Buying a home was easily one of the most exciting times of my life but also the worst! I had the great fortune of moving for my third time in one year while six months pregnant! I also moved into an apartment while 2 months pregnant but didn’t know, shh. There’s just so many things I wish I knew before buying a home..
What’s Underwriting?
I can tell you exactly what is without knowing anything about it. It is a total buzzkill. So I found out I was pregnant, and it was probably the worst timing possible. Here I am with my husband in a 500 sq. ft apartment and two Great Danes. Uh oh! My husband just started a new job and at a lot of banks you have to be with your current employer for some period of time before being approved for a mortgage. One bank I looked at, which was running a deal on closing costs, had a stipulation that you must be with the same employer for 6 months. If we had waited 6 months I would be STARTING the process while 7 months pregnant, so that bank was unfortunately a no go. Buying a home takes TIME and I did not have an abundance of time. I finally found a mortgage company willing to work with me, and the search began. Hard part is over, right? WRONG. So, so, so wrong. Almost everyday at work I was bumming the fax machine to send papers o my realtor or loan officer. I was constantly ducking into offices to take a call or checking my email to sign documents. My entire world was being examined under a magnifying glass and, oh boy, did I feel exposed. He needed my bank statements, he could see me ordering an absurd amount from Wendy’s while only have 27 bucks in my checking account last month, and it was embarrassing! Also, do not open any lines of credit or buy anything big. That can stop the entire process dead in its track. So yea, that’s one thing I wish I knew about before buying a house.
Home Inspection and Appraisal
So I found a house! Yay! But now I have to commit to buy it to get it inspected and appraised? Boo. The home inspection went well. I found a company online, got a basic look over to make sure the house wasn’t going to split down the middle as soon as I turned my key, and that was it. The appraisal was a little rough to say the least. I was getting all this stuff done right around Christmas. New Year, new house! The appraisal went okay, the house appraised for more than what we agreed to pay so we got a nice deal, but there were 3 deck boards that needed replaced. No problem. The homeowner gets that taken care of and the house is all good to go now. Nope! The appraiser has to go back out and ensure the work is done. I can’t go say it’s done, they won’t accept pics, and my realtor isn’t allowed to vouch for the job. They need an appraiser. Good thing I’m doing all this around Christmas! I have to pay to get the home appraised not once, but twice. No one can get a hold of the appointed appraiser since it’s the holidays and my closing date gets pushed two weeks. No one wanted to finish the first appraiser’s work or come in during the holidays. The mortgage company finally found an appraiser to finish the job and say “Yes, those pesky deck boards are new.” Now I can buy the house, right? Nope.
Let’s Close on this Baby!
All the underwriting was completed, I got my check for the down payment plus closing costs, and I took the day off from work to sign the papers. By the way, they can’t take a normal check or a debit card at closing. You will need a cashier’s check from your bank. Good thing mine was an hour and a half a away. Remember I moved a few months prior to the tiny apartment, away from most of my bank branches. I show up and suddenly everyone is asking where my husband is. What? I was approved for the mortgage alone since my husband’s credit score was not great. Why did my husband need to be there? Well, they put his name on the deed, so he had to sign the papers too. Luckily my husband works night shift, so I had to drive back to our apartment and wake him up to sign some papers. He’s a heavy sleepy, so a phone call would not work and would be way too easy. He shows up with me to finish signing papers in sweatpants and hoodie. So we sign those bad boys only to run into one final roadblock. I happily present my cashier’s check and they look at it and say that I am short. What?! Apparently all the “estimates” my loan officer provided were not “estimates” and the actual amount needed. HE QUOTED ME THE WRONG AMOUNT. The man took pity on me. I am 6 months pregnant, my husband is exhausted, and he clearly dropped a bombshell on me. He let me write a personal check for the difference owed. If you can get the seller to cover closing costs or find bank that’s running a deal on that by all means take that deal and run. My closing costs doubled the amount due at signing. Instead of paying 4 grand, I paid 8. Oof.
So yea, those are just a few things I wish I knew before I bought a house. It was a certified disaster and I feel my blood pressure rising just reliving the whole experience to warn others. If you are looking to buy a house in the next few months stop making questionable purchases now, do not open a new credit card or buy a car, make sure your bank is nearby, try to avoid buying around the holidays, bring your spouse to the closing, and for goodness sake, make sure your cashier’s check is for the right amount.