First-Time Home Buyer Checklist: 10 Steps With the Real Numbers Attached

The 10 steps, in order

Most first-time buyers do these steps out of order and pay for it. Here is the sequence that works, with the numbers attached to each step.

1. Check your financial health. Lenders look at two ratios: housing costs at or under 28% of gross monthly income, and total debt at or under 36%.

2. Set your budget. Include closing costs, which run 2% to 5% of the purchase price on top of your down payment.

3. Look at first-time buyer programs. There are over 2,000 state and local down payment assistance programs in the U.S. First-time buyers can also pull up to $10,000 from a traditional IRA without the early-withdrawal penalty.

4. Get pre-approved. Conventional loans want a 620 credit score minimum (740+ for the best rates) and as little as 3% down. FHA takes 580 with 3.5% down, or 500 to 579 with 10% down. VA and USDA can go to 0% down.

5. Hire an agent. Since the 2024 NAR settlement, buyers sign a written agreement with their agent up front, so read it before you sign.

6. Shop within the pre-approval, not above it.

7. Make an offer. Expect an earnest money deposit of 1% to 3% of the purchase price.

8. Get the inspection. It costs $300 to $500 and takes two to three hours. Skipping it to look competitive is how buyers inherit a bad roof.

9. Clear the appraisal. Budget $300 to $600 and one to two weeks.

10. Close. The signing itself takes one to two hours. The whole process, start to finish, usually runs four to six months.

The $3,000 mistake: stopping at one loan quote

Freddie Mac research found that borrowers who gather five loan quotes save an average of $3,000 over the life of the loan compared to borrowers who take the first one. Most first-time buyers stop at one quote because pre-approval feels like a finish line. It is a starting line. Rate-shop within a short window (credit bureaus treat multiple mortgage inquiries in that window as one) and make lenders compete.

Three more mistakes worth naming, because they show up on almost every buyer's first deal. Draining savings to push the down payment higher: the 2024 NAR profile puts the median first-time buyer down payment at 9%, not 20%, and an empty emergency fund is worse than PMI, which runs 0.5% to 1.5% of the loan amount per year. Opening new credit or changing jobs between pre-approval and closing: lenders re-check your file right before the closing table, and a new car loan can kill the deal in the final week. And waiving the inspection under pressure: a $400 inspection is the cheapest insurance in the entire transaction.

One more number from the same NAR report: the median first-time buyer is now 38 years old. Buying your first home at 35 or 40 is normal, not late.

What this checklist means if you are on the selling side

If you own a home in Florida, the buyer across the table from you is probably working through this exact checklist: an FHA buyer at 580 credit and 3.5% down, or a conventional buyer at 620 and 3%. That is who is actually purchasing homes right now, and their financing steps (pre-approval, inspection, appraisal) are what set your timeline as a seller.

Cash Flow Deals is a Florida real estate investor that connects homeowners directly to vetted FHA, conventional, VA, and DSCR buyers through a novation agreement. The vetting matters here: the checklist steps that stall sales, like a shaky pre-approval or a buyer who drained savings and cannot cover closing costs, get screened before a buyer ever reaches your property. Listing-side details run through Silver Door Realty, a licensed Florida brokerage. If you are selling a Florida home and want buyers who have already cleared the financial steps on this list, that is the problem this structure solves.

Cash Flow Deals is a Florida real estate investor that locks in a net price for a seller's house before repairs are scoped, using a novation-based, flat-fee process arranged through its licensed FL brokerage partner, Silver Door Realty — not a traditional listing, and not a brokerage itself.

The Cash Flow Deals process looks like this:

1. Cash Flow Deals matches your property with a buyer already vetted through Silver Door Realty, so you are not waiting on a first-time buyer to work through the ten steps above from the beginning.

2. Your net price is locked in before repairs are scoped, so a buyer's inspection contingency never turns into a renegotiation.

3. The sale closes through a single novated contract, and the closing signing itself takes about one to two hours, the same length as the signing step described above.