The world of real estate is full of jargon. At Hometiva, our goal is to educate you so the whole process is easier to understand. The world of real estate can be simple, and we want to make it that way for every buyer and seller.
Here are 10 real estate words you need to know so you can walk the walk, and talk the talk.
1. Home Value Report
A value report (you might know it as a Competitive Market Analysis or CMA) is crafted by someone who evaluates the value of your home and makes a recommendation on your listing price. The price is determined based on the price similar homes have sold for in your area among other factors. This report is used to help you understand how much your home is worth. Whether you're hoping to buy a house or sell one, understanding the CMA is essential.
If you’re interested in getting a CMA, Hometiva would be happy to provide one for you and walk you through the ins and outs. There’s no obligation — the CMA is on us!
2. Pre-Qualification
A pre-qualification or pre-approval letter is a document from a lender stating that the lender is tentatively willing to lend to you, up to a certain loan amount. ... Sellers frequently require a pre-qualification or pre-approval letter before accepting your offer on a house.
3. Appraisal
In order to get a loan from a bank to buy a home, you first need to get the home appraised so the bank can be sure they are lending the correct amount of money. The appraiser will determine the value of the home based on an examination of the property itself, as well as the sale price of comparable homes in the area.
4. Offer
This is the initial price offered by a prospective buyer to the seller. A seller may accept the offer, reject it, or counter with a different offer. Your listing agent will call you to share the good news and explain all the ins and outs of the offer. You DO NOT have to accept the first offer, and you can entertain multiple offers.
5. Staging
The concept of preparing your home to sell is referred to as ‘staging’. Staging a home is the process of highlighting your home’s strengths and downplaying its weaknesses in an effort to successfully appeal to the most desirable pool of prospects.
8 Home Staging Tips To Sell Your Home For More
6. Earnest Money
Think of this as your official statement of interest in buying a home. This is the money the buyer puts down when they have a serious intent for purchasing a home. If the buyer pulls out of the deal after the financing and appraisal deadlines are met, the seller keeps the earnest money.
This money goes toward your purchase of the home in the end but until that point, it is held in escrow.
7. Escrow
Escrow is essentially a third party holding an account for you during real estate transactions. This account will be used to move funds between a buyer and seller. Earnest money, property taxes, and insurance are often “held in escrow”. Usually, the title company that you use offers escrow services.
8. Option Period
After an offer is accepted, the due diligence period begins. The option period gives you time to have the home thoroughly inspected and find any defects that you cannot live with. It also allows time to negotiate repairs with the Seller.
It should also be noted that the option period in Texas is a specified number of days set forth in a real estate contract which allows the buyer to terminate the contract for any reason.
9. Title Insurance
Title insurance is often required as part of the closing costs. It covers research into public records to ensure that the title is free and clear, and ready for sale. If you purchase a home and find out later that there are liens on the home, you’ll be glad you had title insurance.
10. Closing
Good news! You are almost there! Closing is when you close the deal and officially buy or sell a home. Money changes hands, you sign lots of paperwork and the sale of the property is finalized. Congrats!
At Hometiva, we guide you through your closing day and make sure everything has been done to ensure that you have a smooth and simple closing process!
11. BONUS: Hometiva
Hometiva is a full service, local real estate company offering superior representation and guidance for a $3,995 listing fee on every home. It’s that simple!
If Hometiva represents you on the purchase of your next home, we give you an additional rebate at closing.
Our goal is to save each customer thousands of dollars on their real estate transaction while simplifying the process.
Our clients average over $10,500 in commission savings!
Ready to get started? Get started today and save thousands by buying or selling with Hometiva.