Henry Residential Group

What is driving your decision to purchase a new home or investment property? Do you know the location where you want to focus? Are you interested in a single family home, condo or townhouse, or are you an investor looking to purchase multi-family? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? These are all important things to discuss with your agent. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods. We will help you determine the answers to all these questions and ensure that your investment is prudent.

Before getting to this step it is important to complete Step 1 so you can give the lender guidance on your budget. They will often approve you for more than is comfortable on a monthly basis, so it’s wise to know where you want to be first. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, commission based income without a history, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can create hurdles when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a home, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify to buy. This is an important step to complete prior to getting serious about your home search. Having them pre-qualify you will not hurt your credit. Furthermore, in our market sellers will not entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.

This should be the most enjoyable step of the process (other than moving in!). Our team will curate both on and off-market properties fitting your criteria and budget. While touring, take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. We certainly will! As we tour we can advise you of potential problems or items to look into further with an inspector. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, school ratings and how close it is to necessities like grocery stores and hospitals.

In most cases, your offer will include a due diligence or option period to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. We will provide recommendations of excellent inspectors in the area from which you can choose. Based on the general inspection findings, it may be prudent to have additional professionals research issues further. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there are, we can negotiate repairs or concessions off the price. If negotiations stall, or you simply change your mind during this option period, you may choose to terminate the contract.

Your lender will order an appraisal, or an independent third party opinion of value. This is to ensure that the contract price is at market value. In most cases if the appraisal is below your contract price, you have the option to renegotiate the price or terminate the contract.