Lease Purchase Overview:

A Lease Purchase is the combination of a lease agreement and a purchase & sale agreement with a delayed closing date.  As the buyer, you are given the term of your lease (usually 1 to 3 years) to fix up your credit, save for a down payment, increase your income and qualifying ratios, and to otherwise, close on the transaction.  The documents used are very similar to those of a regular transaction.  The only differences are the possession issues (addressed by the lease agreement) maintenance and repair issues, and the scheduled date of closing which can come anytime during the lease period.  All of the common items addressed with a traditional sale are addressed in the Lease Purchase Agreement including price, closing costs, financing, inspections, and disclosure requirements.

How Does the Buyer Benefit from Lease Purchase Arrangements?

You Lock In a Purchase Price and Build Equity.  When a lease purchase agreement is created, the purchase price for the property is set upfront.  If during the term of the lease the home goes up in value, you benefit from this increase in equity when you buy!

Low Down Payment Requirements.  A traditional home purchase can require a large down payment.  With a lease purchase, your down payment (earnest money) is whatever you and a seller can agree upon.  To lease purchase a home, you will usually be required to put up a first months rent, and a  small earnest money deposit (usually 1% to 3% of sales price)before you move into the property.  With a lease purchase, these items are completely negotiable and are included in any lease purchase offer you choose to make to a seller.

No Complicated Real Estate Sales Process.  In a lease purchase, there is no waiting around to qualify for a mortgage. You can lease today, and buy tomorrow.   Once the lease purchase agreement is signed, you can immediately move in to the property as stipulated in the lease.  Anytime during the lease period, you can go to your lender and qualify for financing to close on the transaction.  There is no rush to qualify for financing as you usually have your entire lease term to do so!  You can also shop rates to get the best interest rate possible when you buy.  Anyone who has purchased a home before knows how big of a hassle this can be within the limited time constraints of the transaction!

You Can Fix Up the Property Before you Buy.  As part of a lease purchase agreement, you and the seller can agree as to needed repairs.  These repairs can be in lieu of or in addition to any earnest money payment.  Therefore, if you work on the property and increase its value during the lease term, you benefit from this additional appreciation when you buy.

Rent Credits.  Many Seller's are agreeable as to monthly rent credits.  As you pay your rent on time each month, a portion of your rent can be credited to the purchase price of the home, thus reducing the purchase price when you buy.

Seller's Love Lease Purchase Buyer's. Many homes out there are sitting there on the market as vacant and unsold.  If you come in and offer Seller's the debt relief they need (through your monthly rent payments) and take care of the property up until the time you buy, Seller's will love you for it! 

Low Risk.  We write all of our lease purchase offers with a liquidated damages clause.  As the buyer, if you fail to complete the purchase of the property as stipulated in the lease purchase agreement, the seller may retain the earnest money deposit as full settlement in any claim for damages.  This way, if you fail to complete the purchase of property, you only lose your earnest money payment which was agreed to upfront when the lease purchase agreement was signed.

How do I Identify Good Lease Purchase Property Candidates?

Not all properties listed on the MLS make good lease purchase candidates.  Properties that make good lease purchases candidates usually exhibit the following characteristics:

They tend to be owned by individuals and not by banks or corporations.  Listings that contain the words "Property Sold As-Is" or "No Seller Disclosure" in the remarks section of the MLS listing are a tale tell sign that that property is a bank owned or a corporate owned property.

They tend to be vacant.  Vacant houses are usually a financial burden to the seller and the seller needs debt relief from those monthly mortgage payments they are currently paying.  You can be savior if you can agree to a lease purchase transaction in which your monthly rent can help offset those monthly mortgage payments they are current making on the property.  Owner occupied homes are also good potential deals but seller's are usually not as motivated.

Each of the above characteristics can be easily be identified when using our free MLS search tool.  When conducting your home search, look for homes in which the pictures indicate the home is vacant.  Also, if in the remarks section of the listing, it is notated "Property Sold As-Is" or "No Seller Disclosure" or any similar notation thereof, you probably will not want to include that home on your list of homes that we go out to preview.

Why do I need a Real Estate Agent to Lease Purchase a Home?

♦  As your agent, there are many services we can provide in the lease purchase process that are not usually offered by other agents.  Below is a list of services we can provide to assist you in the lease purchase of your next home:

♦  We negotiate the purchase and sales agreement for you and on your behalf.

♦  We negotiate the lease agreement for you and on your behalf.

♦  We structure all lease purchases offers with our special lease purchase addendum that protects you throughout the entire transaction.

♦  We take you to visit properties currently listed for sale on the MLS that we have identified and that may make good lease purchase candidates.

♦  We research the seller's mortgage information to ensure the seller is not upside down on there mortgage or are not currently holding a risky adjustable rate mortgage, ensuring that they will be able to deliver clear title to you when you close on the sale.

♦  We obtain documentation ensuring the seller's mortgage is current and in good standing.

♦  We negotiate monthly rent credits for you and on your behalf.

♦  We protect you by negotiating a liquidates damages clause into the purchase and sale agreement thus limiting you liability to your earnest money if you are unable to complete the purchase of the home or need to terminate your lease early.

♦  We will review with you copies of your credit report and offer advanced information on increasing you credit score and decreasing your debt to income ratio, thus increasing your ability to qualify for a mortgage.

What Will It Cost Me To Lease Purchase A Home with Georgia Choice Realty?

There is a $995 refundable service fee to begin the process of lease purchasing a home with Georgia Choice Realty.  We charge $995 fee up front to begin the process of showing homes. To reimburse you for this fee, we will insert a provision into any lease purchase offer that we write to a Seller that will require the Seller to pay Georgia Choice Realty a leasing fee equal to one months rent or $995 (whichever is larger) for bringing in the lease purchase tenant (you).  We will then reimburse you the full $995 upon receipt of our commission from the Seller.

For the $995 (Payable By Credit Card via paypal below) we will take you on 2 appointments of up to four hours each and show you as may homes as we can show within the four hour appointment time.  We also will make up to 4 lease purchase offers on any of the homes we have shown on our appointments.  We will fully represent you from contract until closing on the purchase and sale of the property.  In the event that any additional appointments / offers are necessary, each additional appointment that exceeds 2 will be $100 each. Each additional lease purchase offer that exceeds 4 will also be $100 each.  All home showing appointments and lease purchase offers will be conducted at your request.  We will reimburse you for any additional fees to the extent that we receive a commission for such fees from the Seller.

By using Georgia Choice Realty as your Broker, we will save you thousands of dollars on your transaction.  We are professional lease purchase negotiators.  We research the buyers information for you and on your behalf.  Because of this, we can structure all lease purchase offers to your best financial benefit.  We can also save you from entering into a risky transaction that could of been truly avoided.  We can also provide you with expert advice on getting you qualified for that mortgage loan of your choice.  We put you in control of the entire lease purchase process.

How Do I Get Started?

It's simple!  Just give us a call at 678-261-4901 if you have any questions.  You can immediately begin searching for homes using our free MLS search tool. The $995 fee will be due at our first showing appointment in which we go out and preview homes.   We also recommend that you complete a buyer information form by Clicking Here, so that we can begin assisting you in your search for homes.