I Am Under Contract, Now What?

By Jess Barron

After working with your lender on getting pre-qualified and spending months, or maybe longer, searching for a home – you are finally under contract. Woo-hoo!

Time to relax and celebrate, right? As many Realtors say, the real work begins when you are under contract.

Arguably, the most important part of being under contract as a buyer is a home inspection. It is essential to hire a knowledgeable, professional and honest home inspector. Coweta County has many good local ones. Rely on your real estate agent for recommendations, but also do your own research. Online reviews and testimonials, education background, accreditations, and experience are all important factors when selecting a home inspector. It is not a bad idea to call prospective inspectors to ask questions, discuss pricing and ask what services they provide. Most home inspectors can provide radon and air-quality (mold) testing, as well as other services such as sewer scopes. When purchasing what is likely to be your largest investment, why not spend some time and maybe some extra money on extra due diligence and services.

Any home inspector is likely to find some items of concern when inspecting something as large and complex as a house. So, what do you do as a buyer when your inspector finds something significant and concerning? Hopefully, your agent has written a due diligence period into your contract. This due diligence period allows you to negotiate with the seller for repairs or credits and a price reduction in lieu of repairs. Let’s say the inspector finds out that the water heater is actively leaking. You could negotiate with the seller to replace the water heater, at their cost, before closing. If you find something even more concerning like an active mold infestation and the seller will not address this, then the due diligence period allows you to opt out of the contract and receive your earnest money back.

Another important step of the buying process is the appraisal. If you are obtaining a loan, your lender will likely order an appraisal, or a third-party opinion of value, of the home. You want to make sure that the appraisal is completed within your appraisal contingency timeline of your contract. This protects your earnest money. If the appraisal comes in below your contract price, then you can renegotiate the sales price with the seller.

Throughout your contract, your mortgage lender, and their underwriter, will be requesting documents from you. These could be pay stubs from work, tax documents, payoffs, etc. Remember, the faster that you turn these in, the quicker your loan will be ready and the quicker you can move into your new home!