Forget Credit Karma. Did you know there are different credit scoring models for credit cards, car loans, and homes? Get your mortgage score from a site like MyFico. This will help you understand how good your chances are for a home loan. You need a 620 or higher usually, but may qualify for FHA with a score as low as 500 depending on your down payment. Talking to a lender can help!

Use an affordability calculator to set a realistic budget, but understand these estimate your expenses poorly using a percentage of income. Try our calculator here to set a more accurate budget.

This shows you are a serious buyer and ready to make offers. Most Agents won't start showing you homes without it, and seller's are not going to accept an offer from you either unless it's a cash offer. Need help? Talk to our lender.   PS.  DO NOT SPEND ON CREDIT OR OPEN CREDIT UNTIL THE DAY AFTER CLOSING AT THIS POINT. Your lender will pull your approval if you do.

Like me and Peanut! Well, me really. While both real estate agents and REALTORS® can help with buying or selling a home, REALTORS® are members of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) and adhere to a strict code of ethics. This means REALTORS® have access to more resources, a deeper understanding of the market, and a higher level of professionalism due to their commitment to ethical standards. 

The best part next to closing, the real life episode of House Hunters! It's time to find your home, and when you choose me, you get a state of the art AI powered home search paired with my own hand picked finds with the ability to request showings and rate features by room to make results smarter and better in our app or online. Peanut also loves hunting down things.

The offer stage is where having a Realtor by your side helps you get that house and compete with multiple offer situations and offer the terms that are most likely to be accepted while getting you the best possible deal. 

Your pre-approval was for a dollar amount, and now you need to submit the exact property to your lender to get the process moving in order to close. This is a time sensitive item that impacts other timelines, but don't worry. If you work with me, you'll have a detailed project plan and guidance for all the steps and to-dos to stay on track in your custom client portal.  *Your lender may ask for information from now till closing.  Check daily to avoid delays. Most lenders provide online portals you can check quickly.

Also known as a contingency, the home inspector will look for any hidden issues with the home. While home inspection is a term often used as a catch all, you also need Radon and pest and in some areas a dye test on the sewage is required. A property survey is an option to consider unless your lender requires it. We provide lists of inspectors in our client portal to get this moving and help you with scheduling.  

Maybe you found a unicorn that's perfect, but even new construction can turn up issues during an inspection. If there are issues, like bad windows or foundation problems, this is your chance to back out of the deal with your hand money, or we can negotiate to get the seller to repair or reduce the price in most cases because if it's a problem for you, it will be for other buyers too.

Your lender will need this information or they won't process your loan. If you are in a flood zone, you'll need flood insurance too. While it stinks to have the expense, one benefit of home ownership is now you can bundle your car insurance and save usually a significant amount. Our in house insurance company, My Preferred Insurance & HomeSolutions is there if you need help and can get you quotes from over 40 companies and save you time and money. 

Say you offered $250K for the home, your mortgage lender will have the house appraised and it needs to appraise for the exact amount or higher for them to fund your loan.  What if it doesn't appraise you ask?  This is usually a contingency that in a worse case scenario lets you back out of the sale and keep your earnest money. Other options are to renegotiate the price with the seller or bring more cash to close.  Fear not, if you chose me to represent you, we'll help navigate it. 

At this point, your closing date should be fairly solid. Make sure your lender has all requested additions. Schedule movers. Contact the utility companies. Get ready for your big day!

At least I hope you closed with Craig, so I can jump up and down in excitement with you at the closing table as you take the keys to your new home and see you begin the next chapter in your life journey. Peanut also offers you a complimentary safety inspection where he can come and make sure there are not invaders in your backyard.

How could I forget Peanut's favorite part?  If you are buying and selling with me, we rescue a pet for each sale so you could save a dog and a cat! Or two dogs. Or two cats. We'll sponsor a shelter animal in your name and let you know when they've found their home too.

And if you did number 13, don't forget to use your complimentary Rekey Benefit within 45 days and to activate your home warranty as part of your Threshold Signature Purchase Plan.