Ron Garneau: REALTOR® Calgary and area

We will contact you to set up a time that is convenient with you to sit down with me and review the Home Buying Process. We want to ensure that this is as easy and stress free for you as possible. If you ever have any questions or concerns throughout this process, we are always available for you.

We always like to have our clients meet with a Mortgage Broker or their bank before beginning the journey to finding their new home. The main reason for this is that we never want our clients to fall in love with a home and then find out it is out of their price range.

We have a couple Mortgage Brokers that we like to work with and always send our clients to them first.

We generally suggest you only call 1 mortgage broker and your bank, Too many credit checks are not good.

A couple of our trusted Mortgage Brokers Are:

Greg Gullekson- Jencor
Phone: 403-244-9133
Cell: 403-669-5553
Fax: 403-299-3113
Email: greggullukson@dominionlending.ca

Melissa Legault - Mortgage Tree
Phone: 403-245-3636
Cell: 403-862-690
Email: melissamortgages@gmail.com

As soon as we have your pre-approval we will set you up on a search within our system available only to Real Estate Agents. This system will automatically send you all current listings matching your criteria, and will instantly send you new listings as soon as they are on the market. It will also send you listings when the status changes (if they are conditionally sold, sold, terminated etc.) We can alter this search at any time if your criteria changes.

Once you are ready to start viewing properties, we will ask you to send us a list of MLS numbers (you will find them at the top of the listings– starting with C– ie: C3451234). Then we will contact you to set a date and time for me to meet with you and begin your search!

When you have found the right home for you, Ron will sit down, explain and review the Purchase Contract, ensuring that you completely understand everything that is written contract before you sign anything.

Once you are comfortable with the offer, Ron will submit it to the Selling Agent . At this point the Seller’s will either accept your offer or accept parts of your offer and counter back with some changes (ie: price, possession date, goods included etc.)

Ron will negotiate with the other Agent on your behalf and hopefully come to agreeable terms for the contract. When all terms have been agreed upon, we will need your deposit cheque, made payable to the real estate company representing the Seller. If the possession of your new home is less than 2 weeks away, we will need a certified cheque or bank draft. If you have a second deposit, that will be due once any conditions you have outlined in your contract have been met.

Once the offer is accepted you will then need to take the steps to satisfy the conditions attached to the offer. Examples of conditions are: Home Inspection, Financing and Condominium Documents Review. You will also need to choose a lawyer to represent you and the transaction.

Home Inspection Condition:

Once you have decided on who you would like to use for these services, please advise us so that we can set up the appointment with the listing agent. We suggest you are present for the inspection as this is the best way for you to get to know the home.

Inspections of Single Family homes take up to 3 hours and Condominiums generally about half that.(There are some suggestions of our trusted Home Inspectors below as well as on the links page)

The inspector will put together a report when he is finished and send you a copy. You will need to read through the inspection and call Ron to discuss any concerns.

Financing:

You will need to advise your mortgage broker/bank of the accepted offer. We are happy to convey all the documents to them on your behalf. They will then advise you as to when you are fully approved.

Condominium Documents Review:

You will need to read and approve the condominium documents. If you are not comfortable with this process there are professional companies that will review them for you. (There are some suggestions of Condominium Documents Review companies below or on our links page)

Lawyer:

We have a couple lawyers we use on a regular basis. If you do not already have a lawyer, we suggest that you give a couple different firms a call and find out what their rates are. (There are some suggestions of our trusted lawyers below, as well as on our links page)

Make sure you ask them about all costs involved so you can be prepared. Our office will convey all the pertinent documents on your behalf.

Your lawyer will contact you approximately 2 weeks prior to possession day to set up an appointment for you to meet and sign all the required documents

Home Inspectors:

• Floyd Gage

A to Zee Home Inspections

403-617-8846

atozee@telus.net

• Stirling Davidson

Tanicor Inspections

403-968-0858

stirlingdavidson@shaw.ca

• Randy McKay

Mr. Home Inspection Services Inc

403-561-7544

MrHomeInspections.ca

Condominium Documents Review:

• Condominim Document Inspection Centre

403-228-6770

• Condo Check

403-509-2462

• Condo Max

403-278-7310

Lawyers:

• Brian Lester

Phone: 403-243-0040

Email: info@brianlester.com

• Atif Ali

Phone: 403-287-4990

Email: ali@altadorelaw.com

• Farouk Shivji

Phone: 403-287-4914

Email: fshivji@shivjilaw.com

After your inspection, review of condo docs and meeting with your mortgage broker, it’s time to waive your conditions. This has to be done on or before 9:00pm on the date that was set on your purchase contract as the “Condition Date”. However, you can sign this form at anytime and we will hold it in trust until we get the go ahead from you to process it.

We will send you a Waiver (Also called a Notice) for you to sign and send back to us. By signing this document, it states that you are satisfied with the completion of all of your conditions and are waiving them– making your purchase a “firm sale”. This is also the time that any additional deposits will be due. This is the last big step before your dream home is officially YOUR dream home!

Congratulations on the Purchase of your new home!!

Here is a useful checklist to remind you of what you need to do before you move.

Book the movers. You can choose to have the movers pack everything, or just the breakables, or you can pack yourself. It's a good idea to obtain estimates from several different companies.

At your present home:

• Arrange for transfer of medical, dental, prescription and optical records.
• Change the address on your driver's license(s) effective the day of the move.
• Collect all items out for cleaning, repair or storage. e.g. fur coats, dry cleaning.
• Make special arrangements for the moving of perishables, such as plants.
• Make special arrangements for the moving of your pets.
• Dispose safely of all flammable liquids as it is illegal for movers to carry them.
• Arrange to have your gas, water, and electric meters read on the day you leave and have the bills forwarded to your new address.
• If the water softener is rented, arrange for a transfer of the rental agreement to the purchaser.
• Disconnect your telephone, cable TV, and water softener.
• Get "Change of Address" cards from the post office and send out two weeks prior to moving day.
• Have the post office forward your mail to your new address.
• Cancel any contracted services and pre-authorized cheques.
• Inform gardening, dry cleaning, garbage pick-up, newspapers, magazines, diaper and other home services. Arrange for service at your new address.
• Call the bank to update your accounts. Transfer trust or bank accounts and securities.
• Cancel or transfer social, athletic, civic, religious or business affiliations and memberships.
• Arrange for the utilities to be connected for the day the sale closes including: gas and electric utilities, water softener, telephone and cable TV or Satellite.

If you are currently renting:

Ensure that written notice to your landlord is timely, and make arrangements for the return of any monies you have on for damage deposit (including interest). Look at your existing lease for this information, or read the landlord tenants act.

A few days before your possession, we will call you to set up a time to meet at your new home. We are not able to give you the keys until we’ve received word that all the money has been transferred. Generally this happens by about noon on possession day so we like to schedule what we call a “Walk-Through”.

The walk through is when Ron meets you at the property and you go through to make sure that everything is as it was when you signed the contract and any addiotnal terms to the contract have been met (ie: carpets cleaned etc.)

If everything is to your satisfaction and we have received word that the keys are releasable (money has been transferred) Ron will hand over the keys to your new home!

We hope this guide has put you at ease throughout the home buying process. It’s a huge step to buy your first home and we try to do everything we can to make the process easy and stress free for you!

Congratulations and Welcome Home!