Seven stages, what is actually required at each one, and the places it most often goes wrong. Written by people who close these every week.
Every stage, what is actually required at each one, and who handles it. This is the part the big sites leave you to figure out alone.
Not what a calculator says you qualify for — what you want to pay every month for thirty years. Those are different numbers and only one of them matters.
Not what a calculator says you qualify for — what you want to pay every month for thirty years. Those are different numbers and only one of them matters.
A pre-qualification is a conversation. A pre-approval means a licensed broker reviewed your income, assets and credit before you wrote an offer — and in Austin that decides which offers get read.
Two identical houses in different school districts do not cost the same to own. Property tax and district are the first filter, not the last.
In Texas you pay separately for an option period — a window to inspect and walk. Earnest money is held by the title company and credited back at closing. Knowing which is refundable, and when, is the whole game.
The inspection is where deals get renegotiated. A roof at the end of its life is either a price reduction or a walk, and knowing which before the option period closes is worth more than any other week in the transaction.
Underwriting signs off, you get a Closing Disclosure three days ahead, and you sign. Do not open a credit card or finance furniture between here and the table — it is the single most common way a funded loan comes apart.
It is free, it is not automatic, and forgetting it is the most expensive small mistake a new Texas homeowner makes. It also caps how fast your assessed value can climb.
Ranges, not quotes. Every one of these varies by price point, property and lender, and your Loan Estimate is the document that makes them exact.
Held by the title company, credited back to you at closing.
Buys your right to inspect and walk. Non-refundable, credited at closing.
More for larger homes, pools or foundations needing a specialist.
Ordered by your lender, paid by you.
Title, lender fees, prepaid taxes and insurance. Often partly negotiable to the seller.
Illustrative ranges for the Austin market, not an offer, quote or commitment. Actual costs depend on the property, the contract and your lender.
Tax and insurance included, because in Texas leaving them out understates the real monthly cost by roughly a third. Type any price, and change every assumption.
An estimate, not a quote. Rates move daily and are set by a lender against your specific file; taxes depend on the exact parcel and the exemptions you qualify for. Most payment calculators show principal and interest only — in Texas that leaves out roughly a third of the real cost, which is why it is included here. How Austin property taxes work →