Follow these easy steps to get you closer to your goal of owning a home in 2018.
In many markets across the country, the number of buyers searching for their dream homes greatly outnumbers the number of homes for sale. This has led to a competitive marketplace where buyers often need to stand out. One way to show you are serious about buying your dream home is to get pre-qualified or pre-approved for a mortgage before starting your search.
Even if you are in a market that is not as competitive, knowing your budget will give you the confidence of knowing if your dream home is within your reach.
Freddie Mac lays out the advantages of pre-approval in the ‘My Home’ section of their website:
“It’s highly recommended that you work with your lender to get pre-approved before you begin house hunting. Pre-approval will tell you how much home you can afford and can help you move faster, and with greater confidence, in competitive markets.”
One of the many advantages of working with a local real estate professional is that many have relationships with lenders who will be able to help you with this process. Once you have selected a lender, you will need to fill out their loan application and provide them with important information regarding “your credit, debt, work history, down payment and residential history.”
Freddie Mac describes the ‘4 Cs’ that help determine the amount you will be qualified to borrow:
1. Capacity: Your current and future ability to make your payments
2. Capital or cash reserves: The money, savings, and investments you have that can be sold quickly for cash
3. Collateral: The home, or type of home, that you would like to purchase
4. Credit: Your history of paying bills and other debts on time
Getting pre-approved is one of many steps that will show home sellers that you are serious about buying, and it often helps speed up the process once your offer has been accepted.
Many potential home buyers overestimate the down payment and credit scores needed to qualify for a mortgage today. If you are ready and willing to buy, you may be pleasantly surprised at your ability to do so as well.
Ready…
- Stable Paycheck
Having a stable paycheck tells the bank that you can keep a job and thus, commit to regular mortgage payments.
- Savings
Ensure you have ample savings to make up the loan difference as banks only loan up to 80% of the purchase.
- Research
Seek information and stay up-to-date on the latest trends.
Set…
- Credit Score
Having good credit scores will prove to the bank that you can honor your loan.
- Wants vs. Needs
Buying a home is a big decision but just because you want a 4-bedroom house doesn’t mean you need it. Decide wisely!
- Outstanding Loans
Take time now to be as close to debt-free as possible before you borrow or it will reflect poorly on you to the lender.
- Budget
Draft out a plan of budgets based on what is comfortable spending for you to prevent running into extra expenses.
Go!
- Type of Home
Know what you want but also be realistic if it’s your first home.
- Mortgage Pre-Approval
Get pre-approved for a bank loan before jumping into the sales process. Doing so will let you proceed confidently.
Tired of your day job? Need a side hustle? Isn’t everyone searching for a way to balance work and play? Some would say flipping houses is an opportunity to make big money and walk away with much more time for leisure. Could this be true?
I looked into this further and found some quick pros and cons that you may want to know before deciding to embark on your first flip experience.
Pros
- Potential to make a quick profit.
- New experience and opportunity for learning.
- Seeing your vision become a reality. A sense of accomplishment.
- Gain understanding of how to navigate unexpected costs and delays.
- Increased knowledge of overall aspects of construction such as cost of materials or plumbing and electrical repairs.
The Cons
- Potential to lose money and requires some level of risk-taking.
- Unexpected, unbudgeted costs.
- Stress.
- Holding costs.
- Difficulty selling may cause financial burden.
- Higher taxes and losing your profit to taxes.
Heather Krueger specializes in helping first-time flippers with a seamless, positive transaction. Contact her today to get started!
480-712-0210
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