Buy a Home in Columbus, OH: Your Trusted Guide to Central Ohio Real Estate
Embarking on your home buying journey is an exciting adventure that requires careful planning and expert guidance. Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer or purchasing your sixth property, understanding the path to homeownership is crucial for success in today’s competitive market. From securing pre-approval with the right mortgage company to celebrating at the closing table, our comprehensive approach ensures you’re supported every step of the way. Let us help you navigate this important process and turn your dream of homeownership into reality.
1. Get Pre-Approved
The important first step in finding your new home is selecting a mortgage company and loan officer. Different mortgage companies offer different products that could be specific to your career, financial situation, or other unique variables that you as a borrower might have. By doing this, you will determine comfortability in purchase price, down payment, and monthly payment details. This is also a great time to start meeting with Realtors as they can help to align you with loan officers who can best meet your needs.
Sam Hardy
Union Home Mortgage
614-312-4015
SHardy@unionhomemortgage.com
2. Hire A Realtor
After becoming pre-approved, you will want to hire the Realtor you feel can best represent you through the buying process. John has worked with buyers of all price points from first time home buyers, to folks buying their 6th home. He has vast knowledge in how to align your goals as a home buyer and put you in a position to be successful.
3. Search For A Home
This step can be fun for many new buyers, but it can also be a long process. In an increasingly competitive market, it is important to determine what requirements you might have out of your future home. It is also important to understand that you might not be able to get everything. Having a top level Realtor like John will enable you to focus on your life while he has your best interest in mind and works to find your dream home. John will also leverage his relationships and off market opportunities to present options beyond the MLS inventory.
4. Write An Offer
Once you and your agent have found the home you feel confident in pursuing, the next step will be to write an offer. Prior to writing an offer, John will talk through comparable sales, offer strategies, and other important tools to help your offer stand out from the rest. In many cases you will not be the only offer on a property, so it is important to have a trusted Realtor providing the best advice on offer price, contingencies, and additional terms to write a strong, competitive offer, while keeping in mind market conditions and variables.
5. In Contract Due Diligence & Details
Congratulations! You have reached the step where your offer was accepted. Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as swiping a credit card and enjoying your new purchase. This is an important stage in the home buying process. This is where you will perform a home inspection and other due dilligence items, work with your loan officer to make sure they have all necessary documentation to proceed with financing, obtain homeowners insurance, and in some cases work through an appraisal process. John will hold your hand through this process to make sure you are working with an experienced home inspector that will find any defects with the home. It’s important in this stage to be timely in providing your loan officer with everything needed, as well as working through inspection results to determine whether there are serious issues with a home, or just common maintenance items associated with home ownership. While this process may be overwhelming at times, surrounding yourself with experienced professionals will help put that at ease.
6. Closing
You have made it through all due diligence items, provided your loan officer with all necessary documentation, obtained home owners insurance, reviewed title documents (including title insurance, surveys, settlement statements, etc.), and finally made it to a closing table. This is where you will put ink to paper and officially become a home owner. You will want to make sure you have carefully reviewed the settlement statement, wired any “cash to close” to the title company, and arrived to the closing location with a state issued ID or passport. At this stage, other than signing all pertinent documents you will also want to make sure you have scheduled all utilities to transfer to your name upon the closing date. John will walk through all of this with you to make sure you are arriving at closing with no unanswered questions so you can focus on securing your new home, and celebrating.
