5 Roadblocks on the Path to Your New Home

Salt Lake City Real Estate Podcast with Justin Udy

When you are purchasing a home, you want to have the smoothest transaction possible. There are five roadblocks that can prevent that smooth transaction from happening.

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Whenever you purchase a home, there are five major things that can happen that can stop our sales. Today I am going to share those five roadblocks, so you can know what to avoid if you are buying a new home.

1. Damage. Damages can occur when the seller moves out, or from a contractor who has caused additional damage. To remedy this, you must always do a walk-through inspection. This can help you avoid discovering that things are missing, such as light bulbs, fixtures, or—even worse—appliances and cabinetry.

2. Due diligence. During the home inspection, ensure that all the repairs requested by the inspection are completed. Also, make sure that your insurance is active the day that you close—accidents happen, and you do not want to accidentally cause a fire. If your insurance is not set up at closing, it could cause a delay.

3. Survey. Survey the land to find out where proper property lines are. This is something a lot of agents push to the side, but do not let them. Surveys are very important.

I personally purchased a duplex as an investment property and noticed something was strange about the lines. I had a survey completed and found that the neighbor had encroached 15 feet into the property that I was purchasing. I ended up giving him notice and putting up a fence. Now I have an entire parking spot for my tenant.

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I completed a survey of a property that I had purchased, only to discover that the neighbor had encroached nearly 15 feet into my new property.

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4. Major purchases. Refrain from big dollar purchases. Buying a car will affect your credit score, which may affect your mortgage rate and eventually affect your ability to even purchase the home.

5. Loan approval. If a person unknowingly does something to impact their credit, they may be unable to secure a loan. Leaving a job or making an expensive purchase are just two of the ways someone may accidentally damage their score

A loan company verifies your employment the day before closing. If you quit or lose your job the day before, you may end up unqualified for the loan because of lack of income.

Having the money in the location it needs to be is also crucial. If you are receiving the money as a gift, it needs to be wired to your account before closing to verify that you have the sufficient funds. Very few people will let you have the keys to your new place if they are waiting for money to be approved for one reason or another—make sure that the funds are ready.

If you have any questions about this or are interested in buying or selling, please feel free to contact me. I look forward to speaking to you soon.