Help me find a home, in Los Angeles and Orange County
Four quick questions. You’ll see the homes that fit right away, and I’ll tell you which ones are worth a tour.
Step 1 of 4
What kind of home?
Pick one or a few. Not sure? Skip ahead.
REALTOR® · DRE #02323623 · 4.9★ on Google · Hayden & Bach
How buying works. From the first call to the keys.
Twelve steps, in the order they happen. Joe and I walk you through every one.
Getting ready
Step 1: Know what you want
Start with the life the home is for: who’ll live there, where you work, the schools, how much room you need. Then we pick a few parts of town that fit.
Step 2: Decide how you’ll pay
Cash or a loan? If it’s a loan, get preapproved first. A lender looks at your income and savings and tells you how much they’re ready to lend, and sellers take an offer with that letter more seriously.
Step 3: Talk to us
Call or write, and we’ll go through your plans together. Before we tour homes, we sign a short buyer agreement, as the rules ask, so it’s clear how we’ll work together.
Step 4: The search
I send you the homes that fit and the new ones as they come up, with my honest take on each price. Before you fall for one, we check its fire, flood and earthquake zones.
The offer and escrow
Step 5: Tours
We see the homes you like in person, or on video if you’re not in town yet.
Step 6: The offer
When you find the one, we write the offer together: the price, the deposit, the time you’ll need to check the home, and the closing date. Joe reads it with me before it goes out.
Step 7: Escrow opens
Once the seller says yes, your deposit usually goes to escrow within 3 business days. Escrow is a neutral company that holds the money and the papers until everything’s done.
Step 8: Disclosures and inspections
The seller gives you everything they know about the home, usually within 7 days. You get 17 days by default to inspect it and make sure it can be insured.
Closing
Step 9: Appraisal and the loan
With a loan, the lender orders an appraisal and finishes the paperwork. A cash purchase usually skips this step.
Step 10: Removing contingencies
When the inspections, the loan and the appraisal check out, you remove the contingencies in writing. I keep the calendar so no deadline slips by.
Step 11: The walk-through and signing
In the last days before closing you walk through the home once more and sign the loan and escrow papers. Your lender sends the final loan terms at least 3 business days before.
Step 12: The keys
The county records the deed and the home is yours. Watch the mail after that: the supplemental tax bill comes to you, not to your lender.
Home buying questions.
We agree on compensation up front in a written buyer representation agreement, as California law now requires before touring homes. The agreement spells out the fee and the services you receive: search, tours, negotiation and contract guidance. In many sales the seller still offers to cover the buyer agent's fee, so buyers often pay little or nothing directly, but that is negotiated case by case, not guaranteed. Slava works under broker Joe Goodman at Hayden & Bach, and the terms are in writing before anyone shows you a property.
Yes. Slava Ploshkin works in English and Russian across Los Angeles, Long Beach, Orange County, Laguna Beach, and nearby coastal communities. You can discuss neighborhoods, pricing, offers, and paperwork in whichever language is easier, whether you are buying locally, relocating from another state, or purchasing from abroad.
Right after the four questions you see the homes for sale that fit your answers, on the same screen. If you leave your name and number, we call or text to talk through what you're looking for, then keep sending live MLS listings that fit and set up tours. Before in-person or virtual showings, California requires a signed buyer representation agreement with compensation spelled out. There is no obligation to make an offer or buy through us; the form simply starts the conversation.
Yes. We regularly help relocating buyers with virtual tours, neighborhood guidance, and a step-by-step plan for buying in Southern California from anywhere. We can walk through timing, financing basics, and what to expect before you fly in for final walkthroughs and closing. As with any buyer, compensation and representation terms are agreed in writing before tours begin.
Since 2024 the buyer's agent fee is agreed in writing before you tour homes, not hidden inside the deal. In practice the seller still often covers it. We go through that agreement with you line by line, in English or Russian, so you know exactly who pays what before you sign anything.
Yes, and we have. If the inspection worries us, the price doesn't match recent sales, or the house just doesn't fit the life you described, we say so, even when we're one signature away from getting paid. We'd rather lose a deal than have you stuck in the wrong house.
Searching is the easy part, and Explore shows you every new listing anyway. What you get from us is an opinion you can act on: what a home is worth next to the homes around it, what the photos don't show, what to check before you fall for it, and how to write an offer a seller takes seriously. Joe reads every offer and contract with Slava before you sign.
Yes. California doesn't require citizenship to own property, and we regularly work with buyers who purchase from abroad: video tours, documents reviewed remotely, signings coordinated across time zones. Financing and taxes do work differently for foreign buyers, so we'll connect you with a loan officer and a tax professional and keep the whole process moving. Slava made this move himself, so the plan comes from experience.