Buying a home in Christiansburg.

The market you are buying in

Price depends most on the kind of home. Houses and townhomes trade in different ranges here, so decide which you want first.

The Christiansburg housing market page tracks prices, time on market and supply month by month.

Six steps, start to finish

1. 1 Budget Pre-approval and the monthly cost
2. 2 Agent A written agreement
3. 3 Search Homes, sales and the town line
4. 4 Offer The purchase contract
5. 5 Inspect Inspections and disclosures
6. 6 Close Appraisal, loan, settlement

1. Know your numbers

Talk to a lender first. A pre-approval letter tells you what you can borrow and shows sellers you are ready, so send it with every offer.

Your monthly cost is more than principal and interest. Add real estate tax, homeowners insurance, and association dues if the home has them. Inside town limits, 2026 real estate tax runs $0.95 per $100 of assessed value, about $285 a month on a home assessed at today's median asking price. Homes in town also pay the Town's water, sewer, trash and stormwater bill; the moving guide prices a typical month.

2. Choose your agent

In Virginia, an agent must sign a written brokerage agreement with you before providing brokerage services. It has to state the fee and how it is paid, the services the agent will provide, and when the agreement ends.

Read it before you sign. Ask how long it lasts, what it costs you, and how either of you can end it.

3. Find the home

Every Christiansburg home for sale is on one page, along with new construction, open houses and alerts when something new lists. Judge price by what similar homes nearby sold for; every neighborhood page shows its own sales and the schools its homes are zoned for.

Then check what a listing cannot tell you:

• The town line. A Christiansburg mailing address does not mean a home is inside the Town of Christiansburg; ZIP codes are set by the Postal Service and reach past it. The line decides whether you pay the Town's real estate and vehicle taxes, whether the Town provides water, sewer and trash pickup, whether Town zoning applies, and whether you join the Recreation Center free. Confirm it with the county's Commissioner of the Revenue or the Town.
• The assigned public schools. Christiansburg addresses are zoned for several different elementary schools. Confirm with Montgomery County Public Schools; the schools guide shows how.
• What is planned nearby. Rezonings and new subdivisions go before the Planning Commission and Town Council in public meetings.

See what's coming to Christiansburg: new development and projects in the works, and follow what Town Council is deciding.

4. Make an offer

Your offer is a written purchase contract. It sets the price, your earnest money deposit, the settlement date, and the conditions the sale depends on, such as financing, an appraisal and a home inspection. Your agent writes it and presents it to the seller's agent.

The seller can accept, counter or decline. Once you both sign the final terms, the contract is ratified and every deadline in it starts to run.

5. Inspections and disclosures

Virginia puts the burden of checking a home's condition on the buyer. Sellers of resale homes give you the Virginia Real Estate Board's residential property disclosure statement, which says the owner makes no representations about the home's condition and advises you to do your own due diligence before settlement.

• Home inspection. An inspector looks at the structure, roof, systems and more. Your contract sets how long you have and what happens if you find problems.
• Association documents. If the home is in a homeowners or condominium association, the seller provides the association's resale certificate. You have a short window to cancel after you receive it; the questions below have the details.
• Lead-based paint. For most homes built before 1978, federal law requires sellers to disclose known lead-based paint hazards and give you a 10-day period to test, unless you agree in writing to change or waive it. Right now, 30 of the 101 Christiansburg homes for sale with a known build year were built before 1978.
• Buying new? A builder's first sale of a home is exempt from the disclosure statement, but Virginia law gives you implied warranties on a new home. See new construction in Christiansburg.

6. Appraisal, loan and settlement

Your lender orders an appraisal and finishes underwriting your loan. Meanwhile your settlement agent handles the title work, the closing documents and the escrow of funds. You choose the settlement agent; a seller cannot require a particular one as a condition of the sale.

Before closing, you do a final walk-through. At settlement you sign the loan, and the deed is recorded by the Montgomery County Clerk of the Circuit Court at the courthouse in Christiansburg. From a ratified contract to closing is about six weeks.

Recordation taxes, worked out

Virginia taxes the recording of your deed and your mortgage. Here is the math on a home bought at the $317,250 median sale price of the last 12 months, with an 80 percent loan of $253,800:

Your purchase contract says who pays which closing costs, and your lender's Loan Estimate lists the rest.