Pre-approval before the search
A real pre-approval, credit pulled and income documented, is what makes a seller take your offer seriously.
Free guide · buying a home in Colorado
Every step of buying a home in Colorado, in order, in plain English: the pre-approval, what the payment really buys, down-payment help, the offer, the inspection and appraisal, closing costs and the mistakes that cost buyers money. Written by the Kenna Real Estate Group, the agents who do this every week from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs.
A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree. Everything you tell us stays private.
A real pre-approval, credit pulled and income documented, is what makes a seller take your offer seriously.
Rate, taxes, insurance, HOA and mortgage insurance in one honest monthly number, before you fall for a house.
CHFA, metroDPA, FHA at 3.5 percent, VA at zero down, conventional at 3 percent. Most buyers qualify for one.
Inspection, appraisal and loan objection dates are hard dates. Miss one and you lose your earnest money or your leverage.
Buying in Colorado
Get pre-approved first, so you know the real payment and sellers take you seriously. Search with a saved search that texts you the day a home lists. Tour with an agent who runs the comps on the exact home before you offer (the free Buyers Advantage Report). Write the offer with the Colorado contract's deadlines mapped out. Then inspection, appraisal, loan approval, title, HOA documents and closing, usually 30 to 45 days from contract to keys. This page walks each step; the free PDF guide goes deeper, and a Kenna agent answers the phone at every one of them.
Fit check
FHA at 3.5 percent down, CHFA grants and deferred second loans, metroDPA in the Denver metro, and conventional at 3 percent for strong credit.
VA loans with no down payment and no monthly mortgage insurance, including assumptions of existing VA loans at their old rate.
Conventional and jumbo, bridge options, and the rules for qualifying while you still own the old house.
HUD homes at $100 down, new construction with builder incentives, patio and 55+ communities, horse property with acreage loans.
Pre-qualified is a conversation. Pre-approved means the lender pulled credit, documented income and assets, and will put a number in writing. Colorado sellers and their agents read the difference, and in a multiple-offer situation it decides who wins. Mike Oswald at Rate does this for Kenna buyers, usually within a day of a complete file.
Many of our buyers use Mike Oswald at Rate and trust him. You are free to use any lender you choose, and the Kenna Real Estate Group receives nothing for the introduction. Mike Oswald, NMLS 261003 · Rate, Inc., NMLS 2611 · Equal Housing Lender.
The purchase price is not the number that matters; the monthly payment is. Principal and interest, property tax (which varies a lot by county and metro district in Colorado), homeowner's insurance (hail country: get real quotes), HOA dues, and mortgage insurance if you put less than 20 percent down. A $300 HOA fee is roughly $50,000 of purchase price at today's rates. We build that number with you before the search starts, so the search starts in the right price band.
Every home on kennarealestate.com comes straight from the MLS and updates through the day. Save a search on the map with your filters and new listings text you the day they hit. Watch days on market and price cuts: in most Front Range cities a well-priced home goes under contract in the first two weekends; one that sits past 30 days is usually a price problem, and that is your opening.
Before you write, we run the Buyers Advantage Report on the exact home: three to six true comparables, concessions netted out, days on market and price history, and a written offer range. It is free on any listing from any brokerage. You see the number, then you decide.
The Colorado contract is deadline-driven. Price and earnest money matter, but so do the dates: inspection objection, inspection resolution, appraisal, loan objection, title, HOA documents, and closing. A clean, realistic timeline often beats a slightly higher price. Concessions (seller-paid closing costs) are common and can be worth more to you than a price cut.
Inspection first, usually within 7 to 10 days: you can ask for repairs, credits or a price change, and you can walk away with your earnest money by the objection deadline. Then the appraisal: if it comes in low, you renegotiate, cover the gap, or exit by the appraisal deadline. Then the loan is finalized, title is reviewed, and the HOA documents are your chance to read the covenants, dues and reserves. Closing in Colorado is typically at a title company, with keys the same day.
How long does it take to buy a house in Colorado? Plan on 30 to 45 days from signed contract to keys with a loan, and two weeks with cash. Every step below has a deadline in the Colorado contract, and each deadline is your chance to renegotiate or walk away with your earnest money. Miss one and you lose that right.
A 30-day Colorado purchase, from signed contract to keys
Your contract fills in the exact date for every deadline. Cash purchases skip the loan and appraisal rows and can close in two weeks.
| When | What happens | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Day 0–2 | Earnest money due | Wire or deliver it to the title company. Confirm wiring instructions by phone first. |
| Day 0–5 | Loan application + documents | Send your lender every document the same day they ask. |
| Day 1–10 | Inspection | Inspect the house, sewer line and radon; send the objection by the deadline. |
| Day 10–14 | Inspection resolution | Agree on repairs, a credit or a price change, or walk away with your earnest money. |
| Day 3–14 | Title, HOA documents, insurance | Read the covenants, dues and reserves; lock in a homeowners insurance quote. |
| Day 12–21 | Appraisal | If it comes in low: renegotiate, cover the gap, or exit by the appraisal deadline. |
| Day 18–27 | Final loan approval | No new credit, no job change, no big purchases until you have keys. |
| Day 27–30 | Closing Disclosure | Arrives 3 business days before closing. Compare it with your Loan Estimate. |
| Day 29–30 | Walkthrough + closing | Final walkthrough, sign at the title company, get the keys. |
More on each stage: making an offer on a Colorado home, what happens after your offer is accepted, closing costs in Colorado and the Colorado mortgage calculator.
Plan on 2 to 3 percent of the price for closing costs (lender fees, title, prepaid taxes and insurance, escrow setup) on top of the down payment, less any seller concessions and program help. Your lender's loan estimate is the honest number; we go through it line by line.
Print it or text us for the PDF. In order.
Zero with VA or USDA, 3.5 percent with FHA, 3 to 5 percent with some conventional programs, and CHFA or metroDPA can cover part of it. Closing costs are on top; seller concessions and program help can offset them.
Two weeks to two months to find it, then 30 to 45 days from contract to closing for a financed purchase. Cash can close in two weeks.
Buyer representation is a written agreement in Colorado; the fee is negotiable and is often paid from the seller's proceeds as a concession. We explain it in plain English before you sign anything.
A deposit, usually 1 percent of the price, held by the title company. It is protected by the contract's deadlines and applied to your costs at closing.
Yes, with a contingency, a bridge loan, or by qualifying for both payments. We map the options against your numbers.
Nobody times the market; you time your life. The honest answer depends on your payment, your timeline and the specific homes available, and we tell you if the answer is wait.
Get pre-approved, set the monthly payment you want, search with a saved search, tour with an agent, write the offer on the Colorado contract, then work through inspection, title and HOA documents, appraisal and final loan approval, and close at a title company. Steps 1 to 7 above walk each one.
You have until the appraisal deadline in your contract to act: ask the seller to lower the price, cover the gap in cash, split the difference, or terminate and get your earnest money back. After that deadline, the low appraisal is your problem, not the seller's.
Yes, by a contract deadline. The Colorado contract lets the buyer terminate for the inspection, appraisal, loan, title, HOA documents or insurance by each deadline and get the earnest money back. Backing out after the deadlines puts the earnest money at risk.
Most lenders set 620 for conventional loans and CHFA programs and 580 for FHA at 3.5 percent down. VA has no official minimum; lenders set their own floor. A higher score lowers the rate and the mortgage insurance.
The down payment plus 1.5 to 3 percent of the price for closing costs and prepaids, minus any seller credit. On a $500,000 home with FHA, that is about $17,500 down plus $7,500 to $15,000. Down payment assistance and seller credits cut that number; see closing costs in Colorado.
Colorado law does not require one, and lenders do not either, but it is the only way to know what you are buying before the inspection objection deadline. Add a sewer scope and a radon test: both are common Colorado problems.
A title company. It holds the earnest money, searches the title, issues the title insurance, prepares the settlement statement and records the deed. No attorney is required; the contract is a form approved by the Colorado Real Estate Commission.
On the possession date and time written in your contract, which is closing day for most purchases. If the seller is renting back, possession comes later, and the contract spells out the date.
Free, private, no pressure
Free pre-approval conversation, free Buyers Advantage Report on any home. Call or text and a live person answers.
Twelve pages, the same steps as this page with the worked numbers, the deadline map and the checklist. Fill out the form and it is in your inbox in a minute, with a Kenna agent one text away. Open the guide now.
Kenna Real Estate Group at Keller Williams Realty DTC, LLC · 6300 S Syracuse Way, Suite 150, Centennial, CO 80111 · REALTORS® and licensed real estate professionals, not lenders, attorneys or CPAs; program terms change, your lender's written figures control. Equal Housing Opportunity.