When you’re buying a home, Plan A is always to buy the home on the terms in the original contract. Plan B is to buy the home after negotiating some of the terms. Plan C is the contingency plan: if there is an irresolvable flaw in the condition of the home, the home doesn't appraise for the purchase price, or your lender refused to fund your loan for whatever reason, you can back out of the transaction with no penalty (other than money you’ve spent on inspections) so long as you have the appropriate contingencies in place.
If the property is a part of a Home Owners Association, we will have an opportunity to read and accept the documents pertaining to the association. These documents describe the rules, regulations and finances pertaining to the association. We want to make sure that everything is in good order and that there are plans to keep it that way.
The sellers of the property will provide you with an insurance policy. This policy protects you against loss arising from disputes over ownership of a property. We will have an opportunity to review the policy and determine if there are any exceptions to the policy that you find objectionable. Your lender will require you to purchase a separate policy that covers them.
Your lender will hire an appraiser to determine if the property is worth the price you are paying. There are contingencies built into the financing addendum to protect your earnest money if the appraisal is lower than the purchase price.
You have the right to have an inspection of the property prior to closing. I recommend you hire a professional inspector to help you with this task. If you find any problems with the property, you can ask the seller to repair them or compensate you for future repairs. Please see the home inspection article for more on the inspection process and to see my list of trusted providers.
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