Buying our first home? Help??!?

Question

my fiancee and i are thinking of buying our own home in chicago. what do you think is the right price range we should be shopping for if i make about 75k a year and he makes 100k a year? im clueless on this whole process. we want a nice home, but dont want to be struggling to make payments?!

please give any other first time home buyer tips!

thanks:)

Answer 1

My first suggestion is to purchase a home with a monthly payment that will allow you to still have a life, in other words, don't buy at the top and be house poor.

My second suggestion, find a Realtor that will listen to your needs and not push you into spending that last penny in your pocket.

My Third suggestion, enjoy the process! Start now by writing out a list with two headings; MUST HAVE & WOULD LIKE TO HAVE. Put as many things as you can think of under each one. This will help your Realtor search out those homes that fit most of what you want.

All the other important things you need to know, you will learn from your loan officer and your Realtor. If I can help further, just email me. Good Luck! Have fun!!!

Answer 2

The numbers that the real estate agents will give you as what you can afford will be a lot higher than what you should actually plan on spending. Sure, you can afford it - if you never want a vacation, a nice evening out, any extras.....

Remember, it's in the real estate agent's interest to get you to buy the most expensive house possible, since they get paid a percentage of the purchase price.

You make good incomes, so should be able to afford a nice house, but don't go overboard.

Good luck.

Answer 3

rule of thumb for lenders are about 40% DTI so if all your liabilities and PITI(principal intrest taxes insurance) should be less than 40% for example...if ALL your debts including mortgage comes to 5,500 you need to make at least 14,000 a month which it sounds like you guys do. When buying a house you will have taxes, insurance, electric,water,cable, maint for grass, burglar alarms, pest spray man, upgrades , and a couple other expenses depending on if its a condo or a single family residence. So don't over extend your selves because you will always have "unexpected" things pop up when you are a homeowner. I would get with your mortgage/Realtor broker and ask them how much will your p.i.t.i. be so you and your husband can crunch all your debts and figure out how much you can spend. Hope this helps

Answer 4

You need to get pre-approved by a mortage company before shopping for a home. They will tell you how much they will lend you. You have to take other things into consideration as well...like real estate taxes, personal property tax, bills, home insurance etc. Your will get lower payments the more you put down. I would generally say you can look at homes in the 800,000 range.

Answer 5

I am a Realtor and I think most people are nuts! If you want to have a huge mortgage the loan company will figure out a way to help you. I would rather not. Figure out someplace you can live for less. If you buy for more than $300,000 to at most $350,000 I think you will find yourself stressed out badly at some point.

Answer 6

You have to go to a mortgage company to figure out how much you can afford based on you combined income and monthly expenses. Or at this website www.worldclassfinancialgroup.com there is information on how to figure out how much you house can afford. Just go to the learning center. They can also help you find the best interest rate for your unique situation regarless of credit. I know because i work there and my wife and i got our home loan here also.
Hope this helps!

Answer 7

30% of your gross montly income ($175,000 / 12 = $14,583; $14,583 X 30% = $4,375)

$3,660 / mo. mortgage ($550,000 @ 7%; 30 yr fx)
$630 / mo. Taxes
$85 / mo. Homeowner's Insurance

You can afford a $550,000 mortgage.

Answer 8

go to any Realtor and they have calculators that figure out what you can afford