The home-buying checklist

Every deadline and every document from the moment your offer is accepted to the moment you get the keys — the same sequence a good agent tracks, laid out so you can track it yourself. No payment, no email address, no catch.

Ground rules, so we’re clear:

You do the buying. SoloClose gives you the sequence and the checklist — you make the offer, you hit the deadlines, you sign. SoloClose never acts in your transaction.
This is education about the standard steps and typical timelines of a U.S. home purchase — not legal advice, not brokerage services, not a review of your specific contract.
Timelines are typical, not your dates. The exact number of days for each contingency is set by your purchase contract and your state. Where a real deadline matters, this page says so — and your state’s roadmap has the exact dates.

Before you’re under contract

Get a mortgage pre-approval in hand — a seller reads an unrepresented offer harder, so pre-approval is your credibility.
Set your max price and your walk-away number, in writing, to yourself.
Pull recent comparable sales for the property so your offer price is defensible.
Read the seller’s disclosure package and any HOA or preliminary title docs before you write.
Decide your contingencies up front: inspection, financing/appraisal, and any sale-of-home or HOA-review contingency.

Writing and landing the offer

Use your state’s standard purchase agreement — the same form agents use; it’s a public, standardized form.
State price, closing date, and which contingencies you keep — and which you waive, with eyes open.
Name your earnest-money deposit (typically ~1–3% of price) and where it will be held: escrow, title, or attorney trust — never the seller’s pocket.
Deliver the offer to the listing agent or seller. Listing brokers must present all offers to their seller unless the seller has directed otherwise in writing (NAR Code of Ethics).
Get the accepted offer fully signed by all parties before you spend a dollar on inspections.

The contingency clock — the deadlines that actually cost money

Once you’re under contract, the calendar starts. Miss a deadline and you can lose your earnest money or your leverage. These are typical windows — your contract sets the real dates:

Deposit earnest money — usually within ~1–3 business days of acceptance, to the neutral escrow/title holder named in the contract. Keep the receipt.
Inspection — schedule immediately; the inspection contingency window is often ~7–17 days. Attend if you can; read the report the day it lands.
Request repairs or a credit — before the inspection window closes, in writing. This is the same repair-credit negotiation an agent runs — you run it.
Appraisal (if financing) — your lender orders it; the appraisal contingency protects you if it comes in under contract price. Know your options before the date, not after.
Loan / financing contingency — your lender works toward final approval; the financing contingency is often ~17–21 days. Stay ahead of every document request.
Title search & preliminary title report — review for liens, easements, and anything that clouds the title; raise objections inside the title-review window.
Remove or waive each contingency — only when you’re satisfied. Waiving a contingency waives the protection and the deposit tied to it — a decision, never a formality.

The closing stretch — offer to keys

Closing Disclosure — federal law (TRID) gives you the CD at least 3 business days before closing. Read it against your Loan Estimate; question any line that moved. This 3-day right is yours whether or not you have an agent (CFPB).
Final walkthrough — usually 24–48 hours before closing; confirm agreed repairs are done and the home is in the condition you agreed to buy.
Confirm clear-to-close with your lender and confirm the wire instructions by phone with the title/escrow company — a wire-fraud check: call a known number, never one from an email.
Bring what closing needs — government ID, certified funds or completed wire, and any documents your escrow/attorney requested.
Sign, fund, record — you sign the closing package; funds disburse; the deed records. Keys are yours.

What the buyer-agent commission actually costs

Buyer-agent commissions average 2.4–2.8% (NAR research, Redfin commission data). On the roughly $425,000 median U.S. home, that’s roughly $10,200–$11,900.

Savings vary. Commission rates are negotiable and differ by market and transaction; not all sellers will reduce the price by the buyer-agent fee.

Your state’s dates, not ours

This checklist is deliberately state-agnostic — the steps are national, but the number of days on each deadline, the exact forms, and a handful of state quirks are not. Your state’s roadmap has the exact dates, the required forms in order, and the deadlines pre-flagged so nothing lapses while you’re not looking — that’s what the SoloClose roadmap and toolkits are, flat fee from $149.

Typical timelines and standard steps for a U.S. home purchase — general education, not legal advice. Deadlines are set by your contract and your state; for review of an actual document, that’s optional review by an independent licensed attorney.

If it worked

Buying without an agent isn’t about being fearless — it’s about having the list. Send this to the next person about to do it: soloclose.com/home-buying-checklist.

Keep reading: Buy a home without an agent · The offer tools · Do you need a buyer’s agent?