Buying Your First House Checklist 95%

Maya insisted on an inspection contingency . She wouldn't buy a house that was secretly being held together by termites and hope.

Maya walked through the house with a pro who pointed out a fussy water heater and a drafty window. She used this to ask for a small credit at closing.

The seller countered. Maya stayed calm, checked her budget one last time, and met them in the middle. Chapter 5: The Deep Dive (Due Diligence) buying your first house checklist

"Okay," she whispered to her cat, Barnaby. "We’re doing this. But we’re doing it right."

Two bedrooms (one for an office), a sturdy roof, and a kitchen that didn't look like a 1970s time capsule. Maya insisted on an inspection contingency

She tallied her savings. It wasn't just the down payment (she was aiming for 10% to avoid massive monthly costs) but also the closing costs —those sneaky fees for lawyers and taxes that usually take up 2–5% of the home's price.

She interviewed three Real Estate Agents . She chose Sarah, a woman who knew the neighborhood's "bones" and didn't mind Maya’s endless questions about plumbing. Chapter 3: The Quest (The Search) She used this to ask for a small credit at closing

She didn't trust the online calculators. She sat down and figured out a mortgage payment that wouldn't leave her "house poor," making sure she still had money for groceries and, occasionally, a nice bottle of wine. Chapter 2: The Gatekeepers (Pre-Approval) Before Maya even looked at a porch, she called a lender.