Home Buying Process
Your Roadmap to a Confident Home Purchase
Whether you’re buying for the first time or the fifth, having a clear understanding of the home buying process makes all the difference.
My comprehensive Home Buyer Overview walks you through every stage—from financing and offer strategy to inspections, closing, and beyond—so you can navigate your purchase with clarity, confidence, and fewer surprises.
Buying a home can feel overwhelming—especially when outdated information still circulates about how much money you actually need to have saved. This video breaks down the three essential components of home buyer savings and clears up the most common misconceptions around down payments, closing costs, and post-settlement reserves. It’s a must-watch for first-time home buyers or anyone returning to the market after a few years.
What You’ll Learn in This Video:
Why the old “20% down” rule no longer applies for most buyers
What your savings really need to cover before and after closing
How buyer agent compensation works (and when you may be responsible for paying it)
An overview of closing costs and how seller concessions might help
What lender-required reserves are—and why they matter for loan approval
What’s on the market now? Customize your home search.
Ready to start the process? Schedule a brief conversation.
Adam Tabaka (00:00):
In the real estate industry, misconceptions abound. And that’s particularly true when we’re talking about how much money home buyers need to have saved up in order to purchase their home. Now, it used to be the case that you needed 20% saved up in order to make your purchase. That’s no longer the case, but there are three key components that your savings will need to cover in part or in whole, depending on your situation.
(00:25):
When you hire an agent, you’ll sign a buyer representation agreement. This agreement will outline the agent’s fiduciary duties to you and the terms under which they will be compensated. Now, in some cases, there will be an offering of cooperation from the seller or from the listing brokerage that may cover part or all of the outlined and agreed upon compensation. In some cases, only part of the compensation may be covered, in which case you may be asked to cover the remaining balance.
(00:55):
Closing cost. Typically, we’re looking at about two and a half percent of the total sales price. Now, in certain situations, you may be able to negotiate for the seller to cover a portion of those closing costs with a seller concession, but that’s going to be very much situation specific and depend on the circumstances involved in your particular purchase.
(01:14):
Lender required reserves, your lender is going to want to see that after you’ve gone to settlement and all the funds have been dispersed, that you’ve still got at least two, maybe four, maybe six months worth of reserves, meaning maybe six months worth of mortgage payments saved up in liquid funds available to you so that if unforeseen circumstances crop up, you’re still able to pay on time.
(01:39):
Want to know more? Check out my home buyer overview below. Have questions? Give me a call or schedule a 10 minute chat. Until next time, take it easy.
Your Roadmap to a Confident Home Purchase
Whether you’re buying for the first time or the fifth, having a clear understanding of the home buying process makes all the difference.
My comprehensive Home Buyer Overview walks you through every stage—from financing and offer strategy to inspections, closing, and beyond—so you can navigate your purchase with clarity, confidence, and fewer surprises.