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A Step-by-Step Guide to Buying a Home in Tucson, Arizona

Tucson Buyer's Guide

Discover everything you need to know about purchasing a home in Tucson with this comprehensive buyer’s guide. From understanding local market trends to navigating financing, inspections, and closing, this step-by-step resource helps you make confident, informed decisions every step of the way.

A Step-by-Step First Time Buyer's Guide

Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by your agent will help reduce the stress of buying a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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. Finding the perfect home can be a daunting task, this is where my expertise and wealth of knowledge come into play. Let me show you around some homes that meet your dream home criteria so you can find the one that's right for you.

My goal is to provide you with the most personalized service that is designed to help you buy your dream home.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

Congratulations!

After signing the final paperwork to complete the purchase, you are now the owner of a new house. It may take a few days for your loan to be funded once the paperwork has been returned to the lender, but once that check is delivered to the seller, you’ll be all set to move into the home of your dreams.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Mike really knows the Tucson area. He was great about showing me various properties, and very attentive and helpful during the negotiations after I made an offer. I was happy with the services he provided me.

— LK

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Great experience. Michael is very knowledgeable about the market. Very helpful and helped us through the entire buying process. We would highly recommend him.

— Alfred P.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

I worked with Michael Peterson, and he was great! Very personable, quick to respond to any questions I had, and made the whole process easy!

— Sarah

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Michael Peterson was a very attentive buyer's agent and was a real advocate for us, making sure we made the most informed decision with the information provided to us. He was available at almost all times of the day for any questions and was very great at explaining the buying process for a first-time home buyer. If you’re looking for a home in the Tucson area, I would definitely recommend him!

— Karlo

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Mike was a great help throughout my selling and buying process. From the start, he took the time to explain each step and went at my pace to ensure I understood everything. Mike also introduced me to his associates, who helped with the process.

— Neha

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Michael Peterson is the best realtor I have worked with. He listened carefully to what I was looking for in a house, and he got back to me right away to show me places that met my requirements. He communicated clearly with me, and he worked well with the owner to help make some modifications for me. He responded quickly when I had a question. He did not pressure me in any way. Michael is personable, he i...

— Diane

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Michael Peterson was great! He was patient with us and seemed to anticipate our needs as we searched for and purchased our new home. I highly recommend him as a real estate expert. We can easily recommend him without reservation.

— Steve & Maureen

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Michael did a superior job helping us both buy and sell our homes. Michael's knowledge and persistence kept us on track until closing. He was basically on call for all our questions for the last three months. We certainly couldn't have pulled all this off the sale of our old home without him. His honesty and trustworthy character showed through very well as we dealt with repairs, appraisers, and real est...

— Bob & Cindy

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Michael did a great job on the purchase of our Co-op. He was very responsive and always gathered the information that we needed very quickly. He even helped us unload our truck! I would certainly use his services again in the future.

— John

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Michael was the best realtor I could possibly ask for. He was professional but also gave me advice and helped me get my home when things were moving a little slow. He went above and beyond for me and my new home, and I am eternally grateful for him! It was more than an amazing experience to have him as my realtor!

— Mia

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Tucson’s real estate market is full of opportunity — and your perfect home is waiting. Let’s connect today so I can help you find the right neighborhood, the right home, and the right deal here in Tucson, AZ.

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MICHAEL PETERSON

[email protected]
(520) 675-0000

7189 E Tanque Verde Rd Tucson AZ 85715