You thought about it, you chose a Lake Gaston real estate agent to work with, you looked around, you gave the agent candid feedback, you make an offer, you countered, and you’ve got a signed contract! What do you do next?
The agent you’re working with will guide you, but the key thing is to get several things rolling quickly. The absolutely first thing to get moving is your financing. There are ten or so active lenders around Lake Gaston, and if you can use one of these, things will be much easier.
It used to be that if you were a good customer of a bank, they’d give you a little lower rate on a mortgage. Those days are pretty much gone since most mortgages are now resold before the ink is dry, but check with your local lender if you wish. However, in 11 years, I’ve only had one buyer’s home bank beat the lenders around the Lake.
Quite candidly, the main holdup in the closing process is a delay in getting documents or confirmation of salaries, bank accounts, etc. to the lender. So be sure and stay behind these requests.
If buying a home, immediately order the home inspection, about $400. Your Good Agent will have an inspector she can recommend. I personally think it’s very helpful, but not essential, for the buyer to go around with the inspector. A good inspector will point out not only problems, but things to watch for in the future as well as things that may appear to be problems, but actually are not.
At Lake Gaston, sellers normally will only agree to fix problems that are either structural or hidden. However, you may ask for any repair you wish. The seller should respond promptly so that in the unlikely event you can not agree on what is to be repaired, as little time as possible will be lost. However, at the Lake, it’s very rare for the parties not to reach an agreement.
Also if buying a home, you’ll want a termite inspection. Normally in North Carolina the buyers pay for the inspection (in Virginia the sellers normally pay), about $100, and the seller will normally pay (in both states) for any needed treatment or repairs. Don’t panic if the inspector does find an infestation. It’s not at all uncommon around the Lake and is usually easily remedied.
About 2 weeks before the date of your home closing, make sure your real estate agent gives you the contact information for the utilities so you can make arrangements to have them transferred into your name on the day of closing. Also be sure and let your real estate agent know well in advance if you and your spouse are not going to be present at the closing.
Around Lake Gaston, good lawyers are busy and may not have the closing statement prepared until you sit down for the closing. The lawyer or his representative will go over it line by line, so ask if anything’s not clear. Usually your real estate agent will be at the closing, but not the sellers.
Normally at the end of the closing, if a house, the real estate agent will hand you the keys and you can proceed to your new home.
It was a lot of work, but wasn’t it all worth it? Welcome to Lake Gaston.
The above is not legal advice, but only the writer’s opinion.
The agent you’re working with will guide you, but the key thing is to get several things rolling quickly. The absolutely first thing to get moving is your financing. There are ten or so active lenders around Lake Gaston, and if you can use one of these, things will be much easier.
It used to be that if you were a good customer of a bank, they’d give you a little lower rate on a mortgage. Those days are pretty much gone since most mortgages are now resold before the ink is dry, but check with your local lender if you wish. However, in 11 years, I’ve only had one buyer’s home bank beat the lenders around the Lake.
Quite candidly, the main holdup in the closing process is a delay in getting documents or confirmation of salaries, bank accounts, etc. to the lender. So be sure and stay behind these requests.
If buying a home, immediately order the home inspection, about $400. Your Good Agent will have an inspector she can recommend. I personally think it’s very helpful, but not essential, for the buyer to go around with the inspector. A good inspector will point out not only problems, but things to watch for in the future as well as things that may appear to be problems, but actually are not.
At Lake Gaston, sellers normally will only agree to fix problems that are either structural or hidden. However, you may ask for any repair you wish. The seller should respond promptly so that in the unlikely event you can not agree on what is to be repaired, as little time as possible will be lost. However, at the Lake, it’s very rare for the parties not to reach an agreement.
Also if buying a home, you’ll want a termite inspection. Normally in North Carolina the buyers pay for the inspection (in Virginia the sellers normally pay), about $100, and the seller will normally pay (in both states) for any needed treatment or repairs. Don’t panic if the inspector does find an infestation. It’s not at all uncommon around the Lake and is usually easily remedied.
About 2 weeks before the date of your home closing, make sure your real estate agent gives you the contact information for the utilities so you can make arrangements to have them transferred into your name on the day of closing. Also be sure and let your real estate agent know well in advance if you and your spouse are not going to be present at the closing.
Around Lake Gaston, good lawyers are busy and may not have the closing statement prepared until you sit down for the closing. The lawyer or his representative will go over it line by line, so ask if anything’s not clear. Usually your real estate agent will be at the closing, but not the sellers.
Normally at the end of the closing, if a house, the real estate agent will hand you the keys and you can proceed to your new home.
It was a lot of work, but wasn’t it all worth it? Welcome to Lake Gaston.
The above is not legal advice, but only the writer’s opinion.
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