Yes! Your offer has been accepted and now you’re awaiting the closing date. What’s next?

Here's how to protect yourself as a buyer.

Satisfy Conditions

If you have an accepted offer with conditions such as a home inspection or financing, the most immediate step is to have these satisfied to make the deal firm. This means having your home inspection and/or having your mortgage financing approved and then having your agent submit a form which waives these conditions from the agreement.

This is usually done within an agreed upon timeframe of 3-10 days in most cases. This must be handled quickly because even if you’ve submitted a deposit and the seller stops showings, it is not a firm offer until all conditions are fulfilled.

FREE Buyers Guide That Takes You Step-by-Step Through The Buying Process ⬇️

Have Finances In Order

Protecting yourself starts by doing your due diligence. When it comes to financing, you want to make sure you’re not going to have any delays on closing day. Make sure you provide your mortgage broker with all the necessary documents they require to get your mortgage approved.

You’ll want to do this as soon as possible to ensure they have enough time to have it approved by the lender, have instructions sent to your real estate lawyer, and have you sign with the lawyer to have the funds transferred.

Don’t Make Large Purchases That Could Affect Your Credit

Continuing with financing, you don’t want to do anything in this time period that could affect your credit. This means avoiding large purchases, taking out new lines of credit, and even closing lines of credit.

That’s right, length of credit history plays an important role in your overall credit score so even closing lines of credit that aren’t in use can have a negative effect on your score due to how long they’ve been open. 

Be Strategic With Your Walkthroughs

Lastly, be strategic with your walkthroughs or buyer visits. Usually, your agent will arrange for you to have at least 2 visits to the property prior to the closing date to take measurements, take pictures, etc. Use these visits to check that faucets work, the furnace is running smoothly, there are no signs of water damage or any other damage, and there are no surprises.

Strategically scheduling your final visit for the last week after the sellers have moved out will also allow you to check to make sure they have left everything that was agreed upon and there has been no damage to the property. If damage is found or something has been removed that was supposed to be left in the property, compensation may be owed to you as the buyer.

If you have any questions about the current market and how it applies to you, give me a call, send me a text, or shoot me an email. I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have.