If you are thinking of buying a home in 2022, there is a very good chance that you will be competing against a few other, very strong buyers. The best thing you can do as a buyer is to strategize with your Realtor and loan officer to get a leg up on the competition and win. So here are a few quick tips:
1. Get into the home with your agent in the first 2 days that it hits the market.
If you like it, schedule a pre-contract inspection. This will allow you to discover the faults of the home prior to writing your offer and give you the educated ability to waive the home inspection contingency.
2. Get beyond a pre-approval with your lender and get your loan pre-underwritten.
This requires you to get your required documentation to the lender upfront and reviewed it by their underwriter. By being pre-underwritten, you can take out most of the fears of waiving your finance contingency.
3. Removing the appraisal contingency.
Once you find the home you want to bid on, call your lender to see if you qualify for an appraisal waiver. This is attainable if you have top-tier credit, are putting down a good amount on the loan (20%) and your contract price is supported by area home values.
The second way to get rid of the appraisal contingency is to reduce your down payment by the appraisal value difference. For instance, changing from 20% down to 19% down if the appraisal comes in low. The final way is to have the cash set aside to pay the difference.
A good lender will educate you on how to do this prior to writing and show you the worst-case scenario options. If you need a great lender, just reach out to us.