Closing day
Three generations at the title company table. The little one got to hold the key.
The buyer path
You'll know every step before you take it.
Buying a home has a lot of moving parts, but none of them are secrets. Here's the whole journey, what it costs, and where I stand in it. When you're ready, we walk it together.
First question
What can I actually afford?
This is where every serious conversation starts. The estimate here uses the same guideline lenders use: your housing payment should stay near 28% of your monthly income, and all your debt payments together under about 36%.
It's a starting point, not a pre-approval. Rates, programs and down-payment help can move the number in your favor, and that's exactly what we go over on a call.
Estimates only. Not a loan offer or financial advice; your lender gives you real numbers.
The journey
From first call to flag day
Six stages. Some take a week, some take a month. You'll always know which one we're in and what comes next.
01
Stage 1 · Week 1
Pre-approval
You meet a lender I trust and they tell us the real budget. This costs nothing and locks nothing in. It just means sellers take your offer seriously.
02
Stage 2 · Weeks 1–6
The search
We tour homes inside the budget, in the areas you named. I'll point out the problems, not just the granite countertops. You never get talked into anything.
03
Stage 3 · A few days
The offer
We look at what similar homes actually sold for, decide the number together, and I negotiate for you. Sometimes we win, sometimes we walk. Walking is allowed.
04
Stage 4 · Weeks 1–2 under contract
Inspection & appraisal
A licensed inspector goes through everything and we read the report together. If something big turns up, we renegotiate or we leave with your earnest money protected.
05
Stage 5 · Weeks 3–4 under contract
Closing
Final walkthrough, then signatures at the title company. I sit next to you the whole time, and nothing gets signed that we haven't already gone over in your language.
Stage 6 · Flag day
Welcome home
I bring the flag to every closing. Before I leave, we find the right place to hang it. The house is yours, and so is the flag. That part isn't a marketing line.
Welcome home
This could be you
Every one of these families started with a phone call, and most of them started as renters. The flag goes up the day the keys change hands.
The flag goes up before the boxes are unpacked.
Every home counts. Every flag means the same thing.
George’s Circle of Trust
You'll need more than an agent
Over the years I've built a short list of people who do right by my clients. When you need one, I make the introduction personally.
Lenders
Loan officers who work with first-time buyers, self-employment income, and down-payment assistance programs, and who answer their phones. In English and Spanish.
Inspectors
Licensed home inspectors who tell you the truth about a house before you're stuck with it, and walk the report with you room by room.
Contractors & trades
Roofers, AC techs, plumbers and handymen who show up, quote fair, and have been in my clients' homes for years.
Insurance & title
Homeowner's insurance agents and title companies that close on time and explain what you're paying for, line by line.
Introductions are free and unconditional. I don't take referral fees; I just want the people around you to be good at their jobs. Step inside the Circle of Trust →
Think you might be ready?
The first call is twenty minutes and it costs nothing. Worst case, you leave with a plan for next year instead of this one.