Building a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life but it can be stressful. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by our team will help reduce the stress of building a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.
Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Do you want it almost finished so you can make selections? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, look at colors and style. Narrowing down a budget you feel comfortable is important to start looking at.
Notice we said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. Once you are ready to talk with a lender, keep in mind that a really experience lender should give you a variety of options and depending on their expertise, they can save you tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the loan. Experience matters. And there are lenders that specialize in new home construction.
For new construction, line up an appointment with an experienced realtor that has worked with many builders and can navigate their way through the process. It also helps to have an experienced builder to set you up for success and a smooth build job experience. Narrow down developments, locations, lots and house plans.
Finding the perfect home can be a daunting task, this is where our expertise and wealth of knowledge come into play. Once you have narrowed your homes down, your realtor can help meet your dream home criteria and line up meetings with builders. We can look over blueprints, pricing and help answer questions. We can help get a specification sheet that lists all you will get with your house and the allowances.
After signing a contract and depositing non-refundable money the builder will get started on making your dream become a reality. The builder will have blueprints made and approved with the city. The site is cleared and leveled, the builder has engineers put flags on the land where the house will lay. Then the foundation is dug out and poured.
Next steps is Framing the house. Exterior and Interior walls are in place, Windows, Doors and Fireplaces installed and stairs are set. You will do a framing walk through and make sure things are right with your builder and realtor. The roof is scheduled to be covered and outside siding is installed. Next the builder will have you walk through with an electrician and make sure the electrical is what you would like.
The insides of your house and what is behind the walls begins next with Heating, Air Conditioning, Plumbing and Wiring. Now the house can be “closed” and ready to begin the inside finish work. Your builder will walk around and make sure you know where everything is going in.
All builders require inside selections to be done around the sheetrock stage. You will work with an interior decorator at a place the builder chooses and have around 3 hours dedicated to making all of the inside and outside choices. You will bring your “Inspiration Photos” and will select tile, flooring, paint colors, carpeting and inside and outside rock or materials for the fireplace. The decorator will let you know the selections that are in your budget.
For making changes or additions during the process, your realtor will get prices from the builder on what you want to change, draft a change order form and all parties will sign it. Towards the end, the outside of your house ready with lawn, sprinkler system and/or landscaping. After cabinets, countertops, paint, tile, trim and flooring are in, you will have a final walk through. Your builder will be making notes on what needs to be addressed. Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.
No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. the builder will create a “punch list” and offers a 1-year limited warranty. HVAC and appliances will have their own warrantys. The builder will be issued a CCO (Certificate of Occupancy) by the city and after your house is closed and funded, you will be given the keys! It isn’t over, because the year following the closing you will have a 3 month list the builder will address and an 11 month list that will be finished by the time the year is over.
After signing the final paperwork to complete the purchase, you are now the owner of a new house. It may take a few days for your loan to be funded once the paperwork has been returned to the lender, but once that check is delivered to the seller, you’ll be all set to move into the home of your dreams.
My husband was offered a promotion which meant we were moving to Orlando, Florida! We were very excited! The beach, world class theme parks and dreamy weather were the only things on our minds! Then reality hit! We had to sell our home and move 2000 miles away from our perfect lives! Preparing for such a major move and selecting an agent to represent you is difficult and stressful. The moment I met Sandra Kenney and Emily Debes I felt at peace. They are experts in the greater Kansas City real estate market, continuously exceeded my expectations and are extremely resourceful. They held my hand, dried my tears and quickly sold our home! From our first...
Sandra was a pleasure to work with. Her knowledge and experience show.
I became acquainted with the Kenny team due to a friend. The level of honesty and integrity made it easy to trust them for my home purchase.
As a first time homebuyer, The realtor took me by the hand and led me step by step. I owe the
purchase of my home to her instincts and expertise. I can't say enough about how gracious and
patient she was, guiding me through the process.
Let our expertise guide you to success.
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