ERIC KELLEY

REALTOR | ATTORNEY

BUYER’S GUIDE

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SELLER’S GUIDE

How to use this guide

Buying a home is extremely exciting!  However, it can be stressful and confusing without proper guidance. 

This guide is meant to make the home buying process, from first meeting to closing, simple, understandable, and as stress free as possible. 

Buying a home is not one big decision. It is a sequence of smaller decisions made within time constraints.

This guide is meant to help you throughout the home buying process by making that sequence predictable. Throughout the process of buying a home, we will focus on three key goals:

      1. Refine your buying criteria so that when emotions, like excitement about a stunning home or sadness over a lost offer, crop up, they do not affect your ultimate goal of finding the perfect home for you!
      2. Use data and local context to price risk correctly.  We want the clearest picture of the specific market you are looking at so you do not overpay for a home or miss out on a great opportunity!
      3. Manage Leverage. Not just price, but timing, clarity, and the ability to keep a deal alive when things gets stressful.  I like to think my legal background can help with this goal!

What this Guide Covers

  1. The First Meeting
  2. Financing
  3. Your Search Strategy
  4. Touring Homes
  5. Writing an Offer
  6. Under Contract
  7. Inspections
  8. Appraisals
  9. Due Diligence
  10. The Final Week
  11. Checklists

1.) The First Meeting

The goal of the first meeting, beyond getting to know each other, is building a decision framework.  This framework will allow for an efficient and effective home buying process!  No need to tour fifteen homes you do not like when we can talk for 30 minutes to figure out we only need to look at five homes!

To help set the first meeting up for success, prior to meeting we have a brief survey to complete so we can hit the ground running: SURVEY

What do we cover specifically?

  • We cover
    • Your timeline
      • When do you need to move and what is flexible
    • Your lifestyle non negotiables
      • Commute patterns, 
      • walkability, 
      • school priorities, privacy, 
      • lot size, and 
      • anything else you might want from a home
    • Your risk tolerance
      • What aspects of a home do you need, 
      • what aspects of a home can you live without
      • What types of offers are you comfortable with
      • Are you okay with big projects
      • do you want turnkey only
    • Your market map
      • Target areas

2.) Financing

Pre-approval is an early and key step in the home buying process.  However, prior to obtaining pre-approval from a lender, we need to determine the monthly, and by extension yearly, payment with which you are comfortable.  This includes principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and HOA fees if applicable.  Once we have this figure, determining the figure for which you will hopefully be pre-approved is simple.  Once we have the lifestyle ceiling (what you can afford on a monthly basis) and the bank ceiling (what you qualify for) then we can begin making home searching and buying decisions in a calculated way.  Going about understanding your financial ceilings this way leads to a narrowed price band, less long term regret, and a clear understanding of when you are stretching your budget for a home.

Location Tip:  

In parts of PA, property taxes can change after purchase depending on county assessment practice and appeals.  In NJ, taxes tend to be higher but more closely tied to assesssed value and therefore more predictable

3.) Search Strategy

Common Mistakes

  • Thinking counties act as one market
  • Not defining your price band
  • Not separating must-haves from would-likes
  • Not factoring in competition

Searching Correctly

  • Define your search area: focus in on a township or borough
  • Within your defined area, find your most desirable pockets; consider walkabilty, commute access, and amenities
  • Define your price band. I  find it is helpful to have your upper limit, which can be derived from your financing calculations and also define your ideal pricing window

How I can Help

Assessing competition, price movements, market dynamics, inventory, and local home conditions can feel overwhelming when beginning to search for homes.

I  will help with calculating and tracking metrics within your preference defined search strategy. I wi ll help with days on market averages, list to sale calculations, new listings v. closings, months of inventory, and determining condition premiums so you can just focus on what you like and don’t like.

4.) Home Tours

Many buyers mistakenly tour homes to admire them. The real goal of attending showings or open houses is to eliminate risk.

My touring checklist includes three categories; 1) location quality, 2) livability, and 3) risk.

 

Location Quality

    • Street feel
    • Noise
    • Traffic
    • Walkability
      • More than just distance
    • School assignment verification
    • Commute
      • Accessibility and traffic patterns

 

 

Livability

    • Layout
    • Natural Light
    • Storage
    • Parking
    • Outdoor space usability
    • Lifestyle needs
      • fences for pets, HOA limits on renovations, etc.
 

 

Risk

    • Roof Age and Visible Condition
    • HVAC Age
    • Electrical signs
    • Water instrusion signs
    • Foundation issues
      • Cracks or seams
    • Drainage and grading
    • Septic or well if applicable
    • Amperage

5.) Writing an Offer

This is where I get to put my nearly a decade in corporate litigation to work.  Writing an offer is more than just providing the final and best price you are willing to pay.  Drafting an offer is about risk allocation, strategic positioning, and yes, providing a competitive price.

 

Making a Strong Offer

Price, while important, is just one of many levers to pull. The others include:

    • Deposit structure
    • Inspection scope and timeline
    • Financing and appraisal terms
    • Settlement timing
    • Seller possession needs
    • Personal property inclusion
    • Clarity and simplicity

 

Deciding What to Offer

    • In deciding what to offer, we will do three things: 
      • Conduct a quick comp analysis to determine how similar, recently-sold homes have been priced
      • Then we adjust the comp analysis for the specific location of the desired home and the condition of the home
      • Finally, we adjust the pricing and other factors based on the level of aggression we need based on the demand for the home

 

Preventing Regret

    • We only offer a number that you would be comfortable with if:
      • Another similar house came to market next week
        • or
      • The appraisal came in slightly lower than ed
        • or
      • The inspection revealed typcial issues
    • If the answer is “no,” we are probably stretching for emotional reasons, and we need to re-evaluate
Market Insight

In competitive pockets, a clean offer with good timing often beats a slightly higher price with uncertainty

6.) Under Contract

Once we are under contract, the next 24-48 hours are critical.  Most problems in this stage arise from timing, or lack thereof. 

In this day or two, we:

  • Confirm inspection scheduling

 

  • Confirm lender timeline and documentation

 

  • Order title and review disclosures

 

  • If an HOA is involved, request documents

 

  • Set expectations for repair negotiations

7.) Inspections

Inspections should not be viewed as a rubber stamp, they should be viewed as a risk audit.  When ordering, reviewing, and responding to inspections, you should focus on safety and structural issues as well as major systems.

Inspections are an undervalued and underutilized tool in the home buying process.  I have a separate guide for inspections in which I dive into the nuances and strategy of home inspections.  You can access the Inspection Guide using the button below.

Inspection Guide

8.) Appraisals

Appraisals, at their core, are about lender protection.  Appraisals are rarely discussed because they only become an issue when they come up short.  However, in an effort to prepare buyers for all outcomes, it is important to understand how and why appraisals can become problematic and how to address those problems should they arise.

As with inspections, I created a separate guide for appraisals where I walk through all of the scenarios leading to a resulting from appraisal gaps.  I also discuss potential fixes and how to keep deals on track.  You can access the Appraisal Guide using the button below.

Appraisal Guide

9.) Due Diligence

Due diligence, including title searches, surveys, and HOA adherence, is another area where it is useful to work with a Realtor who has a strong legal background.  Due diligence ensures clean ownership of your home free of encumbrances.  

In order to ensure that your new home is yours to utilize in the ways you want, we review:

  • Budget and reserves

 

  • Special assessments history

 

  • Rules that affect your lifestyle

 

  • Litigation, if any

 

  • Insurance coverage

10.) Closing

You finally made it to the big day! You have made it through the hard part of buying a house.  However, it is key to stay focused through rough these final days to ensure that the deal stays live.

There are three final items to complete before you are ready to move in.

 

1) Final Walkthrough, 2) Closing Disclosures and Cash to Close, and 3) Closing Day

 

Final Walkthrough

The walkthrough is not a formality. It is your last chance to confirm the home is in the agreed condition.

We confirm:

  • Repairs completed if applicable
  • No new damage
  • Appliances and fixtures remain
  • Heat and water functioning
  • Seller moved out as agreed

 

Closing Disclosure 

You get a closing disclosure before closing. We review line by line.

I care about:

  • Credits applied correctly
  • Tax proration Calculations
  • Title and lender fees
  • Any surprise add ons

 

Closing day

Closings are typically handled through title or attorney processes depending on state (PA or NJ) norms and transaction type.

The structure varies, but the goal is the same:

  • Signed documents
  • Funds transferred
  • Deed recorded
  • Keys delivered per agreement
You Did It!

If you have more questions on closing, click on this box to access my full

Closing Guide.

11.) Checklists

 

Your Steps to Success

    • A clear decision framework
      • Targeted location
      • Defined price band
      • Separation of “Must-Have’s
         from “Really Want.”

 

    • Attentive response times during active negotiation windows

 

    • Honesty about risk tolerance

 

    • A willingness to walk away if the math or risk is wrong

 

 

What You Get From Me

    • A detailed strategy based on your criteria and goals, not generic advice

 

    • Offer and negotiation terms structured to protect you without killing deals

 

    • Inspection strategy designed to maximize your leverage and to protect your enjoyment of your new home

 

    • A calm, thought out process that reduces surprises

 

    • A background of legal experience to help navigate any contract, negotiation, or closing surprises

 

Let's Get Started
Disclaimer

This guide is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice or real estate advice for your specific situation. Reading this guide does not create an attorney–client relationship or a real estate agency relationship. Laws, regulations, and market conditions vary by location and change over time, so you should consult qualified professionals for advice tailored to your circumstances.