What does the process really look like?
First we talk. Then we gather the information and documents needed to understand the financing. Once you are comfortable and prepared, you are looking at houses with your agent.
You find one. You write the offer. If it is accepted, the loan moves into the property side as well, so there is documentation, title, an appraisal if one is required, underwriting, and anything else specific to your file. Then we work toward closing.
Through all of it the job is making sure you know where we are and what is coming next. Silence is what makes people nervous.
One cost to plan for early is Michigan property tax. The year after a Michigan home sells, its taxable value resets to half of the assessor's market value, so the seller's tax bill is not your tax bill. Run an address through the Michigan property tax calculator to see that number.
One kind of help to ask about is down payment assistance. For a first purchase in Michigan that often means MSHDA's MI 10K: $10,000 toward the purchase as a second loan, used with a MI Home Loan and paid back when the home is sold, refinanced or paid off, or stops being where you live. It needs a 640 credit score, and MSHDA sets price and income limits that we check for the address.
When it feels slow, it is usually because we are waiting on something. A document, an outside party, an answer, a condition. The actual work is rarely what makes a file feel slow. It is the gaps between things, which is why we would rather ask for something early than need it late.
