me a DM here! I’m always happy to chat and help you specifically.
For now, let’s get into the Buyer FAQ’s that I find myself answering the most. ⬇️
The Top 10 Questions People Ask When Buying a Home
1. I’m ready to buy! What do I need to do FIRST?
This is such a great question and the answer might be different than what you think…
Many buyers think that when they’re ready to become a homeowner, they can simpy start browsing Zillow, schedule a tour, and consider it sold.
But I’m here to say, that is NOT how it works.
Before you start house hunting, the FIRST step is getting a pre-approval, which essentially is your golden ticket for actually being taken seriously as a buyer in the market.
Without a pre-approval, sellers won’t take you seriously and most agents won’t start fully working with you until this step is taken care of!
Now, that’s not to say you can’t connect with an agent prior to pre-approval!
You absolutely can and in fact, they are often the ones who can connect you with the first person you need to be working with throughout this process and that is: your lender.
2. What information or documents do I need to get pre-approved?
When you’re working to get pre-approved, you’ll work closely with a mortgage lender as they assess your financial situation and determine your eligibility for a mortgage by gathering your income information, credit history, assets and debts.
To do this, they’ll typically need:
Personal Identification, such as a driver's license, ID Card, a government issued card w/ photo, etc.
Social Security Card/Number
Pay Stubs
Bank Statements
Tax Documents, including W-2’s, tax returns, and other tax related documents
Investment Account Statements
List of Monthly Debts
Rental information and Landlord Reference
Gift Letters
Credit Report
If you’re self-employed, you may be asked to provide additional documents with all of these – click here for more info on that!
3. Who are the different types of people that I’ll work with during my real estate transaction?
When it comes to real estate, all transactions look different, but generally speaking there are a few people you should be familiar with in addition to your real estate agent and mortgage lender, including:
Home Inspector
Appraiser
Title Company
Escrow Officer or Closing Agent
Real Estate Attorney
For a closer look at each of their roles throughout the buying process, click here!
4. What happens after I’m pre-approved?
Once you’ve submitted all of your documents to your lender and have your pre-approval in hand, it’s time to work with a realtor that can help your homeowner dreams come true!
And this is where the FUN begins. 🎉
When you find a realtor that you want to work with, you’ll schedule a buyer’s consultation, which is essentially just a meeting (can be virtual or in person) to discuss what the home buying process will look like for you specifically.
On your buyer’s consult, typically your realtor will discuss things like:
Buyer’s needs and preferences
Buyer education and expectations
Market review
Establish a working relationship
This call serves as a really good time for YOU to ask your realtor questions too! And if you’re not sure what types of questions to ask, click here for a quick guide!
5. What does the home search process look like?
Once you’ve chosen a realtor to work with, they will take you through their specific process of setting up a home search to ensure that you’re ONLY looking at properties that are a fit for the wants and needs that you discussed in your consultation.
Every real estate agent does this differently, but with the Real Estate Collective, the home search process goes like this ⬇️
I like to call it a process of elimination rather than trying to find a needle in a haystack because if we get too specific, you could miss out on something that was mismarked or really is a great opportunity!
The factors I specifically like to focus on are location and home type (single family, townhomes etc).
If there are some non-negotiables, such as the number of bedrooms or bathrooms, we can add those in, but I prefer to give the opportunity to make our own decisions rather than have a computer decide for us!
The thing to remember with real estate and the home buying process is that you truly NEVER know what you’re going to find and fall in love with.
I see this happen ALL the time and many of my clients shock themselves when they end up choosing a home that they never expected.
This is why I encourage everyone to keep an open mind during the process and go into it with an expectant heart.
What’s meant to be WILL be and I really do believe that! And if you need a little more convincing of that, click here to read my personal story of experiencing this with the journey to our forever home.
6. What do I do once I’ve found the home I want to buy?
YAY! You found the house that you reallyyyyy want to call home. This is such an exciting part of the home buying process, but the work isn’t over yet.
Now it’s time to submit a winning offer – and yes, there’s a strategic way to do it. Before submitting an offer, I encourage buyers to first conduct market research (which I help with!) and think about the seller’s specific situation and their motivations.
These things combined can help you craft an offer that would be crazy not to be accepted!
For a few of my pro tips on how to submit a stand out offer, read here!
7. What happens once our offer is accepted?
Once your offer is accepted, you’re one step closer to that closing table, but again, there’s still some work to be done!
In this part of the process, you’ll deliver your earnest money – AKA your good faith money! 💸
This is a sum of money that you as a buyer put down as a sign of your commitment and seriousness about purchasing a property in a real estate transaction. It's typically a percentage of the home's purchase price and is held in escrow until the sale is finalized.
Once that’s submitted, you’ll schedule a home inspection to identify any existing or potential issues that might affect the home's value, safety, or livability.
After the home that you’re hoping to buy has been inspected and approved for purchase, it’s time for the next piece of the puzzle – appraisal.
Similar to a home inspection, a home appraisal serves multiple purposes, primarily to determine the fair market value of a property.
To better understand all of the intricacies involved with each of these processes, click here for a full deep dive!
8. What does under contract mean?
Being "under contract" on a home means that you as the buyer and the seller you’re working with have reached an agreement on the terms of the sale and you’ve both signed a contract outlining those terms.
From there, that’s when you go through the appraisal and inspection process and when both of those boxes have been checked, you move into a waiting phase.
During this phase, it’s your lender’s time to shine! ✨
Your lender will be in major contact with you prior to closing to ensure they have everything they need to get you to that closing table as fast as possible.
After your appraisal is received, your file goes into “underwriting,” which is where it’s reviewed by the underwriters of the bank that determine if the loan conditions have been met.
At this time, you’ll be required to submit MORE documents, so click here for a list of those!
9. What is the typical closing timeline?
I’ll be honest… this question is a little hard to answer, so I’m going to say two words that you’re probably going to eye roll at but it’s true: IT DEPENDS.
Your closing timeline depends on two main things:
The extent and complexity of the items requested of you
How long it takes you to obtain those items
So, I say this with all of the realtor love in my heart – at this point in the process, it really is on YOU!
Of course your agent and lender will be there every step of the way to make sure you’re obtaining the right documents and to answer any confusing questions you may have, but ultimately it’s up to you to submit what your lender needs (per the bank's request).
Assuming you submit all of your documents in a timely manner, the closing timeline can be as little as 30 days (this is a home buyer’s dream), but realistically you’re looking at 45-60 generally speaking!
Once the underwriting has all the items they requested and are satisfied with the results, you’ll get to hear those magic words that every real estate agent and home buyer loves to hear: CLEAR. TO. CLOSE. 🥳
10. What exactly happens at closing?
Once you’re cleared to close, we schedule your closing and depending on where you live, that will look different for everyone.
In Montana, we close at title companies, but some states use attorneys or closing offices.
Regardless of your format, the closing appointment is where you will sign ALL the documents that will transfer ownership of the home to you and is where you pay your down payment and closing costs.
This money will need to be a certified check made out to the title company and should include all of your costs added together, including lender fees, your appraisal (if you didn't pay upfront), and the title company's fees, which can be anywhere from 1-3% of your purchase price.
Your earnest money will be credited to you and deducted from your total amount due.
Prior to your closing appointment, your lender will give you an estimate of your total out of pocket costs so you can come prepared with the required payment to walk away with keys in hand!
This entire process only takes about an hour and during the appointment, the title officer will explain to you what you’re signing.
When it's all said and done, they will deliver the information to the courthouse and it will be “of record” meaning you’re officially a homeowner! 🎉
Ready To Start The Home Buying Process?
My hope is that this list of Q + A gives you a pretty good idea of how the home buying process works and gives you a confidence boost to get the process rolling.
While it *can* feel like a lot, I’m a firm believer that the more you know, the better you can navigate all of it with ease.
And at the end of the day, when you don’t know something or have more questions, your real estate agent should serve as your go-to person that works with you from start to finish to make the process feel way less overwhelming.
That’s the #1 reason that you want to work with a local agent who is established in your area and KNOWS 👏🏼 THEIR 👏🏼 STUFF 👏🏼
So, whaddya say? Are you ready to begin the home buying process?
If you’re local to Billings, CLICK HERE to get started and I’ll help you get started on the right foot.
And if you aren’t local to Billings, good news for you – I know people. 😏
Connect here and I’ll get you in touch with a trusted agent in your area to start the home buying process with ease!