Questions come up all the time about when to start looking for a home. First you must decide when you would like or need to move into a new home. After that we just look at the average time it takes someone to go through the home buying process. Here are the average times to give you a better understanding of the time table for purchasing your next home.
Home Search: 90 Days. This is the average amount of time it takes someone to identify their needs vs. wants, find a home that fits what they are looking for, and negotiate an accepted offer.
Time Before Closing: 30 Days. A month is the average time from reaching an accepted offer until closing. During this time you will have an inspection, appraisal, title work, and final approval of your mortgage loan.
Possession: 30 Days. The custom in the Toledo area is for possession to be granted to the buyer 30 days after closing. This allows the seller an ample amount of time to move to their next home.
Total: 150 Days. This is the total average amount of time it takes for a person to go through the home buying process.
If you look at the total average time the home buying process takes all you have to do is figure out when you want or need to be in your new home and count back 150 days.
That means if you would like to move into a home by July 1st you should start looking in February!
As you can see, it is never too early to start looking.