Buying a home involves several stages. Below is a list of the more common steps during a residential transaction.
Your situation may vary and it is best to contact your real estate professional for more information.

Common Steps for Buying a Home
Initial Meeting　

• Select real estate agent
• Determine needs and wants
• Determine financial eligibility

Loan Qualification

• Discuss finances
• Obtain prequalification

Find a Home　

• Select an affordable property that fits your needs
• Discuss offer with agent
• Buyer reviews contract with agent
• Agent presents offer to selling side

Present and Negotiate Offer　

• Buyer prepares "earnest money" deposit (typically, 1 to 3% of purchase price)
• Seller accepts offer (Seller can accept your offer, counter your offer, or reject your offer)

Open Escrow　

• Deposit "earnest money" into escrow
• Escrow will order Preliminary Report

Submit Loan Application

Contingency Period 　

• Conduct Physical Inspection of property by a qualified inspector
• Approve seller's Transfer Disclosure Statement
• Approve Preliminary Report
• Conduct property appraisal
• Obtain loan approval from lender
• Perform termite inspection and certification

Obtain Homeowners Insurance　

• Select insurance company and coverage
• Insurance will be in effect at close of escrow

If applicable, obtain Home Warranty insurance Sign Documents　

• Lawyers Title receives signed documents

Down Payment　

• Need cashier's check or money transfer prior to closing date

Closing the Escrow　

• Deposit down payment and closing costs to escrow
• Lender sends balance of purchase price 
• Deed is recorded with County Recorder's office
• Get your keys and move in!

Purchasing Your Home: Costs and Fees

There are various costs and fees involved in purchasing a home. The following list depicts an example of the costs you may need to cover. Keep in mind that responsibility for some of these charges can be negotiable and the responsible party may vary from area to area. Ask your real estate agent about applicable costs in your area. 　

• Title insurance premium (according to contract)
• Escrow fees (according to contract)
• Document preparation (if applicable)
• Notary fees
• Recording charges for all documents in buyer's names
• Termite inspection (according to contract)
• Tax proration (from date of acquisition)
• Homeowner's transfer fee
• All new loan charges (except those required by lender for seller to pay)
• Interest on new loan from date of funding to 30 days prior to first payment date
• Assumption/change of records fees for takeover of existing loan (if applicable)
• Beneficiary statement fee for assumption of existing loan
• Inspection fees (roofing, property inspection, geological, etc.)
• Home warranty (according to contract)
• City transfer/conveyance tax (according to contract)
• Fire insurance premium for first year

Nothing's quite as frustrating as forgetting why you liked two or three particular homes after weeks of looking. With this scorecard, you can keep a record for yourself.

Not only does this list include most of the features you'll be needing in a home, it takes into account the importance of the surrounding community.

Maybe even more important, it allows you to set up a priority list ahead of time, a ranking order of features from the most vital to insignificant. Since most home purchases are compromises, this should help make your decision easier. The priority list can also help a real estate professional get a better picture of what you are looking for in a house to select those houses available that best meet your requirements. When you are visiting different homes, there's no need to feel embarrassed about pulling out this check list and making notes. After all, you have a big decision to make, and it is in your best interest to take every precaution.

It's always a good market in real estate -- when you know what you're doing. Structuring transactions, arranging financing and finding the right buyers are some of the keys to success. There are few entities that know as much about the trends in today's market as your local real estate agent or broker.

Real estate has become a very complicated business. Selling (or buying) a home can be one of the most important financial transactions in your life. That's why it pays to work with a professional who specializes in this field -- a licensed real estate agent or broker.

Becoming a licensed agent or broker requires thorough training and examination. Several states require continuing education in real estate for license renewal. These specialists are compensated on their ability to sell properties quickly and cost-efficiently -- and their expert abilities are chargeable only when a transaction is complete.

Why It Pays to Use a Professional　

• When you use an agent, you'll get the benefit of professional experience from the moment you consider selling your house. Your agent will help you establish a fair market value from his or her daily dealings in your neighborhood, and arrange financing terms that make it easier to obtain a quick sale in today's market -- helping you receive the equity in your home.
  　
• If you wish to participate in financing the purchase of your property, your agent or broker can structure a workable plan that helps reduce risk from unusual terms -- and give you an estimate of the anticipated yield from carrying a property-secured financing plan.
  　
• Real estate agents are professionals at marketing properties -- that's their job. They can choose the media -- and the message -- that brings interested prospects to your home. They'll interview and qualify buyers for you. They'll use their sales skills and negotiating techniques to help you receive the best possible return on your sale.
  　
• Every brokerage office has a steady stream of prospects that no individual can match. National referral networks and multiple listing services also help to reach buyers from out of town -- or out of state. Many corporate relocation clients may be working with a broker before a move is made.
  　
• When you work with an agent or broker, they will follow-up with other agents who have shown your property and share their constructive comments on cosmetic repairs, financing arrangements, or re-evaluating your list price.
  　
• An agreement between buyer and seller is just the beginning of a final transaction. From that point on your agent or broker can handle the details and paperwork necessary to make it complete: from building and termite reports to fire insurance and closing arrangements with the escrow company, title company or closing attorney.
  　
• As an expert in real estate, your agent or broker will give you advance estimates of your closing costs and net proceeds from the sale, as well as keeping you informed of the details to assure a smooth and timely closing.

When You Make the Sale

A vital part of any sale is title insurance. Lenders usually require a loan policy to protect their interests, and buyers need an owner's policy to protect their equity. Be sure to ask your agent or broker for protection from Lawyers Title. Your title insurance policy will be backed up by the resources of Lawyers Title, the strongest title insurance family in the industry. Your Lawyers Title Account Manager is an integral part of your agent's or broker's closing team.

If You Are Buying a Home

For most of us, a home is the single biggest purchase in our lives. The enormity of the financial transaction aside, finding the right home to fit our particular needs and wants is no easy undertaking. Just as you wouldn't buy a car, computer or camcorder without doing some research into various models and prices, you shouldn't consider purchasing a home without some expert advice and guidance. Though some people may think of using the services of a real estate professional only when selling their homes, a real estate professional can be invaluable when buying one as well.

For instance, a real estate professional can help you determine how much home you can afford based on your financial situation, help you get prequalified for a loan, and even inform you about available financing options. A real estate professional also is an expert on the neighborhood, and can provide detailed information about schools, transportation, local taxes and community characteristics. Using a real estate professional also means gaining access to homes listed in Multiple Listing Service (MLS), an important marketing tool used by real estate professionals to inform other real estate professionals about available properties. That means a real estate professionals can give you information about a wide range of available homes from which to choose. When it comes to finding out if you're paying too much, a real estate professional can provide you with market analyses comparing asking and selling prices of homes in the neighborhood. Finally, a real estate professional can serve as the liaison between you and the seller, bringing to the table negotiating expertise and knowledge about required disclosures and the housing market.

If You're Selling a Home

Here's a Quick Read on How a Real Estate Professional Can Help You Realize Your Goal.

You probably know that working with a real estate professional is an indispensable part of selling your home. For one thing, your real estate professional can list your property in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), providing your home with incomparable exposure and ensuring you have as many real estate professionals as possible helping to find a buyer. But that's not all a real estate professional does to market your home. He or she knows how to specifically target advertising to reach buyers for your home, and uses all the marketing tools available to ensure that your home is sold expediently. Additionally, a real estate professional conducts a variety of other marketing efforts on your behalf, from holding open houses and handling phone inquiries to showing your home to the prospective buyers.

What does a real estate professional do for you besides find buyers? Plenty. A real estate professional provides information on local market conditions to help you price your property realistically and fairly, and keeps you abreast of changes in the market which may affect your property. And let's face it: buying or selling a home means paperwork, lots of it. When it comes to closing escrow, a real estate professional can be invaluable, leading you through the paper trail with a steady hand, and familiarizing you with escrow, insurance, property disclosures and inspection procedures, to name a few. So, Where Do You Find a real estate professional?

Like finding any good professional, the best way to locate a real estate professional is through recommendations from friends or those who have bought or sold homes recently. Ask for references and check each thoroughly. Also, interview several real estate professionals before you decide on one.

It's important to find a professional who is a REALTOR®. Why? A REALTOR® is someone who, as a member of the local, state, and national trade associations, adheres to a strict code of ethics. Recently, the National Association of REALTORS® commissioned a nationwide survey to determine whether real estate professionals were doing their job professionally. The results were impressive: 97 percent of respondents indicated they received "excellent" or "very good" service from their REALTOR®.