From lease to keys: a Michigan first-time buyer checklist

Between the apartment lease and the closing table there are about a dozen steps, and the order matters. This is the checklist Raquel gives every first-time buyer in Oakland and Macomb counties. It fits on one page because the process, in the hands of the right people, is simpler than the internet makes it look.

The first four steps: money, credit, letter, list

One: know your numbers. Save for the down payment (3% programs exist), plus closing costs, plus a true emergency fund, because the water heater does not inspect the market first. Two: check and repair your credit. Three: get preapproved, not just prequalified; a preapproval is a lender's actual review of your income and credit, and it is what moves with your offer. Four: write the list, the one with commute, schools, and layout on it.

The search and the offer

Five: tour with the list in hand and no pressure in the car. Six: when the right home shows up, move. In active pockets of Troy, Royal Oak, and Rochester Hills, the good ones do not wait a week for a decision. Seven: write the offer with your preapproval attached and negotiate terms, not just price; inspection windows, closing dates, and inclusions all matter. Eight: the earnest money deposit, typically 1% of the purchase price in Michigan, held in escrow and applied to your closing.

Inspection, appraisal, and the finish

Nine: the inspection. Go with your agent, read the report together, and negotiate the real items, not the noise. Ten: the appraisal, which the lender orders, and which occasionally comes in under contract price; there are negotiation paths for that too. Eleven: final loan approval and the closing disclosure, read together line by line. Twelve: the walkthrough, the keys, the utilities, and the first night in a home that is actually yours.

Can I afford it? Where do I begin? How do I know I am making the right decision? Those questions get answered in order, out loud, before you sign anything.

Most first-time buyers are ready earlier than they think. The fastest way to find out is a twenty-minute call where the only agenda is your situation. Raquel Delly has run this checklist for 12 years across Oakland and Macomb counties. Book the call and bring the questions.