Congratulations, you are on your way to owning your very own home! Follow these

suggestions (and your Realtors's advice) so that escrow and settlement with go as

smooth as possible.

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You will be asked for a down payment on the home you are purchasing. You can

choose to put down as much or as little as you want (depending on your mortgage),

but remember, the more you put down toward the total price of your home, the less

time it will take you to pay off and the less your mortgage payments will be every month.

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A good faith  deposit check is required at time of contract acceptance and is typically

held in your Realtor's brokers escrow account or the listing agent's brokers escrow

account.  Make sure that there are sufficient funds in your account to cover this check

as this check will be cashed and put into the brokers account.  

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Assuming the sale goes through, this money will be applied to the purchase price of the home. If for any reason the sale is not consummated, you may be entitled to receive all of your deposit back, less standard cancellation fees. If the buyer breaches the contract the seller may be able to retain this money as liquidated damages. 

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1. The period that you are "in escrow" is often 30  to 60 days, but may be longer or shorter. During this time, each item specified in the contract must be completed satisfactorily. By the time you have opened escrow, you have come to an agreement with the seller on the closing date and the contingencies. Each contract is different, but most include the following: 1. Inspection contingency: this should be completed as soon as possible after the contract to purchase is signed as unsatisfactory results of the inspection may mean that you will want to cancel the contract.

2. Financing contingency: Once the contract is signed, you have a period of time to secure funding. If, for any reason, you are unable to secure funding during the period of time granted to you by the contract (and the seller will not provide a written extension of time), you must decide whether you want to remove the contingency and take your chances on getting a loan. You may choose to cancel the purchase contract. You must be able to acquire financing as per the terms stated on the sales and purchase contract or better. 

3. A requirement that the seller must provide marketable title.   The closing attorney or title company will run the title and it must be "clear" to ensure that you do not have legal issues regarding your ownership. 

 

4. Secure homeowner's insurance. This is required before you can close the sale. It would be in your best interest to apply for insurance as soon as possible after the contract is signed.

 

5. Contact local utility companies to schedule to have service turned on when you close escrow.

 

6. Schedule the final walk-through inspection. At this time, you should make sure that the property is exactly as the contract says it should be. What you thought to be a "permanently attached" chandelier that would come with the property might have been removed by the seller and replaced with a different fixture entirely.

 

You've made it! Once the sale has closed, you're the proud owner of a new home.

 

Congratulations!