Conventional
Most Common
Down payments commonly from 3–5% on a primary residence. Strong credit earns the best rates, and mortgage insurance drops off as equity grows.
Orlando Buyer's Guide · EN/ES
Buying a home in Orlando, step by step
Buying a home in Orlando typically takes 30–45 days from accepted offer to closing, and the process is straightforward when you follow the right order: pre-approval first, then neighborhood, then house. As a bilingual buyer’s agent, Lorena Cabal walks first-time buyers, relocating families, and investors through every step — sin presión.
Below: the full process, financing options, how to choose a neighborhood, new construction vs. resale, and what really happens between inspection and closing day.
The Process
The Orlando home buying process, paso a paso
Free consultation
Budget, timeline, must-haves, and deal-breakers — in English or Spanish. Fifteen honest minutes here save weeks of wandering later.
Pre-approval (or proof of funds)
A lender reviews your income, credit, and savings and issues a pre-approval letter. In Orlando's market, serious offers come with one attached — get it before falling in love with a house.
Neighborhood shortlist
Two or three areas that fit your schools, commute, and lifestyle. Orlando is a metro of very different neighborhoods — this step matters more than any feature on a wish list.
Tour homes — in person or on video
Efficient showing days, or live video walkthroughs if you're buying from out of state. Lorena points out the things listings don't: road noise, roof age, what the neighbors' yards say.
Offer and negotiation
Price is only one lever — closing date, inspection window, credits, and appraisal terms all shape a winning offer. Lorena negotiates with data and tells you honestly when to walk away.
Inspection, appraisal, insurance
Independent inspections reveal the home's true condition, the lender's appraisal confirms value, and insurance gets locked in — with time to renegotiate or exit if surprises appear.
Final walkthrough and closing
One last check that the home is as agreed, then the title company handles signatures — in person or remotely — and the keys are yours. Bienvenidos a casa.
The Money
Financing and pre-approval
Pre-approval is the real first step of any purchase: it fixes your true budget, surfaces credit issues while there’s time to fix them, and signals to sellers that your offer will actually close. Plan on closing costs of roughly 2–5% of the purchase price on top of your down payment.
The main paths Orlando buyers use — Lorena connects you with bilingual lenders who work each of these programs every day:
FHA
Flexible Credit
3.5% down with more forgiving credit guidelines — a frequent first-time-buyer route, within FHA loan limits for the county.
VA
Veterans
0% down for eligible veterans and active-duty service members — often the strongest financing in the market when it applies.
Jumbo
Luxury
For purchases above conventional loan limits — common in Windermere, Winter Park, and lakefront Dr. Phillips.
Foreign national
International
No U.S. credit history required with the right lender — typically 25–35% down, using an ITIN or a U.S. LLC. A specialty of Lorena’s practice.
Assistance programs
First-Timers
Florida offers down-payment and closing-cost assistance for eligible first-time buyers — worth checking before assuming you can’t buy yet.
Location First
Choosing the right neighborhood
Start from your priority, not from listings. For the full picture of each area, see Living in Orlando — and if you’re arriving from out of state, the Moving to Orlando guide adds relocation logistics.
Schools first
Priority
Lake Nona, Winter Garden and Horizon West, Windermere, and Seminole County’s Oviedo — consistently graded zones where family demand keeps values resilient.
Commute first
Priority
Pick the side of town where you’ll work and stay on it. The 408/417/429 toll ring makes suburb-to-suburb easy; crossing downtown on I-4 daily is the pattern to avoid.
Walkability first
Priority
Winter Park, Baldwin Park, College Park, and Thornton Park — town-center living with restaurants and markets on foot, at a premium worth naming honestly.
Space and value first
Priority
St. Cloud, Kissimmee, Clermont, and Davenport — newer homes, bigger lots, and entry prices often in the $300s, trading some drive time for a lot more house.
Two Paths
New construction vs. resale
Orlando is unusual: you genuinely get to choose. The metro builds so much that brand-new homes compete directly with resales in most family price ranges — the full playbook lives in the Orlando New Construction guide.
New construction
Build It
- Everything new, under builder warranty.
- Incentives — rate buydowns, closing-cost credits — that resales can’t match.
- Newer roofs and systems usually price better on insurance.
- Trade-offs: build timelines, evolving communities, HOA and CDD fees, and contracts written by the builder.
Resale
Move In
- Established neighborhoods with mature trees and settled HOAs.
- Often closer in — shorter commutes to downtown and Winter Park.
- Negotiable on price, repairs, and closing dates.
- Trade-offs: roof and AC age matter for insurance, and renovation costs are real — inspect thoroughly.
Due Diligence
Inspections and closing
Your contract sets an inspection window — typically the first one to two weeks — when independent professionals examine the home. In Florida that usually means a general inspection plus a WDO (termite) report, and for older homes a 4-point inspection (roof, electrical, plumbing, HVAC) that insurers often require. Pools, septic systems, and roofs can warrant their own specialists. Findings become negotiating leverage: repairs, credits, or a clean exit.
From there, the lender’s appraisal confirms value, you bind insurance, and the title company verifies the home’s ownership history before closing day — a signing appointment that can happen at the title office or entirely remotely. Lorena tracks every deadline so nothing slips.
In Your Corner
How Lorena helps buyers
Bilingual guidance — every document and negotiation explained in English or Spanish.
Honest showings: if a house has problems, you hear it from her first.
A trusted bench of lenders, inspectors, and title partners — including foreign-national specialists.
Live video tours and remote closings for out-of-state and international buyers.
Negotiation grounded in real comparable sales, not emotion.
Buyer representation typically paid through the transaction — agreed in writing upfront, no surprises.
Good Questions
Buying in Orlando — good questions
Less than most buyers think. Conventional loans on a primary residence commonly start around 3–5% down, FHA at 3.5%, and VA loans at 0% for eligible veterans — 20% is not required. Investors typically put 15–25% down, and foreign-national loans usually ask for 25–35%. Your lender confirms the exact figure; Lorena can introduce you to bilingual lenders who work these programs daily.
Have a question that isn’t here? Ask Lorena directly — English or Spanish, sin presión.
Sin presión — paso a paso
Start your Orlando home search
The first step is a conversation about your budget, timeline, and must-haves — then a plan, paso a paso. No pressure, no scripts, in English or Spanish.
English · Español — lorena@lorenacabal.com
Keep Exploring
More Orlando guides from Lorena
Prefer to see the work first? Browse Lorena’s property portfolio or start a conversation — English or Spanish.