Seattle home buyer's field guide

Lenders, inspectors, touring tips and more, kept current.

The online companion to Brian Huie's printed field guide for buying in Seattle and the Eastside. Eight short chapters. Tap any chapter to open it. For how Brian works with buyers, see Buying a home with Brian.

By Brian Huie, Principal Broker and Realtor, Compass · 300+ homes guided since 2015 · Reviews · Updated October 2026

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Brian Huie, Principal Broker and Realtor with Compass

01

What should you do before touring homes in Seattle?

Three things in the first week: sign the buyer agreement, choose a lender, and get your proof of funds ready.

  • Sign the buyer agreement

    Washington requires a written buyer agreement, and Brian signs it with buyers before the first tour. How agent pay works

  • Get pre-approved

    Talk to a lender before you talk prices. An underwritten pre-approval can close in about 9 to 17 days and compete with cash.

  • Have proof of funds ready

    A statement showing name, bank, date and balance, with the account number hidden. How to prepare it

  • Set up the Compass app

    Save homes to the shared collection Brian sends and leave collection alerts on. App settings

Brian's preferred lenders

  • Eddie HuynhMovement Mortgage
  • Jim MurphySynergy One Lending
  • Ruby GrynbergSalmon Bay Community Lending

Buyers are welcome to use any lender. Contact details: Lenders

More from Brian
  • Three levels: a pre-qualification takes minutes, a pre-approval about 1 to 3 business days, and an underwritten pre-approval about 3 to 5 more.
  • Ask for the underwritten approval about a month before you expect to offer. It is free and reviews you, not the home.
  • Text a few loan officers on a Saturday. The one who answers is usually the one who closes on time.
  • Seattle offers name the lender. A local lender listing agents trust can win against a higher offer.
  • Money questions go to your lender; house and deal questions go to Brian.
  • Until closing, no new credit, big purchases or job changes without asking your lender.

02

When do new listings come out in Seattle?

Most new listings go live on Thursday, open houses follow on the weekend, and offers are often due the next Tuesday, give or take a day.

The Seattle week

  1. ThuNew listingsUsually 10am to 3pm
  2. FriPreviewsBrian previews favorites
  3. SatOpen housesUsually around noon
  4. SunOpen housesUsually around noon
  5. MonOffer prepSign the evening before
  6. TueOffers dueAnswers that evening
  7. WedSave favoritesFor a Thursday or Friday preview

  • Save favorites early

    Save a home by Wednesday or Thursday afternoon and Brian can preview it Thursday or Friday morning.

  • Spring

    March to June brings the most new listings and the most buyers.

  • Fall and winter

    More room to negotiate, and sellers who list in winter tend to want to sell. The trends · This week's market

More from Brian
  • No review date? An offer written over the weekend can arrive before buyers whose banks take weekends off.
  • A removed review date usually means the seller is reviewing offers as they arrive.
  • Holiday and sunny weekends bring fewer buyers out.
  • Homes pulled in November often come back in January.
  • Many buyers find the right home in about two months; a week to six months is normal.

03

How do home tours work with Brian?

The first tour is for learning what you like. After that, Brian previews homes for you and you tour the best ones.

Brian Huie touring a Seattle kitchen with two buyers
Brian on a tour with buyers.

  • The Discovery Tour

    Four or five deliberately different homes on an early weekend morning, before open houses start.

  • Previews and videos

    Favorite a home early and Brian previews it, then sends a 10 to 15 minute video in the Compass app.

  • Booking a showing

    One home can often be seen within hours. Allow up to a day for owner-occupied homes and up to three days if tenants live there.

  • At an open house

    The host is often an agent looking for buyers. Say you are working with Brian rather than signing in.

More from Brian
  • Read the disclosure before you go, take shoes off, and save price talk for outside. Sellers may be recording.
  • Ask: can this home work for at least five years, and what is the commute like at rush hour?
  • Visit the neighborhood at different times of day, including evening.
  • In a busy week, everyone chases the one perfect home. The nine-out-of-ten home next to it is often the better deal.
  • A plain original home beats a bad flip. Unpermitted work or a half-finished project means slow down.
  • More etiquette: Touring

04

What should you check before buying a Seattle home?

Washington is "buyer beware," so the research is the buyer's job. Brian's aim is a buyer who is verified, not just warned.

1 2 3
Numbers match the checks below: 1 the side sewer runs from the house to the city main under the street, 2 a buried oil tank, 3 a slope.

Five Seattle checks

  1. Side sewer. The owner's pipe to the street. Seattle Public Utilities says inspect it before buying.
  2. Oil tanks. Homes once heated with oil may still have one. Sellers must disclose one they know about.
  3. Slopes. Parts of Seattle sit on mapped landslide-prone ground.
  4. Condo reserves. The resale certificate shows the reserve study and any planned assessments.
  5. Seller disclosure. Three business days after receiving Form 17 to rescind.

  • Plan two inspections

    A general inspection plus a sewer scope for every home that is not a condo. Brian, or a licensed agent on his team, stays the whole time.

  • Pre-inspect to compete

    Inspecting before you offer lets you skip the inspection contingency. The best inspectors book one to three days out.

Inspectors Brian refers

  • On The Spot Inspections
  • Tahoma Inspection Services
  • Titan Inspection Services
  • Brown Dog Home Inspections
  • WIN Home Inspection
  • Residential Network

Sewer specialists: Seattle Sewer Inspections, Sound Sewer Inspection, Hydro Physics. Service areas: Inspections

More from Brian
  • Permits: compare any remodel with the city's permit history.
  • Older homes can have galvanized pipes, knob-and-tube wiring or an original panel. Homes built before 1978 come with a lead paint disclosure.
  • HOA rules on rentals, pets and parking cannot be negotiated, but you can walk away during the review.
  • Brian reviews the title report and every update for liens, easements and community rules.
  • There is no pass or fail. Come for the last hour, when the inspector walks you through the findings.
  • After the report you can accept, ask for repairs, ask for a credit, or walk away under the contingency.

05

How do offers work in Seattle?

The cleanest offer usually wins. Price is one line in a 30 to 50 page contract, and sellers weigh certainty as much as the number.

Price 30 to 50pages
Price is one line. Sellers also weigh financing, the inspection, the appraisal, the closing date and earnest money.

  • Review dates

    Many sellers collect offers until a set day, often a Tuesday, and pick the strongest overall package.

  • Escalation and appraisal gap

    Form 35E raises your price over other offers up to your cap. Form 22AD promises to cover a low appraisal.

  • Homes that sat

    Looking for a deal? A home that has sat about three weekends, around 21 days, is where a lower offer has its best chance.

  • Set your limit first

    Decide your top price before the offer, not during the bidding. Which would you regret more, losing or paying it?

What Brian needs for your offer

  • An updated lender letter at your top price
  • Soonest close date and minimum down payment
  • Keep or waive financing
  • Your maximum price, if escalating
  • Earnest money (default 5%)
  • Credits, contingencies and legal names

Decide the morning before review day, sign that evening, and Brian presents at least an hour early. More on Buying a home with Brian.

More from Brian
  • Round numbers read stronger to a seller than a price just under them.
  • Sellers rarely ask buyers to improve an offer. Put your best terms in the first one.
  • No verbal offers in Seattle. Every offer is a full written contract.
  • If an offer loses, you return to searching with better information. Many buyers write more than one.
  • Key deadlines: earnest money 2 business days, Form 17 review 3, inspection usually 10, financing usually 21.
  • Which terms to use on a specific home stays between Brian and his clients, in the client section.

06

What happens after your offer is accepted?

Usually 9 to 30 days from acceptance to keys. Brian tracks every deadline and posts next steps on your Compass dashboard.

  • First two days

    Earnest money must reach escrow within 2 business days. Return the escrow questionnaire promptly.

  • The middle

    Inspection response, disclosure and title review, then the appraisal. Answer your lender first.

  • The last week

    Sign a few days before closing. Do the final walkthrough about two days before, and run the water.

  • Closing day

    The county records the sale, usually by 5pm. Keys usually change hands between 3pm and 5pm, with a small ribbon cutting.

Wire fraud rule: before money moves, call escrow at a number you already trust. Never act on wire instructions sent by email alone.

More from Brian
  • For a close under 14 days, earnest money must be a wire or cashier's check.
  • Apply to two or three insurers early, and include liability coverage.
  • Signing is at the escrow office or with a mobile notary (about $150). Plan about an hour.
  • The walkthrough checks agreed repairs and that the home is as you saw it. It is not a new inspection.
  • "There is no such thing as too late of a question or too small of a concern." Brian Huie

07

What should you do after closing?

A short list for the first weeks, then Brian stays your go-to for anything home related.

New homeowners cutting a ribbon at their front door on closing day
Closing day: keys and a small ribbon cutting.

  • Utilities and locks

    Put utilities in your name once the sale records; Brian sends the links. Rekey the locks.

  • Your files

    Download the inspection reports and documents from the shared folder before it is archived.

  • Home care

    Seasonal maintenance and how-to guides: Home Care Advice. Ask Brian for his tradespeople.

More from Brian
  • Your first mortgage payment usually comes after one full month in the home.
  • Forward your mail and update online accounts.
  • Get two or three quotes for any job.
  • New construction? Book an inspection before the builder's one-year warranty ends.

08

What does buying a home in Seattle cost, beyond the price?

Typical ranges Brian's buyers plan for. Your lender's Loan Estimate gives the exact numbers.

Down payment
Often less than 20%
Some loans allow 3%; VA loans can allow 0%.
Earnest money
Up to 5%
Held by escrow and counted toward your purchase.
Inspections
$450 to $700
General inspection, plus $200 to $400 for a sewer scope.
Closing costs
About 1 to 2%
Escrow, title, lender fees and prepaid items.
Agent pay
In writing
Set in your buyer agreement. Details
Seattle home buying terms
Offer review date
The day a seller reviews all offers at once, usually a few days after listing.
Escalation clause
An addendum (NWMLS Form 35E) that raises a price above competing offers, up to a cap the buyer sets.
Appraisal gap
A promise (Form 22AD) to cover some or all of the difference if the appraisal comes in below the price.
Pre-inspection
An inspection done before the offer, with the seller's permission, so the offer can skip the inspection contingency.
Contingency
A condition in the contract, such as inspection, financing or title, that lets a buyer proceed or step back.
Underwritten pre-approval
A pre-approval reviewed by the lender's underwriter before any offer. Free, but not every lender offers it.
Proof of funds
A recent statement showing name, bank, date and balance, with the account number hidden.
Earnest money
A deposit that shows a buyer is serious. It goes toward the down payment and closing costs.
Form 17
Washington's seller disclosure statement about the home's condition.
Resale certificate
The condo association's packet: budget, reserve study, rules and any planned assessments.
Mutual acceptance
The moment buyer and seller agree in writing. Contract deadlines count from here.
Title commitment
The title company's report on ownership, liens and recorded documents, reviewed before closing.
Sewer scope
A camera inspection of the side sewer, the owner's pipe from the house to the street main.
Recording
The county entering the deed into public records. Recording is when the home becomes the buyer's.

Ask Brian about any home, including the one you saw today.

"I'll always keep things simple for you but at the same time make sure you know all of your options."BRIAN HUIE

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Brian Huie, Principal Broker and Realtor · Compass · 837 N 34th St, Seattle, WA 98103

Equal Housing Opportunity

Compass is the brokerage. This guide is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Ranges and timing vary by home, lender and season. Brian Huie and Compass serve every buyer under fair housing law.