Buying a Home: I have an accepted contract, now what?

Congratulations on having an accepted contract on a house, but now what? Often contracts are accepted verbally by the seller’s agent first while signatures are gathered from the sellers.  It can take 1 – 2 days for all parties to sign and return the contract so be patient.  Until we have an executed contract (which means everything has been signed by both the sellers and the buyers) we do not have an enforceable contract.  Therefore, it’s urgent that a signed contract be received by all parties asap.  Once a signed contract is received, several things need to happen:

1. The contract needs to be sent to your mortgage lender.  Again, if we are your Realtors, we’ll take care of this.  This lets your mortgage lender know that you’re under contract and starts the process for getting you approved for the mortgage (remember, right now you’re only pre-approved). Be sure to respond promptly to your mortgage lender.  They will ask you to fill out a lot of paperwork. Some mortgage lenders joke it’s like getting a financial colonoscopy.  Unfortunately, it’s not optional; it’s required and the quicker you can fill it out and get it back to them, the better. 
2. We will need to schedule the home inspection. This needs to be done asap.  
3. You need to write and drop off the earnest money check.  There are also many agencies that now use electronic versions to safely send your earnest money, so we will advise which you will need to do.  Typically the earnest money check is made out to the seller’s agent’s brokerage and is either in the form of a personal check or a certified check (we’ll let you know which one you need).  Usually it is dropped off at the seller’s agent’s office within 1 business day of contract acceptance. When you drop it off make sure you ask for a receipt. Hold on to the receipt and bring it with you to closing.  

After the above items have been done, we’ll email you every few days with an additional next step.  Think of it as our friendly way of giving you homework to ensure a smooth transaction and to help you make sure everything gets done on time.