Now here’s an opportunity to show what I know! I do now finally have a place under contract but it was a case of third times a charm. I made offers on two other places before I got this one. So I’ve been through the offer process a few times. A lot of what’s important may be in the negotiation, which is our next section. However, to begin you must make a first offer so:1.) make sure you want this house before you make an offer. When you make an offer you are signing half of a contract and if they sign the other half, it’s going to take some…

I’m starting to fall behind and I’m literally in the middle of a session at a conference on how to blog right now so… call me inspired. Searching for a home is typically everyone’s favorite part of this process. This is where you wander around and look for “your” home. You’ll learn a lot about what you can afford during this phase. All the photos of places you may have looked at up to this point will be very different in person.You may realize you need to spend a little more money to get what you want (people rarely decide they want less…) but as with my previous post, I…

Pre-Qualification: Answer some questions online or over the phone about what you make, what you spend, what your credit is like, what you think you can afford/want to spend. You answer as you decide. However you decide.The amount you are “pre-qualified” for depends on what you tell the lender. This will not get you a mortgage, just get you an idea, again, based on what you tell the lender, of what you’ll be able to afford. Pre-Qualification: Fill out lots of forms, give personal and financial details that allow the lender to SEE (vs. hear it from you, you big liar) what you make, what your debts are like, and…

Ha. I know what you’re thinking… I’m missing two steps. Nope. This is the 10 Step Program to Home Ownership, which might drive me to drink and subsequently into the 12 steps but for now I’m just looking at the 10. I’ve decided to document these steps here, and probably some of the in-between steps that they don’t tell you about. I’ve already discovered a great deal of confusion and stress associated with the home ownership path, and the place hasn’t even flooded yet. Quickly, to clarify, I don’t have a home in mind as yet. I actually have been through the first few steps of the 10, but I’m…