Buying a new home can be both a very exciting and terrifying time all at once. Combine the emotions with the confusion of processes that exist between builders, realtors, lawyers, banks and this happy experience can quickly turn stressful.
It all begins with the search, walking through show homes, completed homes and homes under construction until you find the perfect home that suits your needs. Now it’s time to write an Offer to Purchase, and here is where some confusion can begin.
You know the home is listed for a specific price, quickly you will find that everyone you ask can give you advice on what they believe the Offer to Purchase price should be, the final decision is yours. You prepare your offer with your realtor or the builder’s sales person you submit the offer along with a check. This cheque, although many times is not cashed until the conditional removal date, is imperative because it is one of the elements of a contract under Canadian law.
Your offer is now sent into the builder. The builder will review the Offer to Purchase in its entirety and will either accept and sign the offer or counter the offer you made. What is very important to remember is that until both you and the builder (Both Parties) have a signed and accepted the offer, there is nothing stopping the builder from accepting other offers and potentially accept another offer on the home. Time truly is of the essence when buying a new home, you fell in love with your “perfect” home but chances are it may also be perfect for someone else.
Once you have a signed and accepted offer back from the builder you are now in a secure position. If all conditions identified on the contract are meet within the specific timelines, no other offer will supersede yours. Once all deposits are in place and the condition removal documents have been signed you have for all intense purposes tackled the hardest aspects of purchasing a new home.
Processes vary between builders but typically you will be sent a notice of possession approximately 35 days prior to possession. You will probably be granted a pre-possession inspection of your home with a qualified builders representative approximately one week prior to the possession date. In the week between this inspection and the possession day you will have to go to your lawyer’s office to sign all documents referencing the sale of the home. Please ask your lawyer to explain or go over any documents you do not clearly understand. Remember that you have hired and are paying them to help you through this process and they should gladly explain any document before you sign it.
