frequently asked questions

What you can afford depends on your income, debts, credit score, down payment, and current interest rates. Online calculators are a helpful starting point, but they don’t always tell the full story. We recommend speaking with a trusted lender to get pre-approved so you have a clear, accurate budget before you start shopping.

While it’s not required, getting pre-approved is strongly recommended. It helps you understand your price range, strengthens your offer, and shows sellers that you’re a serious and qualified buyer. We’re happy to connect you with reliable local lenders if you don’t already have one.

The timeline can vary based on the market, your flexibility, and financing. On average, buyers spend a few weeks to a few months searching for the right home, followed by about 30–45 days to close once under contract. We’ll guide you through each step so there are no surprises.

Upfront costs typically include your down payment, closing costs, inspections, and an earnest money deposit. The exact amount varies depending on the loan type and purchase price. We’ll help you understand what to expect and plan accordingly.

In addition to the price of the home, buyers should plan for closing costs, lender fees, inspections, appraisal fees, and ongoing expenses like property taxes, insurance, and maintenance. We’ll walk you through these costs so you can budget confidently.

The “right” time to buy depends on your personal goals, finances, and lifestyle—not just the market. We’ll help you evaluate current conditions and decide whether buying now makes sense for you, or if waiting may be the better option.

While you can buy a home without an agent, having professional representation helps protect your interests. We handle negotiations, contracts, inspections, timelines, and ensure nothing is overlooked—often at no direct cost to you as the buyer.

Once your offer is accepted, you’ll move into the inspection and appraisal phase, finalize your financing, and work toward closing. We’ll manage deadlines, coordinate with all parties involved, and keep you informed every step of the way so the process stays smooth and stress-free.

There are quite a few things that you can do to prepare your home for the market. At the minimum start by patching holes in the walls, fixing leaky faucets and replacing anything visibly broken. It’s also a nice touch to clean carpets, removing any wear or stains, and to repaint any bold colors a warm, neutral tone helping the overall value of your home.

The value of your home depends on a number of things like the neighborhood, the condition of your home, the current market, and more. Because of this online estimates are usually off by thousands. We’re happy to put together a custom report for you on your home’s value! Get started by filling out the form on this page.

Great question! Although there is no definitive answer here, we can assure you we want to sell your home as quickly as possible. We invest heavily in marketing your home to expose it to the most amount of people possible. This increased exposure brings in more potential buyers and in turn more offers in a short amount of time.

Yes and no! Properties will continue to sell year round but there are periods of higher demand. Depending on when you decide to sell could directly affect the amount of time on market and the final sale price of your home. 

Weather conditions, according to area, play a role in popular times for buying/selling. Generally speaking, spring is a season in which the market picks up. Towards the latter of summer, the market demand can get substantially slower as buyers and realtors take their summer vacations. 

Same goes for the fall. A second demand occurs up until about November, prior to the approaching holidays. The upside to keeping your home on the market during the holidays could be directly related to supply and demand, as there are constantly buyers in need of homes. Seller competition is substantially lower.