What to keep track of between making an offer and getting the keys
Buying a home is exciting.
It’s also a little crazy.
Once your offer is accepted, it can feel like everything starts happening at once: inspections, repairs, financing, appraisal, insurance, title work, paperwork, deadlines, and eventually the final walkthrough and closing.
The good news is that you don’t have to remember everything in your head.
This home buying checklist will help you keep track of the important things between making an offer and getting the keys.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recommends keeping track of everything from the home inspection and insurance to lender requests, revised loan estimates, closing documents, and the final walkthrough.
Here’s our Common Sense version.
1. Home Buying Checklist: Your Due Diligence Deadline
Write this date down first.
Your purchase contract will establish important deadlines, including the period during which you can conduct inspections and evaluate the property. Your due diligence deadline is one of the most important dates to track during the home buying process.
Don’t assume you have plenty of time.
Schedule inspections early enough that you have time to:
- Receive the reports.
- Read them.
- Ask questions.
- Get additional inspections if necessary.
- Discuss problems with your real estate professional.
- Negotiate repairs or other solutions when appropriate.
The CFPB recommends scheduling the home inspection as soon as possible so there is time to identify problems and address them before closing.
Common Sense Tip
Don’t wait until the last day of your inspection period to schedule an inspection.
If something important is discovered, you want time to figure out what it means.
2. Your Inspection Reports
Your general home inspection is only one piece of the puzzle.
Depending on the property and your circumstances, you may also have:
- WDI inspection
- Radon testing
- Septic inspection
- Well inspection
- Chimney inspection
- Structural evaluation
- HVAC evaluation
- Roof inspection
- Mold or moisture evaluation
- Other specialty inspections
Keep all of the reports together.
And don’t just file them away.
Read them.
If you don’t understand something, ask the person who performed the inspection.
3. Your Wood Destroying Insect (WDI) Inspection
If you’re buying a home in Tennessee, you may encounter a Wood Destroying Insect (WDI) inspection as part of your transaction. A wood destroying insect inspection is an important part of the home buying process when termites or other wood-destroying insects are a concern.
Pay particular attention to what the inspector actually reported.
If the report identifies:
- Active WDI evidence
- Previous WDI damage
- Conditions conducive to WDI activity
- Inaccessible areas
- Areas that could not be inspected
make sure you understand what those findings mean.
And remember something important:
An inspection is a snapshot.
The inspector is reporting what was visible and accessible on the day of the inspection.
Termites don’t consult your closing calendar.
4. Questions About the Report
Don’t be embarrassed to ask questions.
If you don’t understand something in an inspection report, contact the inspector.
In fact, that’s one of the reasons you paid for the inspection.
At Common Sense Pest Control, we encourage buyers to contact us if they have questions about their WDI inspection.
And there’s another Common Sense tip worth remembering:
Take pictures.
If you encounter an insect during the home-buying process and aren’t sure what it is, take a picture and send it to us.
A picture can often tell us a lot.
And if we can’t identify it from the photograph, we’ll tell you that, too.
5. The Seller’s Repairs
If the seller agrees to make repairs, keep track of exactly what was agreed to.
Don’t rely on your memory.
Keep copies of:
- Repair requests
- Inspection reports
- Addenda
- Repair agreements
- Receipts or documentation provided by the seller
- Any warranties or guarantees
Then verify the work before closing.
The CFPB specifically recommends using the final walkthrough to make sure agreed-upon repairs have actually been completed.
6. Your Mortgage
Your lender will probably ask for documents.
Then ask for another document.
Then ask for something else.
This is normal.
Respond quickly.
Keep track of:
- Documents you’ve submitted
- Documents still requested
- Questions from the lender
- Loan Estimate changes
- Appraisal status
- Loan approval status
- Closing date
The CFPB recommends staying alert for lender requests and notifications throughout the closing process.
Common Sense Tip
If your lender asks for something, don’t put it off for three days because you’re busy.
The sooner you provide what they need, the sooner they can keep moving your file forward.
7. Your Homeowners Insurance
Your lender will generally require homeowners insurance before closing.
Start shopping early enough to compare coverage and pricing.
Don’t wait until someone tells you:
“We need proof of insurance tomorrow.”
The CFPB recommends shopping for homeowners insurance as part of the closing process.
8. Your Appraisal
An appraisal is not the same thing as a home inspection.
The inspection is primarily about the condition of the property.
The appraisal is concerned with the property’s value and suitability for the lending transaction.
If the appraisal comes in below the purchase price, that can create another problem to solve before closing.
Keep track of whether the appraisal has been completed and whether your lender has everything it needs.
9. Title and Closing Services
There may be several people working behind the scenes to get you to closing.
Depending on the transaction, that could include:
- Title company
- Escrow company
- Closing attorney
- Real estate professionals
- Lender
- Insurance company
Make sure you know who is responsible for what and who you should contact when you have a question.
The CFPB recommends shopping for title insurance and other closing services and understanding the services and costs involved.
10. Your Closing Disclosure
This one deserves special attention.
If you’re getting a mortgage, federal law generally requires your lender to provide a Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing.
Don’t shove it into a folder and assume everything is correct.
Compare it with your most recent Loan Estimate.
Look at things such as:
- Loan amount
- Interest rate
- Monthly payment
- Closing costs
- Credits
- Cash required to close
- Other important loan terms
If something doesn’t look right, ask about it before closing.
The CFPB specifically advises buyers to review their documents carefully and resolve errors before signing.
11. The Final Walkthrough: Your Last Home Inspection Before Closing
Your final walkthrough is an important part of the home buying process. This is your last opportunity to walk through the house before closing.
And by now, things may look very different.
The sellers have probably removed their furniture, boxes, rugs, pictures and other belongings.
That can reveal things you couldn’t see before.
Look for:
- Agreed-upon repairs
- New damage
- Missing items that were supposed to remain
- Water leaks
- Damaged walls or flooring
- Changes to appliances or fixtures
- Anything that looks substantially different from your previous visits
The CFPB specifically recommends a final walkthrough before signing to confirm that agreed-upon repairs were completed and items the seller agreed to leave are still there.
And here’s a Common Sense tip:
Look for bugs, too.
Not because you should expect a house to be bug-free.
You shouldn’t.
But because the house may look very different once it’s empty.
If you see an insect you don’t recognize, take a picture.
You can text it to us.
We’ll help you figure out what you’re looking at.
12. Watch Out for Closing Scams
This one is important enough to deserve its own section.
Criminals target homebuyers because they know large amounts of money are about to move.
Be extremely careful with last-minute emails or messages telling you to change wiring instructions or send money somewhere different.
The CFPB specifically warns homebuyers about mortgage-closing scams involving fraudulent changes to wiring instructions.
Common Sense Rule:
If someone suddenly tells you to send your closing money somewhere different, verify it using a trusted phone number—not the phone number contained in the suspicious message.
13. Keep Everything
After closing, don’t throw away the paperwork.
Keep your:
- Purchase agreement
- Inspection reports
- WDI report
- Appraisal
- Repair documentation
- Closing Disclosure
- Mortgage documents
- Deed
- Insurance information
- Warranties
- Receipts
The CFPB recommends saving the final loan and purchase documents in a safe place, including the Closing Disclosure, promissory note, mortgage/deed of trust and deed.
You bought the house.
Now you’ve got a file cabinet full of reasons you bought it.
Keep it.