The 920 Buyer Checklist: What to Have Ready Before You Write an Offer

Writing an offer is not where the preparation starts. By the time you are standing in a home you want to buy, the preparation should already be done. Buyers who have their financing, priorities, and process knowledge in order before they find the right home are in a fundamentally stronger position than buyers who are figuring those things out under the pressure of a transaction. Here is what to have sorted before you write.

Full Preapproval, Not a Pre-Qualification

A preapproval based on a soft credit pull and a conversation about your income is not the same as a full preapproval where your lender has reviewed documentation. Sellers want to know you can close. An underwriter-reviewed preapproval with income verification, asset documentation, and a hard credit pull carries more weight with sellers and catches problems before they surface at the worst possible moment: after you are under contract.

Understand your maximum budget and your comfortable budget separately. Lenders will approve you for the maximum you qualify for. That number is not a recommendation.

Your Cash Needed to Close

Your down payment is not the only money you need. Closing costs in Wisconsin typically run 2% to 3% of the purchase price. On a $280,000 home that is $5,600 to $8,400, in addition to your down payment. You also need prepaid taxes, prepaid homeowners insurance, inspection fees ($350 to $500 for a standard single-family home in the 920), and the appraisal fee.

Ask your lender for a realistic cash-to-close estimate before you start making offers. A home can fit your monthly payment and still create a cash problem at closing if you have not planned for the full amount.

The Wisconsin Condition Report

Wisconsin sellers typically provide a real estate condition report disclosing known defects. Read it carefully before writing an offer. Look for disclosures about water intrusion, foundation issues, roof leaks, electrical and plumbing concerns, past flooding, shared driveways, well and septic systems, and remodeling work. If anything is unclear, ask before you offer, not after.

A condition report that discloses nothing on an older home is not automatically reassuring. It tells you what the seller has disclosed, not what the inspector will find.

The Inspection Contingency

The inspection contingency gives you a defined window after offer acceptance to have the property professionally inspected and to negotiate, request repairs, or walk away based on what the inspection reveals. Use it. An inspector who knows Wisconsin housing stock will look at the roof, foundation, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, insulation, drainage, and more.

The inspection is not a guarantee that a home has no problems. It is your best available tool for understanding what you are buying before you are legally committed to it.

Appraisal Risk

If you are financing the purchase, the lender will require an appraisal confirming the property's value supports the loan amount. If you are offering over asking price, understand what happens if the appraisal comes in low. Either you cover the gap in cash, renegotiate the price, or the deal unwinds. Know your position before you write a number above list price.

Your Non-Negotiables Before You Start Touring

Before you walk into the first showing, define the things you will not compromise on: minimum bedroom count, garage requirement, commute limit, work-from-home space, basement needs, or budget ceiling. Without that list, every home is a negotiation with yourself and emotion tends to win. With that list, you can evaluate homes against objective criteria rather than against how you feel in the kitchen.

The buyers who have the smoothest transactions in the 920 are the ones who did the preparation work before the right house appeared. That work takes a few days. Doing it after costs much more.

920 Realty can walk you through the buying process in Northeast Wisconsin and connect you with experienced local lenders before you start your search. Reach out to get started.