The Buying Process with SusiHomes
Here’s what you can expect when you buy a home with SusiHomes…
» STEP ONE – PLAN
Before you contact SusiHomes, have a look around on Realtor.ca. Get an idea of what kind of home you’re looking for, the amenities you seek, how much renovating you are prepared to do, what part of the city you’d like to live, and if living in a great school district is important for you. Find out what current mortgage rates in Ontario are. And determine how much you can afford using an online mortgage calculator.
Then contact SusiHomes. Having Susi as your counsel throughout the whole buying process is completely free of charge. Susi will receive a portion of the commission from the selling agent ONLY if you are happy with the house you find together, and close the deal (move in).
» STEP TWO – FINANCE
Get pre-approved for a mortgage. This step is completely 100% necessary. It makes it a lot easier on everybody and opens up a lot more doors for you. Susi can recommend a mortgage broker if you’d like (she doesn’t receive any kickbacks – she recommends based on service record/best rates only). Getting pre-qualified for a mortgage is an easy process with a bank or a broker. A lender will assess your finances and determine what mortgage amount you can afford. Then the lender will give you written confirmation with a fixed (or variable) interest rate that is put on hold for 90-120 days.
» STEP THREE – MEET
Meet with Susi (by phone, video-call, or in person) and see if she is the right agent for you. And this meeting is essential for her to get a firm grasp of what you are looking for, to fully understand all your wants and needs.
» STEP FOUR – SEEK
Susi will now e-mail you homes that fit into your criteria, in neighbourhoods you desire or school districts you’d like to live in. When you see one that has potential, you and Susi will visit the home and have a good long gander.
Susi will look for anything that is wrong with the home, and she will inform you of her thoughts. She WILL NOT hide one scrap of information from you that you might possibly be concerned with. She is experienced in finding a home’s faults, and she will inform you of those faults when she discovers them. She is determined to find the perfect home for you and your family, however long it takes.
Things you and Susi should be on the look-out for include foundation cracks, strange odors, mildew, mold, bad roofing, ceiling and wall stains, old plumbing, locked doors, faulty/old electrical wiring and windows that do not function properly.
» STEP FIVE – OFFER
All right! You’ve found the home of your choice. Now it’s time to make an offer. Susi will determine what the value of the house really is (as opposed to the sale price) and you will begin strategizing on how much to offer. If it is a new listing, the offer should be right around what it’s really worth (which is not necessarily the asking price), since new listings never accept low-ball offers. However, if the property has been up for sale for a while, it may be worth while to attempt a lower-priced offer first.
Susi will guide you through making an offer and explain to you any real estate jargon that comes up, as well as any hidden clauses. Before submitting your offer, she will also go over things like additional costs, closing dates and conditions, policies and anything else that has to do with the property.
» STEP SIX – NEGOTIATE
It’s not just the price that needs to be negotiated, it’s all the chattels as well. Susi is an experienced negotiator seeking fair deals. Oftentimes she will ask for more chattels than needed, just to get the chattels you desire. You will very likely receive a counter-offer. If the seller’s counter-offer is counter-intuitive to your desires, she will counter-counter-offer, or we will walk away and look for another great home!
» STEP SEVEN – INSPECT
Never buy a house without a proper home inspection. Our home inspector is one of the most respected qualified home inspectors in the business. We use him because he is honest, straightforward, and knows his stuff. He will not miss any details. He will not produce a “soft” report, just to get the deal closed. Susi does not receive any kickbacks from him, and you will receive a FREE home inspection from SusiHomes – for the home your purchase. Just ask for details!
» STEP EIGHT – CLOSE
Remember, there are closing costs: lawyers’ fees and Land Transfer Tax are the two biggies. You can calculate how much you need to set aside for closing costs using most online mortgage calculators.
» STEP NINE – MOVE IN!
So pack your things up and get ready to move – and oh man it can be tough to remember everything you have to update these days… Oh wait! You don’t need to worry about that because SusiHomes gives you a full closing checklist of everything you have to do!
» JUST REMEMBER
The most important thing to remember is that Susi will always tell you what’s WRONG with a house BEFORE you put an offer on it. You need to know this information, because you need to be able to make the best decision possible for your family. 🙂