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At
the Buyer Counseling session you will ask any questions you have
about me, my company and the services I offer. I will find out
what type(s) of home you are looking for, what amenities in the
home that you “must have”, what amenities in the home you would
“like to have”, what town(s) you want to live in, when you want to
be in your new home, if you have a home to sell first, if you are
pre-approved for a mortgage, etc… If you don’t have a pre-approval
letter from a lender I will request that you go out and get one. I
will also provide you with a list of recommended lenders.
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I will explain Buyer’s Agency to you. Think of Buyer’s Agency as
Free Concierge Service for the homebuyer. As I buyer’s agent, I’m
working for you, not the seller of the property.
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At the Buyer Counseling session, I will run a search of the
Multiple Listing Service computer and provide you with a complete
list of all homes (with addresses) that fit your requirements. If
there are homes you may have an interest in, we can schedule
appointments to review those homes at that time.
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I will set you up on my website – www.billmhomes.com. Please note
that my website contains very powerful search tools. The website
allows you to perform all types of home searches. (e.g., search
for all 4 bedroom 2 bath Colonial style homes in Needham, Newton
and Dover within a price range of 500,000 to 700,000). The
information generated comes directly for the Multiple Listing
Service (MLS) and the information from MLS is downloaded to my
site every 10 minutes.
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My website will send you (and me) a daily e-mail with all new home
listings (and price changes) for the towns you are looking in and
the price range you establish. Please note that you will receive
the property addresses and also please note that you will receive
the same information that I receive.
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You and I will review the daily e-mails and the corresponding
links to the details of the homes. If you find a home that you may
have an interest in, you can either drive by the home to see if
you like the home (recommended) and the area or you can
immediately contact me via phone or e-mail. I will answer any
questions you have and then schedule an appointment to view the
property with you.
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If you see a “For Sale” sign on a house (FSBO – For Sale By
Owner), an ad in the paper or see a house listing from another
website and you would like to view that home, please contact me
and I will make the arrangements for you and me to view the home.
You will only see homes that you want to see, not the homes I want
you to see.
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If you like a property and want to make an offer on it, I will
first produce a CMA (Competitive Market Analysis) for you. This
CMA will compare the property you like with similar homes in the
area. I will compare homes that are currently for sale along with
homes that have recently been sold. The information provided to
you in the CMA is meaningful because it will tell you if the home
you like is priced fairly.
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I will provide you with information about the town and point you
to websites that you should review (e.g., schools, police, etc…).
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I will sit down with you and structure an offer on the home.
Please note that an offer is composed not only of price but of
terms as well. Both the price and the terms (e.g., date for
closing, inspections, financing, etc…) should be treated equally
when structuring an offer.
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The first document I will create with you is the Offer to
Purchase. Included in this document is the price you want to pay
for the home, the amount of the deposit to be included with the
offer, how long the offer is valid for, when you want to sign the
Purchase and Sale document, the amount you will be putting down
with the Purchase and Sale document, when you want to take
ownership of the house and any special provisions you want
included. Special provisions can mean anything. They might be that
you want to include the swing set in the purchase or that you want
the refrigerator or might even be that you don’t want the shed
included, etc….
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The
second form that is used in the offer is the Contingency document.
Two (2) main contingencies are listed in this document – home
inspection & mortgage contingency.
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Even though the home inspection is optional – I say that the home
inspection is required. Why would you spend all that money on a
home and not have it inspected. I will also provide you a list of
recommended home inspectors (or you can use your own).
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The second part of the Contingency document is the mortgage
contingency. The amount of the mortgage, the date the lender will
provide you with a final approval and the date you have to have
all of your paperwork into the lender’s office are all defined
here. I will also provide you a list of recommended lenders (or
you can use your own).
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I will present the offer to the seller and the seller’s agent.
Please note that you will not have to meet with the seller. Also,
please note that I have a fiduciary responsibility to you and will
work as hard as possible to get you the best price with the best
terms.
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Once the offer is accepted, the wheels are put in motion to get
the home inspected and to get the financing in place. I will work
with you, the home inspector and the lenders to make sure all of
this happens in a timely manner.
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I will meet you and the home inspector at the home.
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I will answer any questions from the lender and will provide a
Competitive Market Analysis to the appraiser so the lender will
know the home has been priced fairly.
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I will keep you informed of the market conditions that may affect
the price of the home.
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I will optionally create the first draft version of the Purchase
and Sale (P&S) and send that document to your attorney as well as
the seller's attorney. Please note however, that most attorneys’
want to create the first draft of the P&S.
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I will provide you with a list of recommended attorney’s (or you
can use your own attorney).
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I will provide you with consulting services throughout the entire
home buying process.
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I will work with the listing broker to make sure that there is a
smoke detector certificate ready for the closing. This is required
for every closing in Massachusetts.
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I will work with the listing broker to make sure the Water
Department is contacted and that a final water bill is ready for
the closing. This is required at the closing.
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I will be in constant contact with you and the other agent to make
sure that the transaction is conducted in as smooth a manner as
possible.
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I will be in contact with your attorney, the seller’s attorney and
the closing attorney to finalize the closing.
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In general, I will be your advocate throughout the entire process
and make sure that everything is taken care of for you.
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I will not forget about you after the closing. You can call and/or
email me at any time and don’t be surprised if I stop in on you on
occasion!!!
