2. Interview and Fill out Buyer Intake Form

Once you have walked your buyers through the process it is time to interview buyers. Use the Buyer Intake Form. We go over the Buyer Intake Form in detail in the First Steps to Representing a Buyer course. Make sure you have the actual buyers’ legal names and find out who the actual buyers are. For example, if their parents are co-signing, their parents need to be on the form as well. Get a copy of their photo ID which shows their legal names. You will need it in the file and also for your safety purposes.

Most importantly, you need to know how the buyers plan to take title. In other words, you will need to know which names and vesting will they use for recording of legal ownership. If the buyers do not understand the methods and legal implications, give them a flyer from the title company regarding title vesting, and refer them to their attorney and accountant. Since their legal ownership has serious tax, legal, and credit implications, do not attempt to answer this question for them. Instead, direct them to another source.

Find out what your buyer’s budget for a down payment is. Use this opportunity to ask if they will be receiving money from other sources, such as parents, employers, or a non-profit organization. If they are receiving funds from outside sources, it will need to be documented correctly per the mortgage loan requirements. In addition, that other source of funding will most likely need to be involved in the home buying at some point, so be sure to include them in the process. For example, you need to know if there’s an attorney or accountant involved, because if so they will be key decision makers who can make or break your transaction.