buying a Home

Santa Fe Real Estate Guide for Home Buyers

A typical time frame, from the time the home is selected, to the time of the closing, is approximately 30-60 days, as detailed in the timeline below.

Seek pre-approval for your mortgage.
Typical time frame: 1-2 days
You must know how much you can afford before you begin your home search. Typical down payments range from 10% to 20% but may vary depending on credit rating and other conditions. Your Relocation Professionals can furnish a wide range of lenders to choose from. Shop around as there are a wide range of mortgage plans and rates available. Most sellers will look more favorably on a buyer who already is pre-approved for a mortgage.

Learn about your destination city.
Typical time frame: 1-2 weeks
Your Santa Fe Properties Relocation Professionals can assist you with gathering information on the area you are moving to. Receiving information on the public and private schools, churches, recreational activities, shopping, taxes or other information you might be interested in finding is just a mouse click or phone call away. Receiving a relocation package with the basic information on the community will assist in acquainting you with the city and available services and amenities. Do your homework before beginning the home search to acquaint yourself with your destination area.

Choose the perfect Real Estate Broker.
Typical time Frame: 1-5 days
Your Santa Fe Properties Relocation Professionals will conduct a brief interview and assist you in choosing the real estate broker best suited for you. An broker will be chosen based upon your requests and follow-up will be completed to assure that a good match has been made.

Search for your home.
Typical time frame: 3 days to 2 weeks
Depending on what you are looking for and the state of the real estate market at the time, the length of time of your search can vary. Being internet-savvy will save time. Viewing homes over the web to decide what you like will save time when you begin viewing homes with your real estate broker. The number of homes viewed varies based upon the number of homes available in the marketplace at the time of the search and the wishes and needs of the client.

Negotiate to purchase and sign a contract.
Typical time frame: 1-2 weeks
Once the home is located, your real estate broker will advise you on the best way to approach an offer on your chosen home. Offers which are close to the listed price of the home will take less time to negotiate than when the offer and listing price are further apart. Having a pre-approval letter from a lender will make your offer to purchase a home more attractive. Upon acceptance of the final offer, buyer and seller will execute a purchase agreement.

Apply for your mortgage.
Typical time frame: 1-3 weeks
Once the purchase agreement has been executed by both the buyer and the seller, it is time to apply for your mortgage. Having a pre-approval letter from your chosen lender will shorten this time frame. Your lender will go through several steps in approving your mortgage, including securing an appraisal for the property.

Schedule a closing.
Typical time frame: 30 - 60 days from the time purchase agreement is signed.
Many factors can effect how soon after signing of the purchase agreement the parties will close. Those include the availability of funds to complete the transaction, inspection of the property and deficiencies which must be corrected prior to closing, seller’s time frame in vacating the property.

Possession and Move in.
Typical time frame: Same day the closing is funded.
Keys typically change hands from the seller to the buyer at the time the closing is funded. This could be affected by funds not immediately available to seller from buyers’ lender, or a prior arrangement made between the parties allowing the seller to remain on the property for a period of time after closing.