BUYER'S GUIDE
With your eyes closed, imagine your morning routine, waking up, opening your eyes, and what do you see?
Sometimes what we envision is strangely similar to our current routine. But sometimes we envision something more grand,
maybe with a beautifully landscaped backyard that you’d always wanted, or the perfect reading nook.
With our easy guide, you’ll be on your way to making the most informed purchase!
01
Needs & Wants
The first step to looking for a home is to decide what you want in a home. Consider the number of bedrooms you’d like, bathrooms, office, basement, kitchen style, open or closed concept, ceiling height, property size. And among those items, decide what’s a need vs. a want or nice to have. For example, you may LOVE to have a separate office, but on the other hand, you could always set that up in the basement. Consider what’s necessary for you.
02
Choose a Real Estate Agent
You need someone to look after your best interests. There are many types of agents out there, that use different strategies and techniques, some that are advantageous to you, and some that aren’t.
When buying a property, there can be 1 or 2 agents involved in this transaction.
The first is the selling agent, the person who represents the seller. This person can also represent the buyer, however, it’s important to understand that their first and foremost priority is their seller. Therefore, you risk not getting the best price for the property, or possibly having certain details undisclosed to you based on the confidentiality that they must offer to their sellers.
The second agent is a buyer agent. A buyer agent only represents the interests, confidentiality and priorities of the buyer. A buyer agent can save you thousands of dollars through strategic negotiation, suggest clauses that protect your purchase, as well as offer you their expertise and market insight to ensure you’re paying a fair price.
With the Roach Family Real Estate Team, it’s our priority to ensure that all of our buyer’s are educated and well informed, so they have confidence when they find the right property. Our clients save time, money and disapointment!
As an educated buyer, you:
- avoid overpaying for a home
- don’t just settle for just ‘what’s available’
- know right away when you have found a great deal
- put yourself in a stronger position to negotiate
03
Mortgage Pre-Approval
You need to know how much you can afford.
A lot of buyers make the mistake of doing it backwards, and end up looking at a homes that are above their price range, or below and they end up wasting a lot of time. We want to make sure you don’t fall into this trap.
KEY BENEFITS
- Save time, know what you can afford
- We will connect you to the best lenders to save you thousands of dollars
- Negotiate within your approved amount which will reduce stress throughout the process
- Get a better deal for the home you want
5 EASY STEPS TO GET PRE-APPROVED
- Speak with a Mortgage Broker
- Complete and submit application
- Gather necessary documentation
- Verify your details
- Obtain a copy of your pre-approval certification
04
Exclusive Daily Market Data
A lot of people search on realtor.ca for properties, and that’s a great place to start to get a feel for what’s out there. Unfortunately, it’s not up-to-date, and sometimes it can be misleading. You won’t know if these searches are actually available, have offers on them already, or whether the price is actually true value or not. That’s where the benefit of a buyer agent comes in. With a buyer agent, you’ll have access to the realtor database. This includes new listings, listings that only match your criteria, new price changes, and the best deals. They’ll also provide you with listings that may not be priced in your budget, but in actuality, might be within reach based on comparative market data, or, omit properties that they know are simply trying to strike up a bidding war.
For all of our buyer’s, we send daily emails of available properties that specifically fit your requirements. This takes all the guesswork out and ensures that you’re placing your attention on the right properties.
05
Marketplace Education
There’s no better way to understand what you want and what’s available than actually seeing properties. Start by choosing different home styles, drive through the neighbourhood that you’re interested in, and select 4-6 homes in a day. This will help you narrowdown your needs and your wants, and help you gain a better sense of what you can get within your budget.
06
Making an Offer
To get the best deal, we apply a winning combination.
- Background Research
- Prepare an offer
- Explain the details
- Present and negotiate the offer
You are now in the best position to get the best deal on the home you desire!
07
Home Inspection & Waivers
Home inspections are designed to disclose the physical condition of a property so that you know what you’re paying for. Sometimes, home inspectors can confirm what you may have thought when you saw some drywall damage, or, find things that you couldn’t see.
We are happy to recommend the top home inspector in town!
08
Choose a Lawyer
A real estate lawyer in required during the final stages of a home purchase. They will be by your side in the final steps to ensure that you are legally protected. We are happy to refer a trusted top lawyer should you require one.
09
Perform final inspection
This is your final opportunity to go through the home to ensure everything is exactly as you understood it to be, and your opportunity to complete measurements for furniture, window coverings or to take photos to give you a better idea of what you may need to play before the big day, MOVE IN DAY!
10
Time to Move In!
The time has arrived and now you know that all of your hard work has paid off and you’re now the new owner of your dream home!
WHAT TO EXPECT ON MOVE IN DAY
Other than moving, there will be a couple of things that we recommend.
- Once funds, closing costs, and home registration is completed, your lawyer will contact you when the the deed and keys to your new home are available, so just wait until you get the call
- Check your appliances to make sure they’re working
- Consider ordering lunch and have it delivered to your home to eliminate another thing to do while you’ll be busy moving in
CLOSING COSTS
When you close, there will be certain costs associated to closing. Just make sure you’re aware of these items.
- Land Transfer Tax: Calculated as a percentage of the purchase price of your home
- Legal Fees and Disbursements: Expect a minimum cost of $500 (plus GST/HST) on legal fees, which will cover the preparation and recording of official documents
- Title Insurance: Many lenders may require title insurance to protect against losses in the event of a property ownership dispute. It can be purchased through your lawyer/notary.
- Property Insurance
- Utility Bills
- Property taxes