HOME BUYING PROCESS

Making an Offer
Once you have settled on a house you wish to purchase, this must be communicated in writing to the seller. Your Realtor or any attorney may prepare this instrument. The local boards of realtors, in conjunction with their attorneys, provide a standard form (Contract for purchase and sale of real estate) which is used by your agent to communicate your intentions. This form is a legally binding contract and contains all information which governs the transfer of title from the seller to the purchaser.

Cash deposit
You will be expected to make a deposit in the form of cash, check or money order along with your written purchase contract. This demonstrates your commitment to the transaction. The amount of the deposit is determined by the buyer. Offers presented with large deposits are usually accepted, or countered more often than offers made with only a small deposit. On high-priced properties, the amount of deposit is usually proportionally higher, sometimes reaching as much as 5% of the offered purchase price.

Terms of the sale
This defines the obligations of the seller and the buyer for completing the transfer of title. Parties and property are identified, and the ground rules of the transaction are created.

Various contingencies
Standard contingencies include, but are not limited to, mortgage approval, a structural soundness evaluation, a pest inspection and radon test. Dates are specified for the completion of contingencies. It is important to know that it is the buyers responsibility to perform on these dates. If for some reason action can not be completed by the specified date, the buyer must notify the seller and request an extension, or the seller may deem the contingency waived.

Property included in the sale
This is a very important part of the contract, and although simple to complete, it poses the greatest potential for misunderstanding You should specify exactly what you expect to remain with the house. Remember, if something is not written in to the contract the seller is under no obligation to include it in the sale.

Buyer and seller signatures
The final step in the purchase process is the signatures of all parties. Once the negotiation phase is complete and the contract is composed, it is signed by all and considered legally binding.

Negotiation process
If the terms of your offer are not wholly acceptable to the seller, but are not wholly unacceptable either, you may be presented with a counter offer. This is an offer made to you by the seller which accepts some terms and alters those which were unacceptable. The counter offer may address the price you offered, the terms of financing or any other portion of the contract. Every item in the purchase contract is negotiable and may be countered by the seller.

Taking possession of the property
When the property is legally yours, you may move into the home. This is a point that you have agreed upon with the seller in the purchase contract. The possession date is normally the day of the closing. Once again, let us stress that the possession date is agreed upon in the purchase contract, to avoid possible conflicts as the closing approaches. It should be stressed that the premises should be vacated at closing or as agreed to in the purchase contract.

Customary costs to a buyer and seller
Certain costs in the sale of real property are customarily borne
by the buyer and others by the seller:

Buyer	Seller
Tax escrow Tax proration Survey Appraisal fee Insurance on property Interest proration Loan origination fees Miscellaneous fees Title insurance	Tax stamps Real estate broker fee Mortgage tax Miscellaneous fees Recording fees

These are customary charges depending on the type of loan you are obtaining and the location of the property. The costs may differ for you and the seller of the property. Each of these costs, the amounts of money involved and who pays may be discussed with you by your agent before you tender an offer on a property.