Buyer's Guide

Buying?

If you are looking to buy, look no further. We are a top buyer team at our high producing brokerage, KW Metro Center. Following an in-depth consultation, we work closely with our buyers to design a home search that is tailored to their specific needs. Our buyer services include recommending excellent lenders for clients in need of financing, preparing extensive online searches, and planning itineraries to visit promising properties. We work tirelessly throughout the entire process, from identifying a property that checks all the boxes and crafting a competitive offer, to negotiating inspection and walk-through items. We are also in regular communication with the lender and title company to ensure a smooth and seamless closing. While not Angi’s List, we are proud to offer our clients a long list of excellent vendor recommendations such as movers, locksmiths, and contractors. And for those who are interested, we offer unique bike house hunting tours! It is a great way to tour a new community and get a great real estate workout. Do not bike? Not a problem, we house hunt via foot, car, bus, and Metro too!

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Step 1: Research

Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods and help you when the time comes to make an offer.

Step 2: Decide on Your Budget

Notice I said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. This likely includes doing a full household budget and taking into consideration what changes other than a mortgage payment will occur once you move into your new home. If you’ve lived in an apartment or with roommates, you may overlook new expenses like garbage, water, or HOA fees that could easily blow your budget.

Step 3: Get Prequalified

Just because you think you can afford a certain payment every month doesn’t mean the mortgage company will agree. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can cause major problems when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a home, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify for. This will also be an advantage when you make an offer on a home, as some sellers won’t entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.

Step 4: Choose a Real Estate Agent

Can you shop for, look at, and ultimately make an offer on a home without a real estate agent? Technically yes, but why would you when it costs you nothing for an agent like me to take much of the stress off your shoulders? Not only will I help identify properties you might be interested in, arrange showings, and ultimately handle the offer process, but I also have a knowledge of the market that you don’t possess. I may be able to steer you away from certain homes or neighborhoods, suggest hidden gems, or give you pointers that will help you find your dream home for the right price.

Step 5: Find the Right Home

This should be the most enjoyable step of the entire process (other than moving in!). I will arrange showings of homes you’re interested in that are within your price range. Take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. Turn light switches on and off, open and close doors, and run the faucets in various rooms. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, and how close it is to necessities like schools and grocery stores.

Step 6: Make an Offer

Once you have selected the perfect home, work with your agent to craft a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes on the market. Depending on what the home is listed at and whether the current environment is a buyer’s or seller’s market, your offer may be below, at, or even above the asking price. I will be able to help you negotiate if you receive a counteroffer and reach an agreement. At this point, the house will go into escrow.

Step 7: Have the Home Inspected

In most cases, your offer will be contingent on having the home inspected to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. I can help you arrange this, and you can schedule it within days of making an offer. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there is, you can renegotiate your offer based on what needs to be fixed, or you can withdraw it.

Step 8: Select Your Loan

Now is the time to go back to the mortgage lender who pre-approved or pre-qualified you and choose your mortgage. You will be presented with various options based on your unique financial situation, including fixed-rate, variable-rate, 15-year, 30-year, or special programs such as VA loans or FHA loans. Work with your mortgage lender to select the option you feel the most comfortable with.

Step 9: Get a Home Appraisal

Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.

Step 10: Finish Paperwork

No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. Fortunately, everything will be arranged by your lender and title company and, when you’re finished, you’ll know you are the legal owner of your new home.

Testimonials

susandavsimp56

Natalie was attentive and helpful every step of the way. Her team was conscientious and her resources as we moved forward to sell our home were terrific.

Stephanie Jennings

Natalie exceeded my expectations as a first-time homebuyer. Already aware of her incredible reputation as a realtor and as an amazing tennis coach from my HS, I contacted her, and she immediately started working with my hectic ...

Allison Gurnitz

We worked with Natalie to both buy a new home and sell our home. She was amazing! From the moment we decided to begin the process of finding a new home, she was a real partner. She helped us think through how to approach the...

Patrick Burnett

Natalie and her team were great to work with! She's super knowledgable in all things Arlington and made the process painless from the start. She was able to find our family a great first home in Glencarlyn. I highly recommend h...

Bonnie Beckett

Natalie is a consummate professional who was great to work with on the sales of my daughter's condo and our Arlington home. Her knowledge of the Arlington market helped us settle on an asking price that would move our house pro...

Karin Bloss

Natalie was exactly what we needed in a realtor! She was patient, kind, efficient, and knowledgeable. We originally met Natalie as an Open House when we were casually looking for a new home. Once we got a little more serious, ...

Alain Lapter

Natalie is a gem. In a field saturated by mediocrity, Natalie stands out for her intellect, competence, business acumen, market understanding and appreciation, and willingness to go above and beyond for her clients. While so ...

Ana Lapter

Natalie is a phenomenal agent and a true professional. She listens to her customers, is responsive, brings deep local market insight, and recommends creative marketing solutions to accelerate the sale process. She helped me twi...

Andrew W.

First met Natalie when she represented a client of mine in the purchase of his first home (I work in the mortgage business). We had chatted over the phone, and finally met in person at the closing. Based on the total experience...

David & Toni

My wife and I suddenly found ourselves needing to sell our Arlington home quickly, so we turned to Natalie Roy. We had seen her name on several houses for sale in the neighborhood, and had intended to shop around for an agent, ...

Vickie P.

When Natalie was refered to me, I already knew I was going to have an excellent professional who would help me sell my house. However, more than an impressive Realtor®, I met one of the best human beings in my long life. Natali...

Collins J.

My first experience with Natalie was two years ago when I asked her to take a look at my home and help get it ready for sale, with the idea that ‘down the road’ I would ask her to help me sell. She quickly provided specific sug...

Larissa & Jeff

Natalie was a huge help to us in buying our first house! She answered all of our many questions throughout the process and went above and beyond in helping us select a lender, title company, etc. She was incredibly responsive a...

Nikki & Justin

Cannot recommend Natalie enough. As anxious type A first time home buyers, we considered several Realtors®, but were so impressed with Natalie's experience, knowledge of the DMV (especially Arlington) and personality, that we k...

Serpil & Raul

Natalie is a rockstar! We can't speak highly enough of our experience with Natalie, we were very fortunate working with her. Natalie is an excellent agent, with an extensive experience, very engaging and has a dependable person...

Diane R. & Dan L.

Natalie is a top notch agent who knows the Arlington neighborhoods cold. We had moved out of the area and needed an agent who could be trusted to work directly with contractors for needed repairs and sprucing up, to get our hou...

Donnan & Sarah B.

We were extremely lucky to have Natalie assist us with the purchase of our first home! She is extremely professional and worked tirelessly on our behalf. Her extensive knowledge of Arlington and energetic approach helped naviga...

Donald C.

As a service member, I can attest that frequent moves with accelerated timelines and strict budgets are commonplace, and that finding the right real estate agent is critical. Natalie Roy is that agent. Her attention to detail, ...

talmidah46

I first met Natalie when my husband, Andrew Whearty, mentioned that she is the ONE to work with when we decided to sell our house. He had an opportunity to meet her when one of his clients (he works in the mortgage industry) w...

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