Some of Anderson & Associates favorite clients are first-time home buyers. If you’ve already bought your first home, can you remember the excitement of having a place to call your own? A home that you can make yours through decorations, traditions, and family? We can, too! It’s exciting and we are so honored for each client who allows us to be a part of that journey for them, but we also know that the home buying process can be a bit daunting, as well.
Terms like inspection, appraisal, closing costs, etc. can feel unfamiliar, overwhelming, and intimidating. We’ll do a blog post one each of these. But, today we want to demystify and explain the term ‘closing costs,’ and what to expect in the buying (and selling) process when it comes to closing costs.
Closing costs are simply a compilation of costs that come with the legal process of buying and/or selling a home. Expenses that include loan origination fees (this is apart of the loan approval process), appraisal fees (to determine that the price you are buying your home for is a fair market price), title insurance (to ensure that the legal transfer between buyer and lender is insured), escrow funds (homeowner’s insurance, mortgage insurance, property tax) and attorney fees. Depending on the state, there are various other fees included in the compilation of what makes up the closing costs.
If you want a general estimate, our agents typically recommend our clients to budget for around 3% of the purchase price of the home you’re looking for. Please note, though, that your agent is going to be negotiating on your behalf for you to pay for as little closing costs as possible, while still making your offer competitive.
If you’d like to look into buying your first home, we’d love to help! You can call us at 678-552-9025 and we’ll set up your home buyer consultation. This is where we will discuss in detail the steps of the home buying process.