You Accepted an Offer on Your Home - Now What?

You decided tho sell your home and received and accepted an offer. Keep in mind that even though the Buyers have deposited an good faith deposit, and opened escrow with a title office, they still have the opportunity to cancel the sale. It's called a contingency period.

Usually a buyer will have written in the sales agreement two contingency items. One is an Inspection Contingency, which gives a buyer a chance to conduct their own inspections at their own expense. Even though you may already have inspections reports, many buyers choose to have a second opinion.

The second is a Loan Contingency. This period of time gives a buyer a chance to complete the loan process and have a final loan approval. Even though the buyers may have a pre-approval letter from their mortgage person, lending banks are demanding much more documentation than in the past.

Some loan contingency periods are up to three weeks. The most important issue for a home seller to remember is this: Some buyer/borrowers have needed to extend the loan contingency period. It's very important for your Realtor to have excellent communication with the buyers' Agent, and also their Mortgage person. Any requests from you to the buyer or from the buyer to you (the Seller) should be put in writing and all involved with the sale must sign.

Some Important Tips For a Home Sellers During the Sale Process:

• Prior to the Sale of Your Home, Ask Your Realtor to Give you a Blank Purchase Contract. It Can be up to 10 Pages long. Go over it with your Realtor
• Understand that the Closing Date is Not Entirely Predictable
• Lenders, Appraisers, and Title Officers can Potentially Delay the Closing Date
• Understand the "Contingency Period" and Know That it's in Your Best Interest Too.
• Make No Arraignments with Utility or Moving Companies Until All of the Contingencies have been Removed.

Now for the good news! Since 2008, when lenders tightened the borrowing restrictions, not one of my Real Estate transaction's have been cancelled because of a buyer's inability to procure a loan. Your Realtor will be sure to verify that a potential buyers is really able to move forward with the purchase. Proof of funds, communication with the mortgage person and an open dialog with the buyer's Realtor will help to protect your transaction.