Are you thinking about buying a home? There can be quite a bit to think about. There is plenty of advice that can be given, but below you will find some major points to start you out on the right foot.
People who are planning to move in the next couple of years are not ideal buyers. Buying and selling real estate is not cheap, so the shorter of time that you will live in your home, the less chance you have of making money on the investment.
Buyers always seem anxious to go out and start shopping, but this is actually not the first thing that needs to be done. You will want to talk to a lender first and get pre-approved for a home mortgage loan. This will ensure that you are looking for homes in your price range. And make sure that you get pre-approved, rather than pre-qualified. The pre-approval process is when the lender bases your qualification on actual financial data and credit worthiness.
Have a look at your credit report at least three months before you're ready to buy. This is actually a good time to have your lender do the pre-approval as well, since the lender can pull your credit report for you. She can help you if there are any issues on your report by giving you advice on what to do to fix them.
Be sure to tell your lender how much you are able to afford each month. A lender can give you a pre-approval amount based on your income, debt and credit, but this may not correlate with your actual comfort with regard to monthly payment. And the most important thing is that you can afford the amount for which you are going to be writing a check each month!
Don't have 20% to put down? This may not be an issue at all. FHA loans only require 3.5% down, and VA loans don't require any! Talk to your lender to see if either of these options are appropriate for you.
Be sure to work with professionals. You will have a mortgage broker or banker handle your loan, and be sure to get a great real estate agent to handle the rest. Although it is easy to search for homes online, remember that the entire process encompasses many steps. If most people purchase two or three homes in their entire life, a great real estate agent probably handles the sale of two or three per month.
Once you fall in love with a home, put on the brakes and do some homework. Actually, your agent will do most of this, including pulling comparable sales, talking to the listing agent to see if there are other competing offers and any big disclosures as to the condition of the home. All of these aspects need to be taken into account when coming up with an offer strategy.
Be sure to hire an inspector. This is sort of an insurance policy before you buy to make sure that the condition of the home is acceptable to you. Major repairs that need to be done could be cause for renegotiation with the seller. Don't skip this step!
People who are planning to move in the next couple of years are not ideal buyers. Buying and selling real estate is not cheap, so the shorter of time that you will live in your home, the less chance you have of making money on the investment.
Buyers always seem anxious to go out and start shopping, but this is actually not the first thing that needs to be done. You will want to talk to a lender first and get pre-approved for a home mortgage loan. This will ensure that you are looking for homes in your price range. And make sure that you get pre-approved, rather than pre-qualified. The pre-approval process is when the lender bases your qualification on actual financial data and credit worthiness.
Have a look at your credit report at least three months before you're ready to buy. This is actually a good time to have your lender do the pre-approval as well, since the lender can pull your credit report for you. She can help you if there are any issues on your report by giving you advice on what to do to fix them.
Be sure to tell your lender how much you are able to afford each month. A lender can give you a pre-approval amount based on your income, debt and credit, but this may not correlate with your actual comfort with regard to monthly payment. And the most important thing is that you can afford the amount for which you are going to be writing a check each month!
Don't have 20% to put down? This may not be an issue at all. FHA loans only require 3.5% down, and VA loans don't require any! Talk to your lender to see if either of these options are appropriate for you.
Be sure to work with professionals. You will have a mortgage broker or banker handle your loan, and be sure to get a great real estate agent to handle the rest. Although it is easy to search for homes online, remember that the entire process encompasses many steps. If most people purchase two or three homes in their entire life, a great real estate agent probably handles the sale of two or three per month.
Once you fall in love with a home, put on the brakes and do some homework. Actually, your agent will do most of this, including pulling comparable sales, talking to the listing agent to see if there are other competing offers and any big disclosures as to the condition of the home. All of these aspects need to be taken into account when coming up with an offer strategy.
Be sure to hire an inspector. This is sort of an insurance policy before you buy to make sure that the condition of the home is acceptable to you. Major repairs that need to be done could be cause for renegotiation with the seller. Don't skip this step!
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Great real estate websites for your further reading: Mission Hills Real Estate and Second Mortgages.
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