Requirements to by a house in Massachusetts?

Question

My husband and I are getting ready to buy our first home, and it is a scary and stressful stage of our relationship.

Does anyone know what the requirements are for purchasing a home in MA, specifically for first time buyers? What type of credit do you have to have? Are downpayments usually more or less for first timers? What steps should we take to get started?

Any information and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Sorry for the typo...the title should read "Requirements to BUY a house in Massachusetts"....

Answer 1

Of course it's stressful chances are that this will be the biggest investment your family will make and you want to make it knowing that it was done correctly. My advice is get a licensed real estate professional that is ethical and experienced to help you. In almost all cases the agent will be paid by the agent that has the listing. Your agent will hold your hand and explain each of the steps necessary to accomplish a stress free purchase. The first step you will find is to get qualified for borrowing money. This step will determine how much money your income and your debts will allow to be borrowed towards the purchase of a home. So that you can get some kind of background information on buying real estate here are some links that will help you learn about buying real estate.
Once per year free credit report from all three credit reporting agencies:
http://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp
Mortgage Calculators – Includes finding if you will qualify for a mortgage:
http://www.mortgage-x.com/calculators/Pre-Qualifier.htm
DEA Website on methamphetamine homes all states http://searchjustice.usdoj.gov/search?q=National+Clandestine+Laboratory+Register&q=site%3Awww.usdoj.gov%2Fdea&sort=date%3AD%3AL%3Ad1&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=iso-8859-1&oe=UTF-8&client=default_frontend&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&site=default_collection
FTC: High Rate – High Fee Loans (know your rights): http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/homes/32mortgs.htm
FBI Sex offender web sites for all states: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/cac/states.htm
List of all available Federal programs http://www.govbenefits.gov/govbenefits_en.portal;jsessionid=FX2KrmkSYpQNWvJT5M5bCT8d6NfrbMGL2kWh01jgmGKD5HYmGYyj!-1747634320?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=gbcc_page_locate_federal&_nfls=false
Finding out what benefits you are eligible for with the US Government
http://www.govbenefits.gov/govbenefits_en.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=gbcc_page_questionnaire&_nfls=false
Information on any city in the USA: http://www.bestplaces.net/
Information on any school: http://www.greatschools.net/
Buying a home an article from AARP: http://www.aarp.org/money/wise_consumer/financinghomes/a2004-02-18-BuyingAHome.html
Finding available real estate in the US through REALTORS®: http://realtor.com/Default.asp?poe=realtor
These are but a few of the links available relating to what an experienced agent should know and will help you with as you progress in the hunt for your first home purchase
Buena Suerte

Answer 2

What you need to do is sit down with a loan officer and get pre-qualified. They will pull you and your husbands credit scores. This will give you an idea of what you can reasonably spend. Talk to a friend or parent that has already gone through the process. The first time is always the most stressful. Make sure the mortgage company you deal with is reputable. There are many predatory companies out there. Shop around for a good rate on the mortgage. Don't jump into anything you can't afford and don't borrow more than you need to. Attending a first-time homebuyers seminar is a good place to start but remember, they are usually sponsored by a specific lender or mortgage broker. You can call the city or town that you plan on buying and see if they have any programs available also. Good luck.

Answer 3

My husband & I purchased our first home 3 years ago. We had gotten an 80/20 loan (80% purchase price/20% purchase price), so it looked like we had a down payment, but didn't. It was so that we didnt' have to pay the PMI insurance. We had a bad mortgage broker with the purchase of the home and it is was very stressfull situation.
Get with a experienced real estate agent who can recommend a good mortgage broker. We had a good mortgage broker when we refinanced the house last December. Now, we have a loan that is 90% to the value of the home with PMI, got $20,000 out for home renovations, our taxes & insurance are now escrowed and we pay the same as what our payment would have gone up to (the original had an adjustable APR) and that didn't include the taxes & insurance (for the original loan).

You will need pay stubs, 2006 taxes, investments (401k, annuities), credit card statements, etc. Your broker will let you know in more detail what they need.

First step is to figure out what you can afford per month and go with that. Start talking to the real estate agent and the mortgage broker to get a pre approval letter.




Good Luck!

Answer 4

The requirements are no different than for a repeat home buyer like me. Depending on your income and eligibility, however, there may be programs available to you that can help you qualify for a mortgage.

There's an awful lot to think about as a first time home buyer, more than can be addressed here. I bought this book by Ilyce Glink back in 1997. Found it very useful in addressing issues regarding homebuying that I'd hadn't thought about. Passed it along to my relatives to help them as well.

Good luck!

Answer 5

Most of the requirements are usually the same, regardless of the where you are purchasing the home. What may differ are the grants and loan programs offered in MA. Check out the link below for details.

Good luck!