First Time Home Buyer- Where do I start?

Question

My Fiancee and I are hoping to buy a townhome or condo next year, around july. As of now, we have no money saved up, good credit and nowhere to start. What do we do? Tal kto the sales office? Get a home loan?> Do we need collateral? How do we keep the morgatge payments low? We have not idea where to start.

Answer 1

start saving NOW (open a saving account with an online bankd and make weekly contrubitions to it) and you need to get a pre approved loan about 3-4 months BEFORE you start seriously looking into a home. Stay away from ARM's (adjustable rate mortgage) the bigger your downpayment will be the lower your payments could be. You also need insurance for it as well start looking at prices (location is key I know of condos down here in Florida going for 150-200k EASILY) also find out how long the condo has been there how many previous owners (the fewer the better) keep your credit good do not go nuts on your credit cards (if you have any)

for more I recommend MSN http://realestate.msn.com/ website they have a ton of great info why it is NOT GOOD to make extra payments on your mortgage nd you can even compare townhomes from there.

Good luck

Answer 2

If you have a FICO score of 700 or higher, no delinquency reported, no high or outstanding balances this also includes auto loans you qualify for a 100% financing fixed rate loan. With the 80/20 type of loan, You do not need down payment, but you do need funds for the closing cost. Don't rely on the sellers for this, some are nice and will contribute up to 3% which is the maximum allow by law for those costs with an acceptable offer.

Payments are set by the lenders based on the amount of the loan., If you want a fixed rate mortgage, you will pay more than what you currently pay in rent, there's not way around that. Do not to over extend yourselves., Buy up to what your income can afford. The good thing is when you buy, you're building equity on the property., with rent you're simply throwing your money away, making rich someone else.

Deal with a reputable lender, like a bank, if you are clients of Bank of America they have a an excellent program called Mortgage Rewards which is exclusively for it's customers., with this program there's no origination fee, no credit reporting fee, no appraisal fee and you save up to $2,000 off the closing cost. There's also 80% less paperwork involved.

Answer 3

Congratulations of getting married!

You may register and set up at your bank a "bridal registry" that people may add to it as a wedding gift towards a down payment for your home. Apply at the bank 120 days before you want to purchase a home and see what they offer in the way of "first time home buyer" programs. They will tell you what price range to shop for based upon your income, and if you go ahead for pre-approval you will be a better qualified buyer in the eyes of a seller and even more likely able to get a little better terms on your purchase. The bank you choose is important as they will charge you fees to make the mortgage. A bank typically will charge less fees than a mortgage broker. And your agent can ask the seller to pay your closing and pre-paid costs, reducing the money you need to make the buy.

I can not stress enough the importance to you to be sure the bank or whatever lender you do choose can do in- house underwriting approvals. This is very important, otherwise they will require you to supply endless amounts of information to qualify for the loan ( it is bad enough for in-house approval lenders) and the risk is greater that you will be declined. In-house underwriting is where it is approved directly by the lender on site.. Out-house underwriting means they are selling your loan and the buyer of the loan must approve of your credit and it stinks, thus the name "out-house" under writing. Trust me on this one, I've sold a ton of homes and seen a lot of loans and lenders. If they can not approve it in house, I go to one who will.

Find your own real estate broker- and use only a full licensed and full time broker, no affiliate or salesmann only licensed agent. The commission they are paid is the same but the experience and knowledge difference is incredible. Look for credentials like CRB, CRS and GRI. The more of these they have the better the quality agent, and their commission is paid by the seller for you in the price you pay for the home.

Do not buy your home until you are married, it is risky as an unmarried couple, and if you end up not married you don't have that as an additional issue. I've seen that happen before, it is not pretty, worse than working with a divorce situation.

Good luck and best wishes on our upcoming marriage..

Answer 4

Start by speaking with a mortgage broker to get preapproved for a certain amount. This will tell you how much you can borrow. Then, contact a real estate agent who can help you find property in your price range. They will know all you need to know.

I suggest you at least read the real estate part of the book The Truth About Money by Ric Edelman. This will help you truly determine how much you can afford. You don't want to plan poorly or be house poor.

Answer 5

Start with a consultation. Talk to family and friends and see who they recommend for a Loan Officer they've worked with that they trust. Together you'll layout a game plan so you will qualify for a loan down the road.

Answer 6

Check out this Free Report just for first time buyers called
"Stop Renting and Finally Afford Your Own Home"
http://www.yourfreehomebuyingsecrets.com/stop_renting.aspx

The report is provided by a great mortgage consultant that I have worked with myself.

Good luck!

Answer 7

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