The First Photo at Our New House
Hey everyone, exciting news from Instagram—we bought a house! I mentioned it briefly before, but now that we’re officially moved in, I can share all the juicy details about the home-buying journey.
Our experience was a whirlwind, and it was thrilling from start to finish. We were interested in a highly competitive house, so strategizing our offer was intense. I was on edge until our offer was accepted, and during escrow, I even came close to losing our entire down payment to scammers, nearly falling victim to mortgage fraud.
But let’s rewind a little and walk you through our whole house-buying process, including how we managed to outbid eight other offers, one of which was willing to pay an extra $50,000!
House Hunting
Zack and I had always talked about buying a home, but things got serious when we got engaged. Before I knew it, we were meeting with a real estate agent, receiving daily MLS emails, browsing Zillow for hours, and even visiting houses in person. Initially, we didn’t like any of the houses we saw, and I started to doubt if it would happen. Then, during one of my Zillow searches, I came across the cutest black-and-white house on a great street with an amazing price. We drove by immediately and found a young couple having a look.
That night, I checked back online, and it said “offer pending.” I was so disappointed because I felt that house was meant for us. We asked our realtor to investigate, and by the next morning, the pending offer had fallen through!
Our Super Aggressive Offer
A bit of backstory—our “team” consisted of my mom, her partner/my stepmom Hedy, both retired realtors, and Patricia Smith, an agent Hedy recommended. When the previous offer fell through, Patricia quickly got on it; though they weren’t accepting new offers until Tuesday and already had five other offers lined up, we needed a game plan.
The house was a flipped home, meaning it looked fantastic on the outside but might have older plumbing and electrical systems inside. We reviewed three inspection reports that highlighted these issues, which explained the reasonable price and why the prior offer may have failed. For first-time homebuyers, this was daunting, but our team reassured us and showed that many others were interested.
We came in $5,000 over the asking price and offered a significant earnest deposit, about 10% of the house price, whereas the norm is 1-2%. The boldest move? We waived all inspection contingencies based on our knowledge from three inspections, assuring the sellers we were serious buyers unlikely to back out.
By Tuesday, there were eight offers on the table. We were nervous but ecstatic when our offer was accepted. The next day, our realtor was at the house when another agent, unaware of her presence, tried to up the ante by offering $50,000 over the asking price. It was already a done deal with us, and it confirmed we made the right choice. This house is a real gem in an up-and-coming neighborhood: three bedrooms, two baths, a huge backyard, separate garage, and an entire lot of 10,000 square feet. We hit the jackpot.
Escrow
We were in escrow for three weeks, busy with paperwork and financial details with our lenders and securing seller credits, thanks to our awesome realtor. Despite waiving inspection contingencies, we still managed to score some credits. We also got quotes from contractors for plumbing, painting, and electrical work, which was a bit stressful but we found great deals to prepare for closing.
Mortgage Fraud Scare
Days before escrow closed, as we prepared to leave for Miami, we nearly fell for a mortgage scam. I got an email that looked like it was from our lenders, telling us to transfer our down payment. With my realtor cc’d for confirmation, the email seemed legit. My bank said I needed to handle a transfer of that size in person, so I planned to go the next day, which turned out to be a blessing.
At the bank, just minutes from transferring, the manager noticed the recipient was an individual, not a business, which was unusual. On her advice, I called Andrea, our real lender contact, only to discover they never initiated that email. My realtor was shocked, too, as neither had reached out that day. It was a brush with fraud that, thanks to our bank’s vigilance, was avoided just in time.
This experience is a stark reminder of how sophisticated and psychological scammers can be. Despite knowing better, I almost became a victim. I hope my story serves as a warning for others.
Happily Ever After
We’re officially homeowners now! The plumbing and electrical are fixed, and now it’s time for the fun stuff. I can’t wait to make this house truly ours and share all our exciting plans. Stay tuned for more on this adventure!