The A-Team
As a realtor, I always tell my clients, “Your deal is only
as good as the team you have working with you.” That is why it is extremely
important to pick competent and efficient people to put on your A-Team. Who
exactly should be on your team and what are things that will make them people
you want to work with?
In a previous post, you might remember reading that the
first step in the home buying process is getting pre-approved. So that leads us
to the first person on the A-Team, your
lender. Many people just assume that they should get a mortgage through
the bank or credit union they bank with. That is not always necessarily the
best option. Working with a mortgage broker might be the better route. Mortgage
brokers have the ability to shop rates among several lenders and often times
offer you a more personalized experience because they work with you the entire
process. If you get a mortgage through a large company such as Quicken Loans,
you will be passed along to multiple people throughout different stages of the
process.
*Just remember, the financing is the most important part of
your transaction. If your loan doesn’t go through, you won’t be buying that
dream house you have your heart set on. So pick someone who is going to be
honest and help you until the end.
If you haven’t already chosen your realtor, this is another very important member of your
team. Your realtor is going to be the one showing you houses, negotiating on
your behalf, and getting you to the closing table. Important things to consider
when choosing your realtor are talking to family and friends to see if they’ve
worked with someone in the past that they would recommend, making sure your
realtor is a full time agent (part time agents often aren’t going to be able to
give your all of their attention or available during business hours which is
necessary when engaged in a transaction), and making sure your realtor is about
making your transaction as personal and smooth as possible. You won’t want a
realtor that only cares about making commission. You want to make sure your
needs are being met and that you can contact them for advice even after the
current deal you are doing.
The next important team member is your title company. Usually your realtor will have a title
company they prefer to use (taking into account which ones will put in the
effort to make closings happen as planned and which ones don’t really care to
keep things moving along). The title company is the one who disperses the
estimated closing cost statement and the final closing costs statements. These
show sellers and buyers how much money they are going to expect to have to
bring to closing. They also insure the title so that if anything comes up after
closing (such as boundary disputes, encroachments, etc.) they will cover the
cost to clear things up.
Photo credit:
https://www.firstoptiononline.com/3-things-minnesota-mortgage-lenders-look-for-in-a-buyer/
http://www.realtor.com/advice/7-step-guide-selling-house/
http://www.southeasttexascommercialrealestate.com/port-arthur-title-company-texas-regional-title-also-in-beaumont/
