Purchasing a Home

You scoured the newspapers, told friends you were interested in buying a home, spent weekends looking at homes with your realtor and then, you find your potential home. You are pleased with the neighborhood, have viewed it at different times, day and night.

You have examined the outside of the house for the quality of the brickwork and the solidness of the foundation. You have toured the interior, looked for cracks in the walls and ceiling, and then reviewed the woodwork and paint. The size of the home is perfect for your growing family and you are ready to make an offer.

You will make an offer through your real estate agent or your broker. You can offer any price you’d like for the house—below, at, or above the advertised price. You also may choose to make your offer conditional in various situations such as: actually receiving mortgage approval; the building inspector offers a satisfactory assessment of the home; the house being taken off the market if accepted, or other reasons that may concern you.

State and federal laws require all real estate agents treat their buyers fairly. For instance, if the seller’s agent offer home purchase related services such as: mortgages, escrow, insurance or survey services, he/she cannot make any of these services conditional for passing on your purchase offer.

Once you have made an offer, even if you have offered the asking price, you must realize that you are probably not the only person to have presented an offer. Some buyers may have offered the asking price with or without conditions. Remember, some conditions are more attractive to sellers than others: a quick close and move in is especially important to someone who already has a house waiting in the wings.

Being able to move quickly could be just as valuable to the seller as receiving the asking price.