If you are looking to purchase Fort St. John real estate, look no further than Elizabeth Chi.
Elizabeth Chi is a Fort St. John real estate agent with the knowledge and experience needed to help you find your dream home. Throughout her experience, Elizabeth has learned that the better prepared her clients are, the easier the entire buying process is for them.
In an effort to help you better prepare, Elizabeth has compiled some of the most common steps in the buying process. She hopes this gives you a better idea of what to expect when it comes to purchasing your home!
Pre-Approval
It is often recommended to obtain a pre-approval before you even begin searching for a home. With a pre-approval, you will not only know exactly what your price range should be, but you will also have greater bargaining power in negotiations with sellers.
Search
- On your own
- Newspapers and magazines
- Internet
- Web sites such as realtor.ca are great places to start your search. They allow you to narrow your search by applying filters to your results.
- Drive or walk around
- Look for “For Sale” signs and get contact information
- Keep records of the homes you are interested in so you can search for them later
- With the help of a Fort St. John real estate agent
- Tell your real estate agent what you are looking for and let them do the searching.
- Real estate agents have access to a large database of homes and can lead you in the right direction.
- Elizabeth has a listing page right on this website for you to browse through.
- Real estate agents can check current financing, recent sales of similar properties in the neighbourhood and other statistics for homes you are interested in.
- Most homes are widely available on the internet, however, in some cases, sellers don’t want the fact that they’re selling to be widely publicized. In those cases, only the real estate agent knows the houses that are for sale. Working with a real estate agent gives you access to homes you might otherwise miss seeing.
- Real estate agents have access to a large database of homes and can lead you in the right direction.
- Tell your real estate agent what you are looking for and let them do the searching.
Offer to Purchase
Once you and your Fort St. John real estate agent have completed the search and found the house you are interested in buying, it is time to make an Offer to Purchase. This offer is a legal document, so make sure you consider carefully who is preparing it for you and what is going to be included.
An Offer to Purchase most commonly includes:
• The names of those involved
• The purchase price
• The things that would be included in the sale
• Appliances, Window dressings or coverings, furniture, etc.
• The amount of the deposit
• The closing date
• The date the offer will expire
• The conditions of the sale
• Any terms, repairs or updates requested, or special circumstances
Response
After you make an Offer to Purchase, the seller will send you a response to the offer. They will either accept your offer, move forward with the buying process, or they will send a counter-offer. If the seller decides to send a counter-offer, the ball is back in your court. You can decide to begin negotiations with the seller, or if the price is now too high or if you don’t agree to the conditions, you can decline their counter-offer and decide not to go through with the sale.
Mortgage
Once an offer is agreed upon by both parties, it is time for you to move forward with obtaining the financing for your home. In most cases, this would be a mortgage. While Elizabeth Chi cannot personally assist you with getting a mortgage, she does have contacts she could refer you to.
Closing
The home buying process comes to an end on closing day. This is the most rewarding step in the process because it is when the house turns into your home. On the closing day:
• Your lender will give your lawyer or notary the money for your mortgage loan
• You will give the down payment and closing costs (minus the original deposit) to your lawyer or notary
• Your lawyer or notary will pay the seller for the home
• Your lawyer or notary will register your new home in your name
• Your real estate agent will receive a call from your lawyer notifying that the home has registered with the Land Title office and she is now authorized to give you the keys
The buying process may seem like a long one from beginning your search to closing on your home, but having a Fort St. John real estate agent on your side can change that! Elizabeth Chi is proud to have built lasting relationships with her clients and looks forward to doing the same with you. Call 778.256.2888 today for help find your dream home!