Buying a Home in the Katy Area? Start With My Free Buyer Guide
Buying your first home is exciting — and it comes with a lot of questions. I put this guide together because I kept seeing the same thing: most first-time buyers only learn how the process really works after they're in the middle of it. Finding the house is only about 5% of the job. The other 95% is negotiation, contracts, inspections, appraisal, and a calendar full of deadlines — and knowing the steps ahead of time makes the whole thing far less stressful.
My First-Time Buyer's Guide walks you through the entire journey, step by step, in plain language — and it's fully bilingual, in English and فارسی (Farsi).
What's Inside
- Getting your finances ready — checking your credit, setting a realistic budget, and saving for more than just the down payment. You'll see the common loan options side by side — conventional (as low as 3% down for qualified first-time buyers), FHA, VA, and USDA — plus Texas down-payment assistance programs like TSAHC.
- Pre-approval, before you shop — why a real pre-approval is different from a quick pre-qualification, and exactly which documents your lender will ask for.
- Choosing your agent — the written buyer agreement explained, and the questions worth asking any agent before you sign.
- Searching smart in Katy & Houston — the local checks that matter here: the full tax rate (including MUD districts), flood zones and flood history, HOA dues and rules, school zones, and the true monthly cost of a home — not just the mortgage payment.
- Making the offer — price, earnest money, financing, and the Texas option period, one of the strongest protections a buyer has.
- Under contract to closing — inspections, appraisal, title work, and the typical 30–45 day timeline, including what your options are if the appraisal comes in low.
- Closing day and moving in — what to bring, how funds move, an important wire-fraud warning, and filing your homestead exemption once you're settled.
You'll also find the six mistakes I see first-time buyers make most often — and a one-page checklist that keeps everything in order from credit check to keys in hand.
Who It's For
If you're buying your first home, relocating to Katy, Fulshear, or the greater Houston area, or just starting to think about it, this guide was written for you. Download it, read it at your own pace, and when you're ready to talk through your own situation, I'm one call away — no pressure, ever.
Questions? Call or text me at (832) 274-1329 — I answer my own phone. — Sarah