Steps Involved in an Off Market Deal after a Price is Agreed On

[Michael Smith]

I've been been mailing postcards and letters to home owners asking if they're interested in selling and actually getting replies faster than I thought I would. My question is what are the steps involved in purchasing the house after an informal price is agreed upon by me and the seller? 

I'm not quite a cash buyer yet but I'm not worried about obtaining financing, my questions revolve mostly around paperwork. I have a close relationship with my broker and I suppose I could always use them but how would their commission work? I doubt my seller would want to pay them a commission out of their already discounted sale price. Can lawyers handle it for me? I suppose I could always add an extra 2-3% to my offer price and finance my brokers commission. 

Any advice from folks that have done this before would be awesome. Also I'm looking for partners with contracting experience if anyone is interested. 

-Michael