Your First Home Purchase?

Question

1) How much was your first mortgage?
2) What was the condition of the house?
3) How old were you? How long had been married (if applicable)?
4) What sort of home was it--single family residence, condo, townhome, etc.?
5) What was your mortgage rate?
6) How much was your down payment?
7) What advice could you give to other first time home buyers?
8) How long did you stay in your first home?

The main reason I ask is because the national average to stay in a home is 4 years. We've found a home that at least I believe could be worth it (booming area) AND it a house we could live in for a decade.

I just wanted to see where everyone else stood. :-)

Answer 1

1. 135,000
2. Resale, good condition
3. 22, less than one year married
4. condo, 694 sq. ft.
5. Honestly, I don't know. I remember it was an adjustable loan.
6. $5000
7. ASK LOTS AND LOTS OF QUESTIONS!
8. 1 year
Advice: don't buy your first home as if it was your last, you WILL inevitably move - whether it be due to change in income or family size.
Good Luck to you!

Answer 2

Well I have had a few homes and yes on the avearge people move every 4 years. Worked for Uhaul for 7 years and we had access to thing kind of data. The reason people move is growing or declining family sizes. Look at where you were 4 years ago. A lot can happen right? I bought my first home, a 2 bedroom town home on Long island In 1988 I was single at the time. I put 10% down and had a 117K loan at 11.5%. With in two years I had been trasfered to another state was serious about possibility of getting married. I was in my late 20's at the time. My advice to first time buyer. Don't get in over your head. Maybe sure you can pay the loan and still eat. Buy a home That you like but keep in the back of your head that you might sell it again. Some young people buy 1 bed room condos and such and then can't sell them. I am crrently in my 50's divorced and now planning on building a "retirement home" with fewer stairs and fewer levels and a simpler landscaping. This will be the third Modular home I am having built and I love them. Not a manufactured home but a modular. They go up fast, you can order them like you would a car and get delivered in sections and put on real foundations. The best part is they are usually 20-25% cheeper then a "site built" home. This way as I age I can still live here. Buy something you can afford, have the home checked by an engineer, check the schools out (if you plan on having kids) If you think your staying up then think about growth. Maybe buy a home that could take a second floor if necessary in the future or a wing . Above all else Look Look Look don't let realestste people talk you into anything quick. The home is the largest purchase you make in your life take your time, talk to the neighbors first. Go past the home different days of the week and different hours of the day. Have a engineer look at it. I almost just bought a home a few weeks ago that was sliding down a hill and no one realised it. I noticed all the doors stuck. I placed a tennis ball on the hall floor and it rolled right towards the back of the house. i did it a few times to make sure I was not nuts. Check all the walls for cracks, check the foundation for moisture as best you can before having the expence of an engineer. Go to a Mortgage Bank not a broker you will save the expence of a middle man who has to place you loan with a direct lender anyway. I don't know where you live but the FHA is a great program for first tiem buyers. look into the liberty grant program. They grant people money to buy their first home and the best part isyou don't have to pay it back. http://www.libertygrant.com/. I wish you well

Answer 3

1) $36,500

2) OK, it had been a summer residence for a retired couple for years, so they didn't do much to it, and if they did, it was cheap.

3) 31, divorced for almost 2 years

4) SFH, a 150+ year old house on 1/3 of an acre

5) 5.5% (I think........)

6) $3,000

7) Work with a realtor. Don't be afraid to work with somebody new, because if you are shopping in an inexpensive price range for your area, some more experienced realtors won't devote much time to you. Ask questions, make sure you understand what you are committing to, especially when it comes to your loan. There are ALOT of programs out there, be picky to make sure you get something that will work for you.

8) 6 years. I still keep in touch with the family that bought it.

Good luck!

Answer 4

1) My first mortgage was in the amount of $115,000.
2) It was a condo in a downtown building.
3) I was 22. I was not married when I bought it.
4) Condo.
5) Around 5.85%, very minimal closing costs (<$1000)
6) 24%, $35,000
7) Search, search, search. Look at every place you like. Have someone else with you when looking for a house, preferably someone who has purchased a house before.
8) I am still in it today, I am 25.

Answer 5

$35,000 = Mortgage + Land in 1976
Built new house
24 years old married 3 years
Single family residence
3%
3%
Buy now, price always goes up on property.
Three years.

$153,000 house and land in 2000
Excellent
48 with a partner of 13 years
Single family residence, 2 story.
8%
5% but put more into it.
As above, buy now. In the past 7 years my house has doubled in price.
In this one for seven years now.

Answer 6

$10,000. sold to us by a relative.
It was in fairly good condition, we spend an additional $10000 to fix it up.
23years old
SFR
5.5%
Stayed in it for 4 years sold it for $45000.
I was lucky thanks to the relative. However, as a mortgage broker I will tell you that credit score dictates what your mortgage rate will be. Along with that loan to value is important. In other words, LTV means how much you finance to what the home is actually worth. The less you finance, the less risk the mortgage company has to take, the better the rate. That is the jest of buying a home. If you want to use their money, and your credit score allows you to, you can still get loans at high 5% - low to middle 6% depending on what programs your lender or mortgage broker has to offer. One gentleman said FHA is a good program and it is for 1st time home buyers. However, your closing costs will be higher because they have a $1500. fee they charge up front. Their MI or mortgage insurance is 5% of the payment which isnt bad. On most conforming loans the PMI is between 18% to 35% with most lenders charging the highest rate. If you get a my community loan the PMI is 20%. You can also get a grant for the closing costs. The seller pays for that. I dont know about the grant one of the gentlemen was talking about is free, but I do know that grants is a seller participatory thing. FHA also allows up to 6% seller concessions meaning the seller will pay up to 6% of your closing costs. Some of these things Im stating may vary from state to state so please keep that in mind. The other advice I would give is banks do not have to declare all their closing costs. They can wrap them up in the rate. So what looks like a great closing costs isnt because you are paying that in interest for the years you own the house. If you ask the bank if you can buy down the rate they will give you some number that will make you fall out of your chair, that is the closing costs. Lets flip the coin for a moment and go to a mortgage broker. A mortgage broker has to declare all his charges on a good faith estimate. His rate could be lower than the banks, that is if he is reputable. If it is higher, Id walk. If you want to buy down the rate with a broker, he raises his fees to you, and pays the bank from his fees and shows it as a lenders discount fee. I am a mortgage broker, but I have to admit, there are some brokers out there that are hungry. If their business is down for whatever reason they try to make it up on one client. Charging exuberent fees when they are uncalled for. There are good ones out there as well that will treat you as they would want to be treated. Always remember one thing. It is your money, your home, your loan. Look for the best loan, at the best rate, and depending if you want to put money down or not, pick the right program for you, your budget, your family. One suggestion I may make to you is investigate on the net various terms so that when a bank or mortgage broker starts talking his lingo as it were, you will understand what he is talking about. Key words to remember is:
LTV - Loan to value
PMI or MI - Mortgage insurance which protects a bank if they have to foreclose on you.
PITI - Payments including taxes and insurance
Seller Concessions - That amount that the seller will pay towards your closing costs.
Comforming Lender - Rates tend to be lower and can be run through fannie mae or freddie mac.
Alternative Lenders or subprime loans - Tend to be more expensive in terms of rate percentages. Usually better when it comes to seller concessions, but not for long term loans.
ARM - Adjustable Rate Mortgage - Try to stay away from these unless it is a 5 year or more term. If you get a 100% mortgage I would advise not getting an arm. Anything 95% and up dont do an ARM. Try to stay away from these at all costs.
Prepayment penalty - These are penalties attached to ARM type loans. 2/28, 3/27 are example of ARM loans. They may have a 2 year prepayment penalty and even as high as 3 years. This means if you refinance that property before the prepayment penalty is up, you will be charged as high as 5 to 6% per year on the remaining balance. You may even find them on some fixed mortgages.
These are few of the terms. Enough said. I think everyone has put forth some good advice for you and I think you will be okay. Just remember it is your money!!!!!

Answer 7

1) $120,000
2) Brand new house
3) 23 yo, married for 3 years
4) Single family residence
5) 7.5%
6) $0
7) Make sure you get a good mortgage broker that you can trust and that won't screw you around.
8) We have been living there for 2 years now.

Answer 8

195,000
Wheew !
Good old farm house with acreage.

Check it out and make sure you deal with reputable broker/
Get professional to appraise and tell you the truth and go for it.
I paid 20,00 down and made double payments. I love the old homeplace and plana to stay here forever