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  • Home
  • About
    • All About Theory
    • Meet the Team
    • Theory Companies
    • Theory Cares
    • Fill The Barrel
  • Buy
    • Buy With Theory
    • 2022 Homebuyer Guide
    • Virtual Home Buyer Bus Tour
    • Your Guide to the PNW
    • Featured Listings
    • Home Search
    • Sign In
  • Sell
    • Sell With Theory
    • Free Home Estimate
    • 1 Hour Cash Offer
    • Sold By Theory
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Contact

5 Questions You Should Ask Before Buying Your Home

We know there’s nothing more frustrating to home-buyers than having unanswered questions. Here at Theory, we want to prepare and inform our buyers! Buying a home is one of the largest investments a person can make. Before you can go through with purchasing a home, it requires lots of thought, research, and documentation. So, here are 5 questions you should ask before buying your home.

Should I Talk With A Lender Before Looking At Homes?

5 Questions You Should Ask Before Buying Your Home

Yes, you should! Talking with a lender before looking at homes will help you understand exactly how much you can afford. There’s no reason to start looking at $400,000 homes if your income only allows for a payment you’d have at the $200,000 price point.

Also, if you’re not quite up to the minimum credit level required, your lender can help put you on a GREAT credit repair plan. Whether you can buy this month or in 6 months, it’s a good idea to talk to a lender and get the ball rolling as soon as possible. The pre-approval process itself is actually pretty quick. We have great lenders we’d be happy to recommend if you’d like to see if you can get pre-approved.

How Much Money Should I Save Before I Start Looking Buy A Home?

Out of our 5 questions you should ask before buying a home, this is perhaps the most common one we hear! The answer depends on a number of factors, including the cost of the house and the type of mortgage you end up getting. Talking to a lender first and foremost will help answer these questions so you know exactly how much to save for. In general, you need to come up with enough money to cover three costs:  


Earnest Money

This is the deposit you make when you reach mutual acceptance on a home. It is essentially an act of good faith that proves to the seller that you are serious about wanting to buy the home. Earnest money is generally $1,000, but some buyers like to put down more earnest money. The more money you put for earnest money, the more attractive your offer looks to the seller. At closing, your earnest money applies to your down payment or closing costs.

Down Payment

This is a percentage of the purchase price that you must pay when you close on the home. The more money you can put down for your down payment, the lower your mortgage payment will be. Some types of loans require 10-20% of the purchase price. However, most first time homebuyers will go the FHA route, as FHA only requires 3.5% down. There are also some down payment assistance programs for FHA buyers that allow as little as $1,000 down.

Closing Costs

These are simply the costs associated with buying a home. These include title and escrow fees, lender fees, pre-paids, etc. For a buyer, closing costs usually run 2.5-3% of the purchase price. If you don’t have enough money saved up to cover your earnest money, down payment, AND closing costs, you can ask the seller to pay for your closing costs. If you’re able to save up and pay your own closing costs, it’ll definitely help make your offer more attractive! Your lender can give you a closing cost estimate (early on in the process) so you’re not caught off guard when you sign your closing paperwork.

Should I Get A Home Inspection?

5 Questions You Should Ask Before Buying Your Home

While buyers often wonder if a home inspection is truly necessary, most agents will say yes, yes, and yes! It’s very important. A home inspector takes a weight off of your shoulders by looking into the ALL components of the home: the condition of the roof, foundation, electrical, heating source, plumbing, crawl space, and attic. The inspection will run you anywhere from $350-$500, but that’s a LOT less than any major repairs would be! Ensuring that all of these home components are in good condition prevents you from paying to fix them in the near future. If there are aspects of the house that are not as sound as you thought (prior to inspection), you can negotiate with the seller to get those items fixed before you close on your new home.

How Long Does It Take To Buy A Home?

The timeline for finding a house varies greatly from person to person. Meet with your Agent early on in the process and create your “needs list”. Your Agent can then help you establish a realistic timeline to find your home. Once you find a house and have an accepted offer, it usually takes around 25-45 days to close!

Who Pays For My Real Estate Agent?

If you’re buying a home, you are off the hook. The seller ALWAYS pays for both sides of the commission, which is paid at closing.

So there you have it! These were 5 questions you should ask before buying your home. If you still have any questions that need answered, feel free to contact us anytime!

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“I think that’s the easiest it’s ever been for me to buy or sell a home!”

Brad Rasmussen -

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We had a distressed property in Tacoma that required a lot of repair before we could sell. The task soon became overwhelming and that’s when we contacted Theory Real Estate.  They purchased the property “as is”. Within 3 weeks,  we closed on the deal. The Theory team is amazing!!  Every person we came in contact with was friendly, professional and efficient.

John and Diane Simchuk -

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We are new investors to this market. We met Isaac and Alan through a good friend, and we are so thankful to have met them. They are the nicest, caring, most professional, kind-hearted people we have met in a long time. We would recommend these guys to ANYONE.

Anthony & Sarah Wooden - Tacoma

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We have bought 2 homes and sold 1 home with Theory. We would recommend them to all our friends.

Rhonda & Rickey Wilks - Buckley

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We worked with Theory to find our perfect house, but ran into a couple obstacles with the seller. The Theory team was always there with answers and went above and beyond all of our expectations.

Ceirra & Kenny Williams - Spanaway

LET'S GET SOCIAL

Stay safe out there, have fun, and respect your ne Stay safe out there, have fun, and respect your neighbors 🇺🇸 💥
In June we only had two Theory anniversaries, but In June we only had two Theory anniversaries, but it's two big ones! Alline has become an absolute rock on our team. In addition to being a fantastic agent & investor she has also been helping us out with a TON of financial work and has been hugely valuable. As for Jay, it's hard to believe he's already been here 4 years but time flies when you're having fun! He too has become an excellent agent & investor over these years, is always making moves, and knows how to grind 💯Thank you both for all you've done 🙌 🥳
2.5 acres, TWO primary bedrooms with a split floor 2.5 acres, TWO primary bedrooms with a split floor plan, THREE full baths, vaulted ceilings, a gorgeous lot surrounded by greenery, and we're just getting started! This house in Olalla is absolutely LOADED with features & perks 😎📍 6585 SE 160th St, Olalla
👣 1,980 SqFt
🛏 4 Beds
🛁 3 Baths
💰 $449,000This home has TWO primary bedrooms with a split floor plan, allowing for easy multi-generational living! Say goodbye to fights over who gets to get ready first, you've got THREE FULL baths! Say hello to your vaulted ceiling & skylights over your huge open kitchen & large pantry. You'll be the talk of all your friends with 2.5 level acres for all your toys, RV parking, gardening, & entertainment needs. But wait, there's more! It is on a street with gorgeous custom-built homes -- is it time to build yours & use this as your income-generating ADU? Whatever you do, you'll be doing it in loads of privacy as you're located on an easement road off of 160th. Close to everything in Gig Harbor, too!If you're interested in this home, contact Jamie at 253-792-9402!
Picture living on a waterfront home with lake view Picture living on a waterfront home with lake views from multiple rooms & surrounded by tranquil forest! It's vacation style living year round 🤩📍 22222 Bluewater Dr SE, Yelm
👣 1,918 SqFt
🛏 3 Beds
🛁 2.5 Baths
💰 $400,000Imagine yourself enjoying the lake view from your living room & dining room, relaxing on one of the many community beaches, strolling along the 14 miles of trails, entertaining on your deck, or enjoying a good conversation around your fire pit! This home is surrounded by GORGEOUS nature & situated on a large lot with almost 2000sf of space to sprawl, including a den + bonus room on main AND an additional bonus room on the lower level!If you're interested in this home, contact Carlos at 253-617-9202!
Hey South Tacoma Residents, we want to hear from y Hey South Tacoma Residents, we want to hear from you! Tell us what you'd like to see more of in our community by filling out the survey at the link in our bioThe survey can be submitted anonymously, or with your contact info if you'd like to be entered to win a $100 gift card to a STW restaurant of your choice!We truly appreciate any and all feedback or ideas you can give us. We love this area & its people, and we want to help the community grow as South Tacoma continues its epic rise to destiny!Thank you,The Theory Team**Gift card winner to be drawn at random on 7/15/2022, the contest is not in any way affiliated with Facebook, Instagram, Meta, or other associated entities**
It's a double birthday!! Two complete legends at T It's a double birthday!! Two complete legends at Theory. The man himself Alan Miller who helped found the company and has worked tirelessly growing it into what it is today, and an absolute ACE among aces Jamie Mc Donnell who is fresh off winning South Sound Magazine's Best Agent of 2022 award and has been killing it for Theory since the day she joined 🔥Happy birthday you two!! We hope you both have incredible days celebrating 🥳 🧁
It's already been 3 months since we hosted this aw It's already been 3 months since we hosted this awesome Powerhouse Women In Real Estate event 🔥 🔥The turnout was amazing and the room was buzzing hearing incredible entrepreneurs & business owners share their stories about how they've acheived success as women in real estate! Should we do more events like this?? 🤔
Happy Birthday to one of the nicest guys you'll ev Happy Birthday to one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet, Davis Higginson an agent here at Theory! He has been an absolute joy to have because in addition to being a phenomenal agent, he's always got a big smile and his face and is exceedingly friendly to be around. He's a great person to work with & know, and we're lucky to have him on the team! Have an amazing day celebrating, Davis 🥳 🧁
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